First Impressions
Killowen Distillery — Northern Ireland's smallest — sits beside the Mourne Mountains in County Down. Head distiller Brendan Carty uses a rare process: steam infusion with a thumper keg, where rising vapour flows through botanicals on a grid, extracting their essences particularly gently. Only local botanicals: fuchsia blossom, rosehip, elderberry, meadowsweet, and mint, hand-harvested from the surrounding hills.
Tasting
Ten local botanicals steam-infused through a thumper keg. The nose smells like a hillside of wild flowers. On the palate at 40%, Highland botanicals with maritime notes — meadowsweet, mint, elderberry. The finish is floral and clean.
The Bottom Line
Killowen earns a 7 — the rare steam infusion technique and hyper-local botanicals create genuine Mourne Mountain terroir. Northern Ireland's smallest distillery with one of its biggest hearts. At £28, sustainable Mourne craft.
