The Watercourse Distillery was an

Irish whiskey Irish whiskey ( ga, Fuisce or ''uisce beatha'') is whiskey made on the island of Ireland. The word 'whiskey' (or whisky) comes from the Irish , meaning ''water of life''. Irish whiskey was once the most popular spirit in the world, though a lo ...

distillery which was established in

Cork City Cork ( , from , meaning 'marsh') is the second largest city in Ireland and third largest city by population on the island of Ireland. It is located in the south-west of Ireland, in the province of Munster. Following an extension to the city' ...

, Ireland in 1795. In 1867, the distillery was purchased by the

Cork Distilleries Company Cork Distilleries Company was an Irish whiskey distilling company. It was formed in 1867, when four Cork distilleries, Daly's, the Green, North Mall, the Watercourse were amalgamated under one company to form the Cork Distilleries Company. In ...

(CDC), in an amalgamation of five Cork distilleries. Following the amalgamation, the distillery was mothballed for a period at the beginning of the 20th century. However, operations at the distillery were later resumed, with production of yeast, industrial alcohol and grain alcohol occurring at the distillery until the 1970s. Distillation ceased at the facility in 1975, when

Irish Distillers Irish Distillers is a subsidiary of the French drinks conglomerate Pernod Ricard. It is the largest distiller of Irish whiskey, distilling popular brands such as Jameson and Powers, in addition to premium whiskeys such as Redbreast and Midleton ...

, who at that stage owned the Watercourse along with several other distilleries in the Republic of Ireland consolidated its operations in a new, purpose-built distillery in

Midleton Midleton (; , meaning "monastery at the weir") is a town in south-eastern County Cork, Ireland. It lies approximately 16 km east of Cork City on the Owenacurra River and the N25 road, which connects Cork to the port of Rosslare. A satellit ...

. The name of the distillery lives on in the name given by Irish Distillers to a subsidiary which runs the Jameson Experience at the former Jameson Bow Street Distillery in Dublin and the

Old Midleton Distillery The Jameson Experience, Midleton, (also known as the Old Midleton Distillery) is an Irish whiskey museum and visitor centre located in the Old Midleton Distillery in Midleton, County Cork, Ireland. Set over 15 acres, since opening as a visitor' ...

in Cork. The Watercourse Distillery was where

Cork Dry Gin Cork Dry Gin is an Irish gin. First produced in Cork in the Watercourse Distillery circa 1793. Since 1975, Cork Dry Gin has been manufactured by Irish Distillers, a subsidiary of Pernod Ricard, at their Midleton Distillery. Cork Dry Gin is th ...

, the most popular brand of gin in Ireland was originally produced. In the 1960s, Cork Distilleries Company launched a whiskey, called ''Hewitt's'', which paid homage to the Watercourse's original owners. Unusually for an Irish whiskey, Hewitt's was a peated blend. However, this was later reformulated as an unpeated blend, before being discontinued in the 2004.

History

In 1792, a partnership was established by two local butter Merchants, Thomas Hewitt and John Teulon, and London distiller Richard Blunt, which resulted in the construction of the Watercourse Distillery, between 1793-1794 on Watercourse Road,

Blackpool Blackpool is a seaside resort in Lancashire, England. Located on the North West England, northwest coast of England, it is the main settlement within the Borough of Blackpool, borough also called Blackpool. The town is by the Irish Sea, betw ...

, Cork. The distillery and the road on which it was located were named for their proximity to the Kiln river, a tributary of the

River Lee The River Lee (Irish: ''An Laoi'') is a river in Ireland. It rises in the Shehy Mountains on the western border of County Cork and flows eastwards through Cork, where it splits in two for a short distance, creating an island on which Cork's ...

which flows through Cork City. In 1799, Hewitt, Teulon and Blunt were joined by James Morrogh, as an equal partner in the firm, each having invested. By 1834, the other partners having left, the Hewitt's were left as the sole owners of the company, which by that stage traded under the name Hewitt & Co. In 1867, the distillery was purchased by the Cork Distilleries Company (CDC), in an amalgamation of five Cork distilleries. Due to declining whiskey sales, Cork Distilleries Company ceased distilling operations at the Watercourse in the 1880s, though the distillery continued to be used as a grain and malt store, malting facility and bonded warehouse. When Alfred Barnard, the British historian visited the distillery in the 1880s, he stated that over 6,000 barrels of casks of whiskey were maturing at the premises. Circa 1913, CDC began installing equipment for the production of yeast and industrial spirit at the distillery, with production beginning in 1916. The yeast produced at the distillery was marketed under the name "Terrier" by a separate company called the Cork Yeast Company (CYC), displacing imports from Holland; while the industrial alcohol, produced using a Coffey Still, was exported for use in explosives, demand for industrial alcohol in the United Kingdom having grown eight-fold during

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

. Subsequently, traditional distilling operations regained importance, with samples of grain whiskey produced at the Watercourse distillery during this period (1951), recently selling at auction for €1,450. In 1954, the company was renamed as the Watercourse Distillery Ltd. In 1966, the Cork Distilleries Company merged with two of the other remaining Irish distilleries, John Jameson & Son and John Powers & Son to establish Irish Distillers. Following the merger, Irish Distillers chose close their existing distilleries, and amalgamate their operations at a new, purpose-built distillery in Midleton, County Cork, with activity at the Watercouse Distillery coming to a halt soon after. Having lain derelict for some years, much of the distillery was demolished in the mid-1990s during construction of the North Link Road. However, a former bonded warehouse built circa 1800, still stands on the site of the distillery.

References

{{coord missing, County Cork Defunct distilleries in Ireland Buildings and structures in Cork (city) 1795 establishments in Ireland 1870 disestablishments in Ireland