Bunratty Winery

Bunratty,  Co. Clare

Tel: 061 362222 
Fax: 061 362227

e-mail: info@bunrattymead.net
website: www.bunrattymead.net

Standing in the shadow of the famous 15th century Bunratty Castle, Bunratty Winery is the home of the most mystical drinks in Ireland Bunratty Mead and Bunratty Potcheen. Mead was first discovered by Irish monks in the middle ages and it became the chief drink of the Irish and was often referred to in Gaelic poetry. Mead's influence was so great that the halls of Tara, where the high kings of Ireland ruled, were called the House of the Mead Circle. Its fame spread quickly and soon no medieval banquet was complete without mead.

The seductive aroma of Bunratty Mead is the result of marrying pure honey and fruit of the vine together with selected herbs to create this sensual wine. In olden times, the bride and groom would drink mead for one full moon after their wedding hence the term `honeymoon' still used today. Mead is believed to have magical powers of fertility and virility! "If music be the food of love, then Bunratty Mead is surely the drink of passion!"

The winery's other major product is Bunratty Potcheen the original Irish spirit now available for the world to savour. This clear, smooth liqueur was banned in 1661 and for centuries could only be obtained illegally. Bunratty Potcheen, the treasured spirit of Ireland, was the first to be legally produced and bottled in Ireland. Also known as moonshine or mountain dew, it is a fiery tipple made from malt and barley fermented with yeast and distilled.

Distilled for its smooth, extra strong taste this potcheen has an impressive `nose' similar to fermenting mash in a brewery, its taste is dry and grainy with a delightful aftertaste that sweetens as it develops. Both the potcheen and the mead are available in either bottles or decanters.