‘Once-in-a-Lifetime Whiskey’: Keeper’s Heart Unveils Rare 32-Year-Old Irish Single Malt

(Photo: Keeper’s Heart)

Keeper’s Heart announced this week that it will release its oldest whiskey to date this September, a 32-year-old Irish single malt limited to one barrel. The expression, originally distilled at Cooley Distillery, will be bottled at 54.9% ABV and priced at $2,499.

Master Distiller Brian Nation — who joined Keeper’s Heart after an impressive career leading whiskey-making efforts for brands like Jameson and Redbreast — selected the cask in 2020, before Keeper’s Heart opened its Minneapolis distillery. Made from 100% malted barley, the whiskey matured for more than three decades. Nation said it carries an unusual characteristic: a faint trace of peat from pot stills that had previously produced peated whiskey.

“The pot stills had once been used for peated whiskey and were never fully cleaned,” Nation said in a news release. “That faint wisp of smoke became a beautiful and unexpected part of this whiskey’s identity.”

Keeper’s Heart describes the whiskey as full-bodied, with tropical fruit flavors layered with spice and oak. Tasting notes include mandarin orange, passion fruit, mango, lychee and pineapple, balanced by toasted oak and a long finish with oak spice and subtle smoke.

The 32-year-old Irish Single Malt will be available in September through the O’Shaughnessy Distilling merch store, a direct-to-consumer allocation, and select private retail partners.

Patrick O’Shaughnessy, Keeper’s Heart co-founder, said the release represents the brand’s rarest expression to date. “Every whiskey we release tells a story — but this one is a legend,” O’Shaughnessy said.

Since launching in 2021, Keeper’s Heart has blended Irish and American whiskey traditions under the guidance of Nation, former master distiller for Jameson, Redbreast and Midleton Very Rare. The brand has earned more than 150 industry awards, including World’s Best Irish Whiskey from the New York Spirits Competition.