Old Bushmills Distillery

The Old Bushmills Distillery has been producing Irish whiskey on this site since 1608, making it the oldest licensed distillery in the world. The tour walks visitors through the full production process — malting, mashing, fermentation, distillation in the copper pot stills, and maturation in former bourbon and sherry casks in the warehouses. The finishing tasting covers the three main expressions: Original (the blend), Black Bush (mostly Oloroso sherry matured), and the 10-year single malt.

The distillery itself is a working production facility, not a heritage reconstruction, and the tours feel authentic for this reason. Tours run throughout the day and should be booked in advance, particularly in summer. The distillery shop stocks the full range including some limited-release single cask expressions not widely available elsewhere.

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A story
The distillery's licence dates to 1608, granted by King James I — making it the oldest licensed whiskey distillery in the world, predating its Scottish rivals by a considerable margin. The licence was issued partly because the local spring water, filtered through basalt from the same geological formation as the Giant's Causeway, was considered exceptionally pure. Irish whiskey uses a triple-distillation process rather than the Scottish double-distillation, which is why Bushmills is smoother and lighter than most Scotch.