Ireland, County Antrim. Distillery operational. Owner: Tequila Cuervo La Rojeña

Remaining until 2005 in the fold of the French company Pernod Ricard, which at the time had a monopoly on Irish whiskeys, Bushmills developed near to its southern counterpart Midleton and enjoyed a solid reputation among fans of Irish whiskey. A master of triple distillation, awarding it an inimitably fruity character, and carefully orchestrated maturation, in the late 1990s the distillery released a number of magnificent cask strength, single cask vintages (1988 Rum Barrel, 1991 Sherry Cask, 1990 Bourbon Barrel). The arrival of the new millennium led to the creation of a series of 1975 vintages entitled Millennium Malt. While its two successive owners, Diageo (2005-2014) and Cuervo (2014-present) have continued these bottlings, there have sadly been few innovative developments over recent years.

An Old Bushmills Special Old Liqueur imported to Italy by Pedro Domecq in the 1970s. MAde with whiskies aged in sherry casks, it is the ancestor of the famous Black Bush, named after the colour of its label. Production of Special Old Liqueur was stopped in the 1970s due to a lack of stock.