A US spirit company is to start selling Michael Collins-branded whiskey here from next month.
The whiskey, which has sold 120,000 bottles Stateside since it was launched in March, is produced by Ireland's last remaining independent whiskey maker, Cooley Distillery, which supplies to Sidney Frank Importing, a New York-based company which owns and markets the drink.
Sold in an original blend and a single malt, the especially long whiskey bottles are branded with the signature of Collins from the 1921 Treaty.
The idea for the whiskey came from late American billionaire Sidney Frank who read Tim Pat Coogan's book on Collins and used the author as a consultant on the project.
Once listed as the 185th richest man in America, Frank made his fortune through the promotion of Grey Goose vodka and Jagermeister.
Brand manager for Sidney Frank Importing, Abaigeal Hendron, said the company would be aiming to sell the whiskey to 21 to 35-year-olds in "style bars, hotels and restaurants in major urban areas".
So far, 20,000 cases, each containing six bottles, have been sold in the US since March. There has been a recent resurgence in Irish whiskey consumption in the US.
The 700ml bottles will be priced at €34.95 for the original blend and €49.99 for the single malt. It will be distributed in Ireland by Brinkman Beverages from Blackrock in Co Dublin.
Ms Hendron said the company had sales projections of between 3,000 and 6,000 bottles of the whiskey by the end of the year.
Before his death, Mr Frank wanted to develop a brand of whiskey which would challenge the traditional Scotch, Canadian and American drinks.
