The issue of whiskey labelling is a hot topic that gets folks irate from time to time.
There are many variations.
Every whiskey producing nation usually has a set of rules & regulations governing their labels. What is allowed in one jurisdiction may not be permitted in another.
Before any label adorns a bottle of whiskey it generally has gone through some form of approval system.
In the main I’d be accepting of what is – or is not – mentioned on the label as having passed all these checks & balances and therefore legally sound.
Nothing written on the label ultimately alters the taste of the whiskey inside – it’s only a way of informing the customer of what is in the bottle.
I’m happy to drink any bottle that’s been labeled accordingly as whiskey – and trust my palate to decide wether the contents are to my tastes or not – irrespective of what the label says.
The latest row erupted over a bottle of Lambay Irish Whiskey. Here is the back label.
I thought I’d add to the debate with a photo of a Jameson Irish Whiskey borrowed from a US blogger’s review here I happened to have read at the time.
Applying my accepting position equally I’m happy with the story of Lambay using water from the island in their whiskey making process.
I’m also happy to accept Jameson hails from Bow St Distillery. Which is how another US based blogger interpreted the label here.
The difference is, Bow St Distillery closed it’s doors in 1971.
So my open question to the whiskey community as a whole, and Jameson in particular is simply – What is the message on the bottle?
Sláinte
WestmeathWhiskeyWorld 