In the tiny village of Ahascragh in County Galway, a new state-of-the-art distillery is changing the way whiskey and gin are made in Ireland.
Ahascragh Distillery is Ireland’s first zero-energy emissions distillery combining age-old tradition and modern innovation to create sustainable premium Irish spirits.
The distillery produces Clan Colla whiskeys and XIN Gin which have won multiple prestigious awards including gold medals at the 2024 San Francisco World Spirits Competition. Ahascragh also recently received an award from the Sustainable Energy Authority of Ireland for Innovative Deployment of Renewable Energy.
Through wind and solar energy combined with high-temperature heat pumps, the distillery has changed the way whiskey and gin are made in Ireland. Working with decarbonisation specialists, the owners of the distillery developed a novel thermal storage and optimal heat recovery process enabling the distillery to recycle energy that would normally be wasted. As a result of this process, Ahascragh was able to achieve a saving of 706 tonnes of CO2 per year. It also tightly monitors water usage, sources local ingredients and uses the most sustainable packaging possible.
CEO of the distillery, Gareth McAllister, who founded the distillery with his wife Michelle, said: “Not only does cutting carbon emissions make environmental sense, but it makes economic sense too. As a result of implementing these processes and efficiencies, we have seen a reduction in our energy bills by 30-40%.”
A tour of the distillery, situated within a restored nineteenth-century mill, is an opportunity to find out more about these sustainable processes and to sample the award-winning spirits.
A new visitor centre under construction will exhibit the salvaged mill equipment and celebrate the history of the building as well as the past and future of the Ahascragh spirit. The undershot water mill wheel, that once powered the twin mill races of Ahascragh Mills, has been restored and will be combined with modern hydro-technology and integrated into the hydro-energy scheme for the distillery.
The Ahascragh whiskeys are branded Clan Colla in reference to the Irish legend of the Three Collas – Caireall Colla Uais, Muiredach Volla Fo Chrí and Aed Colla Menn – brothers who ruled over most of Ireland. Colla Uais became Ard Rí, the High King of Ireland, in the fourth century after slaying the previous Ard Rí, but the brothers were driven from Ireland to Scotland for their crime. They returned with an army and established the kingdom of Airgialla in Ulster. Descendants of the Three Collas are among the noblest families of Ireland and Scotland and the McAllisters are among these.
Throughout the 1800s, McAllister’s Clan Colla Irish Whiskey was known for its exceptional quality. Today the McAllisters have reestablished their spirits as among the best in the world.
