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The Ardara Distillery
The Ardara Distillery
  • The Distillery
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    • Ardara Single Malt Irish Whiskey
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In a dimly lit tasting room with walls made of stacked barrel ends, a large group of people sits around a long wooden table for a whiskey tasting session. On the left, a presenter stands near shelves of bottles and a video screen, while several attendees are captured in the act of sampling their drinks. In a dimly lit tasting room with walls made of stacked barrel ends, a large group of people sits around a long wooden table for a whiskey tasting session. On the left, a presenter stands near shelves of bottles and a video screen, while several attendees are captured in the act of sampling their drinks.
Tours

The Ardara Distillery Tasting Tour

Join us in Ardara to explore the story of Irish spirits reborn, crafted with passion in the heart of Donegal.
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Two men in casual attire, one wearing glasses and a black t-shirt and the other a gray v-neck sweater, engaged in conversation next to copper distilling equipment and a spirit safe inside a modern industrial distillery.

Our Tasting Tour begins with an introduction to The Ardara Distillery and a tour of our working Distillery.

You will get to see or team of Donegal Distillers in action as they work to an output of 450k of Donegal Spirits per annum.

Duration: 1.5 hrs

We built the Ardara Distillery specifically to reclaim the distilling heritage of Donegal – a county famed for it’s illicit distilling heritage (and James Doherty, our founder is the grandson of 2 illicit distillers) and well documented for its smoky approach to whiskey particularly peated malt.

A top-down, close-up shot of a black cast-iron pot sitting on top of a wooden barrel. The lid is partially open, revealing a pile of Peated Malt Barley inside. The words

At the Ardara Distillery we are committed to making heavily peated Irish Whiskey and harnessing the processes that are little used in a modern context. Rather than build a conventional single malt distillery we have built a distillery around the illicit process of “all grains in” distilling that were used in Donegal in the 19th Century.

The philosophy has been to make a whiskey as distinctive and with as profound sense of place as Donegal itself. It’s my belief that the know-how we have developed that respects the illicit process allied to the most effective of modern equipment has produced a highly distinctive style of smoky whiskey that balances sweet and smoke even at a young age.

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What are some of the key highlights on the tour ?

Hammer mill

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Using a hammer mill creates an even 2mm grist rather than the mixed particle sizes of a roller mill. This keeps all the character including that of the husk in the process. We have a 2 tonne batch size.

Grains in

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We do not lauter at the end of mashing, we use a mash conversion vessel with no filter bed before transfer to the fermenters after mashing. The effect of this is that the hydrophobic nature of the phenols, guacols etc. remain adhered to the grain particles which would be lost in a conventional mashing when the grain is removed at the end of the mashing process. We have 2 cooks per day.

Fermenting on the grain

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We ferment on the grain and have agitation in the wash backs to prevent the grain settling out. We ferment for 72 hours. Fermenting on the grain stresses the yeast as it has been bred for clearer environment. We get additional esthers from this which include the waxy mouth feel.

Three large, gleaming copper pot stills connected by intricate piping, situated on a metal grate floor inside a modern distillery with a massive glass wall overlooking green fields.
In a symmetric, wide-angle shot of the Ardara Distillery interior, two rows of large, stainless steel fermentation tanks lead the eye toward three gleaming copper pot stills in the background. The facility features a high, gabled ceiling with industrial beams and purple accent lighting, while a massive floor-to-ceiling glass wall at the far end offers a view of the landscape outside.
Two bottles of Ardara Single Malt Irish Whiskey sit side-by-side on a wooden surface against a backdrop of stacked barrel ends. The amber-colored spirits are presented in clear glass bottles with black labels featuring a dragonfly emblem.
An image showing two people kneeling on a rocky shoreline under a moody, overcast sky. Both individuals are wearing dark outdoor jackets with a circular logo on the chest and are focused on examining small dark objects, likely seaweed or marine life, among the rocks. The man on the left wears a green flat cap and blue fingerless gloves, while the woman on the right is dressed in similar dark gear and black boots. In the background, white waves crash against the shore under a dark, heavy sky, with a rugged coastline visible in the distance.
Six small wooden barrels with glass ends showing whiskey at various stages of aging, displayed on a black wooden rack labeled with years 1 through 12.
An aerial view of the modern, black-gabled Ardara Distillery building with its expansive glass facade reflecting a nearby pond, situated among lush green hills and industrial equipment.

The Tasting Room

After your tour of the distillery you will be brought into our tasting showroom where you will be brought through our seasonal tasting tour.

This season we are showcasing:

  • An Dúlumán Gin
  • Dark Silkie
  • Ardara Single Malt Irish Whiskey
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This season we are showcasing:

A high-angle, top-down lifestyle photograph of a dark bottle of An Dúlamán Irish Maritime Gin resting on a textured gray surface. The bottle is surrounded by two elegant coupe glasses filled with a light-green cocktail, each garnished with a single dark green leaf. Dehydrated botanicals, a silver bar spoon, and a long, thin garnish stem are scattered artistically around the drinks, creating a moody and sophisticated coastal aesthetic.

An Dúlamán

An Dúlamán Irish Maritime Gin is a premium Irish gin, distilled less than a mile from the Atlantic coast in Co. Donegal.
Discover An Dúlamán

Dark Silkie

A whiskey of unapologetic character, born from Donegal’s smoky soul and bold tradition.
Discover Silkie Irish Wiskey
Front view of a clear glass bottle filled with amber-colored Ardara Single Malt Irish Whiskey. The black label features a teal dragonfly logo and white text. The bottle is set on a rustic wooden table with a warm, out-of-focus background.

Ardara Single Malt

Crafted with an “all grains in” process and matured in wooden soleras, it captures the wild balance of smoke and sweetness unique to Donegal.
Discover Ardara Single Malt
  • Amazing distillery experience. Got to see the their own processes and standards, and learn about the special local ingredients that they solely use in their recipes. Offer some larger bottle options to go as well as smaller sampler options.
    Josh L.
  • Offer some larger bottle options to go as well as smaller sampler options. Amazing distillery experience. Got to see the their own processes and standards, and learn about the special local ingredients.
    L. Josh
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