The Still & The VineSchool of Wine & Spirits
Bushmills 12 Year Old Single Malt
Irish WhiskeyIssue 59

Bushmills 12 Year Old Single Malt

Bushmills · Old Bushmills Distillery

80 proof12 YearCounty Antrim, Northern Ireland
Bushmills 12 is a study in gentleness with purpose. Every element is present in proportion — fruit, malt, wood — without any single note attempting to lead. It's the kind of whiskey that demonstrates how triple distillation and patient maturation can create cohesion rather than simplicity.

Kit Aromas

Tasting Notes

Nose

Gentle honey and vanilla lead, followed by ripe peach and a hint of toasted almond. There's a delicate floral rosewater quality and a whisper of malt that holds everything together.

Palate

Smooth and medium-bodied, with buttery cereal sweetness meeting green apple brightness. Vanilla builds through the mid-palate, and a subtle woody spice arrives late, adding just enough complexity.

Finish

Medium, clean, and warming, with lingering honey and a soft almond fade.

Specifications
Distillation
Triple distilled in copper pot stills
Maturation
Aged 12 years in ex-bourbon and Oloroso sherry casks
Single Pot Still
No
Chill-Filtered
Yes
Serve & Pair

Cocktail Suggestion

Antrim Orchard — 2 oz Bushmills 12 Year Old · 1 oz fresh apple juice · 0.5 oz honey syrup · 0.25 oz lemon juice · Shake with ice, strain into a coupe, garnish with a thin apple slice.

Food Pairing

Baked brie with honeycomb and walnuts

The Story

Holding a license dating to 1608 — the oldest on record in Ireland — Old Bushmills Distillery in County Antrim has triple-distilled its malt whiskey through centuries of upheaval, always returning to the same limestone water source from the River Bush.

Train These Aromas
Comments

Be the first to comment.

Leave a comment

0 / 4,000

First-time comments are reviewed before appearing. Be kind, be specific, no spam.

More from Old Bushmills Distillery
More Irish Whiskey Reviews
Waterford Sheestown Edition 8.1 Single Malt Irish Whiskey
Irish Whiskey

Waterford Sheestown Edition 8.1 Single Malt Irish Whiskey

Waterford

Waterford's single farm origin concept makes the barrel's influence a controlled variable, letting the barley itself speak. This Sheestown edition shows how terroir and restrained oak maturation can produce a whiskey of elegant precision. It's intellectual without being austere.

100 proof
Midleton Dair Ghaelach Bluebell Forest Tree No. 4
Irish Whiskey

Midleton Dair Ghaelach Bluebell Forest Tree No. 4

Midleton

Midleton's Dair Ghaelach series is a masterclass in how maturation vessel transforms spirit. Tree No. 4 from Bluebell Forest showcases the furnace-like intensity of virgin Irish oak tamed by the decades-long patience of pot still maturation. At cask strength, it's a riveting study in heat shaped by time—bold, complex, and unmistakably Irish.

114.2 proof
Teeling Blackpitts Peated Single Malt Irish Whiskey
Irish Whiskey

Teeling Blackpitts Peated Single Malt Irish Whiskey

Teeling

Teeling's Blackpitts is a reminder that Irish whiskey and peat were once inseparable. The triple-distilled spirit softens the smoke into something nuanced and approachable. Named after the area of Dublin where malt was historically dried over peat fires, this is a history lesson in a glass.

92 proof
Writers' Tears Marsala Cask Finish
Irish Whiskey

Writers' Tears Marsala Cask Finish

Writers' Tears

This Marsala Cask Finish demonstrates what a well-chosen cask can do when the base spirit already has structure. The pot still component provides enough backbone that the finishing cask flatters rather than masks. A distinctive Irish whiskey that rewards slow sipping.

90 proof