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Whiskey distilling is a centuries-old practice in Ireland and Dublin is at the heart of it. It’s the perfect destination to visit as a whiskey fan! Not only are there a handful of distilleries to tour (including the famous home of Jameson), there’s also a museum dedicated to all things Irish whiskey and bars where you can taste any whiskey your heart desires!
Every distillery in Dublin offers their own unique tours, along with extended experiences ranging from cocktail-making lessons to crafting your very own blend. Some also have full bars onsite, giving you the option to skip the tours and go straight to the drink. Tours are great and all, but taking a tour at every single distillery can wear you out. Pick a couple of stops for the tour experience and roll up to the bar for a flight tasting at the others. It’s called balance!
Even better, most of the whiskey distilleries and experiences listed in this post are in what is known as the Whiskey Triangle. This means they are all conveniently located within a 25-minute walk or less of each other! If you have a passion for learning about all things whiskey when in Dublin, making it to at least a few of these within a couple of days will be a piece of cake.
Best Whiskey Experiences in Dublin
From touring some of Ireland’s famous distilleries to tasting your way through flights of the Irish “water of life,” here are some of the best ways to enjoy Dublin as a whiskey lover.
1. Tour the Jameson Distillery Bow St.
Website | Bow St, Smithfield, Dublin 7, D07 N9VH, Ireland
If you only do one whiskey-themed activity in Dublin, let it be the tour at the Jameson Distillery Bow Street!
While this location is not where the goods are actually distilled (that happens at the Midleton Distillery in County Cork), the tour of the Bow Street location will be well worth your time. Learning about the history of Jameson and the distilling process paired with a whiskey tasting is informative, entertaining, and tasty!
The Bow Street Distillery also boasts a full bar in the entry where you can enjoy drinks either before or after the tour (you can also visit the bar without a tour). We sipped on several different whiskeys here (one of which you can only purchase bottles of at the distillery), along with our first Irish coffee on that trip to Dublin. And bonus – the basic tour at Jameson includes a whiskey-based drink which we enjoyed after the tour!
Book a Jameson tour here. I highly recommend getting the cask draw add-on where you taste whiskey straight from a cask in the maturation room.
2. Get a Whiskey Flight at Teeling Distillery
Website | 13-17 Newmarket, The Liberties, Dublin 8, D08 KD91, Ireland
Over in The Liberties neighborhood, you’ll find a handful of distilleries – including Teeling Distillery. While Teeling does offer several different distillery tours that include tastings, tours are not required to taste their whiskey! You can roll up to the Bang Bang Bar and order a sample flight, along with specialty cocktails, to sip at your leisure.
The Bang Bang Bar area is quite spacious with plenty of spots to cozy up and hang out for a bit while you sip away. Settle into a booth or grab a table next to a window with views overlooking Newmarket Square. If the weather is nice, they’ve also got an outdoor terrace with rooftop views of Dublin City!
If you are interested in a tour, there are several different options starting at €20. Book a tour at Teeling here: https://teelingdistillery.com/tasting-tours/
3. Visit the Irish Whiskey Museum
Website | 119 Grafton Street, Dublin, D02 E620, Ireland
Whether you’re passionate about Irish whiskey or simply a curious beginner, the Irish Whiskey Museum in the heart of Dublin is the perfect place to dive into all things whiskey.
On a guided tour here, you’ll learn a history of how Irish whiskey came to be and work your way through a tasting of at least three different whiskeys (depending on the option you select). You’ll also take away knowledge on whiskey distillation techniques, as well as a general understanding on identifying the different characteristics, aromas, and flavor profiles of Irish whiskey. This would be a great activity to do at the start of any trip in Ireland before visiting individual distilleries!
Basic tours at the Irish Whiskey Museum come with three tastings, or you can choose from more premium options with additional tastings, a blending experience where you can craft your own whiskey blend, and even an Irish coffee making masterclass. Book your experience here!
This is one activity that we did not have time to fit into our last visit to Dublin. I am excited to add it to our itinerary next time we’re there.
4. Taste Whiskey at Roe & Coe
Website | 92 James St, The Liberties, Dublin 8, D08 YYW9, Ireland
If I had to choose one distillery in Dublin with the best-tasting whiskey, it would be Roe & Coe! We love Jameson and drink it regularly, but the Roe & Coe whiskeys are very unique in flavor profile. We opted not to take a tour here and went to their Power House Bar instead to order a couple of flights. Our bartender did a great job explaining all of the different characteristics of the whiskeys we sampled!
The bar itself is a beautiful space and is a relaxing spot to taste whiskeys and craft cocktails at a leisurely pace. I highly recommend sampling the Cask & Keg Citra IPA blend, which was my favorite of the bunch. Who knew whiskeys could showcase light flavors like citrus sherbet, white peach, apricot jam, and grapefruit peel?
From June to September, the distillery opens up their Power House Garden to enjoy the better weather. Here, they host restaurant pop-ups that work with the bartenders to pair delicious eats with handcrafted cocktails. Book a seat in advance!
I hear the guided experiences at Roe & Coe are pretty great too, with two different options offered to visitors:
- The Flavours Experience, which includes a cocktail workshop that guides you through the flavor profiles that make great cocktails; and
- The Blending Experience, which explores the distilling process and the art of blending. This experience includes a whiskey tasting, along with a chance to create your own blend.
Both options include a tour of the distillery, along with a complimentary cocktail at the Power House Bar at the end of the experience! Reserve these tours in advance online.
Pro tip: Roe & Coe is located close to the Guinness Storehouse. I suggest putting these two stops together in one day on your itinerary.
Read through my full One-Week Ireland Itinerary for more suggestions on building your own Ireland itinerary
5. Tour the Pearse Lyons Distillery
Website | 121-122, James St, The Liberties, Dublin, D08 ET27, Ireland
Pearse Lyons Distillery is a unique one, occupying the restored St. James Church in The Liberties neighborhood. Pearse Lyons offers several types of experiences at the distillery to choose from, including a traditional tour of with tasting, a gin school, cocktail making class, and an option to craft your own blend.
Do note that you need to book one of the distillery experiences offered in order to get a tasting here! We tried to walk in just to taste, found out that we couldn’t, and had just missed the hourly tour. Unfortunately, we didn’t have time to wait for the next tour so this one will be on our list for the next visit.
I recommend booking a Pearse Lyons experience ahead of time online here.
6. Check out the Dublin Liberties Distillery
Website | 33 Mill St, The Liberties, Dublin, D08 V221, Ireland
As its name suggests, the Dublin Liberties Distillery is located in The Liberties near the neighboring Teeling Distillery. Dublin Liberties’ highly-rated tours include a welcome drink of Dubliner Irish Whiskey Liqueur (Honeycomb) and are followed by a guided tour of the facility and further tasting of whiskeys.
According to some reviewers, you can also visit the bar at the distillery for a tasting flight if you aren’t interested in a tour (though I can’t confirm this from their website). This will definitely be a stop on my next visit to Dublin!
7. Order Unique Whiskeys at The Whiskey Reserve
Website | 17/18 Temple Ln S, Temple Bar, Dublin, D02 E735, Ireland
Take a break from distillery hopping and visit The Whiskey Reserve – a premium whiskey bar located in the Temple Bar neighborhood of Dublin.
Featuring Ireland’s largest collection of whiskeys, guests can sample from a collection of over 2,000 unique bottles. If you’re overwhelmed by choices, your server or bartender can make recommendations according to your taste and budget. The Whiskey Reserve also offers different tasting flights, such as their Taste of Ireland featuring four pours of different Irish whiskeys for €40.
The bar itself is tastefully decorated with friendly and helpful staff. I definitely recommend popping in here even if just for one drink!
Will you be adding any of these whiskey experiences to your Dublin itinerary?
Hotel Pro Tip: A great place to stay in Dublin for whiskey lovers is the Hyatt Centric Liberties, conveniently located close to Teeling and Dublin Liberties Distilleries. Dublin is an incredibly walkable city – we were able to walk to all of the above easily from the Hyatt!
Book the Hyatt Centric Liberties on Hotels.com, Booking.com or direct.
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