Whiskey Clubs
The Aviators Whiskey Club: Is Ireland’s friendliest whiskey society also its most influential?
Oct
Northern Exposure: (Above, from left) Liam Brogan, Two Stacks, Brendan Carty, Killowen Distillery, Shane McCarty, Two Stacks and Annie David, Two Stacks
One of Ireland’s largest whiskey clubs has turned 10 years old. Gary Quinn popped into the celebration tasting to find out what makes it tick – and meet its members
It’s standing room only in Dublin’s Kealy’s Of Cloghran for the Aviators 10th-anniversary tasting. Nestled in the shadow of Dublin Airport, this family-run pub has become a solid anchor in the story of The Aviators Whiskey Society, which has grown into one of the most influential whiskey societies in the country.
“My biggest worry in the buildup to a tasting is will there be a funeral that day,” says Paul O’Farrell, a founding member of the Aviators, with a wry smile. “Because then the room is booked for the day, and we must let that happen. We meet in a family pub, a community pub, and that kind of event takes first place.”
Established to harness and train for the opportunity of driving whiskey sales in the airport’s duty-free, the Aviators quickly became a launchpad for every style and flavour of whiskey in Ireland, with a membership way beyond the airport staff.
“We’re so privileged. Distilleries come to us asking to work with us. We’re booked up for the next 12 months already. But it’s so important. I’m a whiskey ambassador at the airport, and I get to meet all these incredible whiskey makers as they head off around the world promoting their brands,” Paul explains. “But we also get a chance to build relationships with them in the club. They meet our members and plan product launches with their customers. There’s training on both sides.”
It’s amazing to see how the club has grown,” he says. “Just watching people arrive and make friends over years of meetings and still getting so excited about whiskey. It’s a wonderful thing to do.”
Two Stacks & Killowen
A duo of Co Down whiskey makers – Two Stacks and Killowen Distillery – won the honour of pouring their creations for the 100-plus members packed into the Aviator’s 10-year birthday celebration.
Two Stacks and Killowen are fast friends in the whiskey business, driving new bottlings, special releases and international headlines from their whiskey homes in Northern Ireland’s Co Down. Brendan Carty, the owner and distiller at Killowen, says the Aviators represent the grassroots for him: the chance to meet the real people driving whiskey – his customers. “But it also creates routes for all of us to market, especially in the airport. Brands can make relationships here that don’t happen elsewhere. It’s essential.”
Annie David ran the first Two Stacks tasting a year before and says she is beyond honoured to be invited back for their big night out. “It’s a real pleasure to be invited back on such a big night and to pour something special for everyone, including our Double Irish Cream liquor, which was a big hit last year.”
With six whiskies per head, including a surprise pour, that’s a lot of whiskey glasses and setup. “The committee work hard behind the scenes. Not just organising the visiting distilleries but planning, managing memberships, and just being there for everyone,” Paul O’Farrell explains.
Single Cask Bottling
For the birthday event, the Aviators partnered with Two Stacks to bottle a 10-year-old single pot still, originally distilled by Dingle Distillery and finished by Two Stacks in a Widow Jane Bourbon cask from Brooklyn. “We tried quite a few cask samples to find the perfect 10-year-old for our birthday,” Paul O’Farrell says, “but when five of us travelled up to Two Stacks to try this one, we all agreed. It’s a beautiful whiskey.”
The single cask programme at the Aviators took a lot of work to establish at first, but now they have casks laid down with whiskey makers all over Ireland, including the Shed Distillery in Drumshanbo, West Cork Distillery, and most recently, the Old Carrick Mill Distillery in Co Monaghan. So, bottling a special once-off release was the perfect way to mark the date.
Meet some of the members of the Aviators:
Sharon Breen has been a member of the Aviators for three years.
“Every tasting I come to is such a social experience. The members all come from different backgrounds and with totally different degrees of knowledge. It’s just always a great laugh. I honestly feel that my heart is fuller after every tasting. It’s just a wonderful club. When Hendrick and Stefan from Grace O’Malley Whiskey came in it was terrific to hear them bring their story to life. I loved their whiskey but hearing how they did it, the journey they are on. That was the best part. It’s getting to meet whiskey makers every month that makes it so great.”
Callan Quinn is a retired baker from Blackrock in Dundalk who has been making the 150km roundtrip journey to Kealy’s every month for six years.
“It’s such a great group of people and the knowledge we get is terrific. Every tasting is different but Redbreast always stands out for me. I just love that rich fruity flavour and the way Irish Disitillers teach us about it is superb. The weekends away are great too. We took trips to Clonakilty and Dingle and the friendship on the bus and with distillery staff is priceless. I love coming. It’s a tonic.”
Sharon Martin has been with the Aviators since the very first meeting.
“It’s been such an education. I worked in Duty Free and our first meeting was in the Burger King in the airport – but look at us now. All these fabulous people just loving whiskey and enjoying their time together in Kealy’s. At the start I thought it would be good training for my job to be able to understand and describe whiskey, but it’s been such an amazing experience since. If I was forced to choose, I’d have to say the Writer’s Tears tasting was one of my favourites. I love all those wine flavours. I think women enjoy that connection with whiskey and wine casks. I certainly do.”
Michael Freeney joined the Aviators in 2016.
“I love meeting the people here. They’re so welcoming, and there’s no snobbery. It’s much more than a whiskey club. This great mix of people I’ve never met before. And we talk gin and vodka too. The Christmas tastings are brilliant. IDL always goes way beyond what you’d expect and delivers something really special. I think last time they gave us this 28-year-old single pot still that very few other people will ever get to try. It’s such a festive experience. Bushmills also stick in my memory as a great tasting. I think they did the entire Causeway Coast collection once. Some really old bottles. I buy whiskey all the time and it’s because of what I taste here. It’s just a great club.”
Yolanta Kaleya has been with the Aviators since day one.
“I’m a whiskey ambassador in the airport, so joining the club was perfect for me. I love my job and getting to come here and feel the atmosphere and friendship is fantastic. I’ve learned so much. The trips we’ve been on are such a highlight – we’ve been to Dingle and Midleton. Great fun and terriffic value for money. The way the club membership has grown is amazing. We get to try whiskey from other countries too – the Scotch and Japanese nights we did were great. Dominic Roskrow, the writer, visited with his book on Japanese whisky. I loved that – it was a whole new world of whiskey for me.”
Click here to read more of our whisky club features on the Single Malt Shop blog
