Jameson is a brand of Irish whiskey that has been owned by the Pernod Ricard group since 1988. Jameson is the second most popular Irish whiskey in the world after Bushmills, with annual sales of 1.4 million cases worldwide, and is sold in 120 countries.
Jameson was founded in 1831 by John Jameson in Dublin, Ireland. In 1976, it was acquired by the French liquor company Pernod Ricard, which owns other premium brands such as Chivas Regal, The Glenlivet, Beefeater gin, Absolut Vodka and Malibu rum. In 2007, Pernod Ricard announced that it would invest €100 million (US$150 million) in upgrading its Midleton Distillery to produce more pot still whiskey.
The Jameson Distillery is located at St. James’s Gate Brewery on the south side of Dublin city centre. It was purchased by William Grant & Sons of Perthshire (Scotland) in December 2000. Its production capacity is approximately 4 million litres per annum (of which 2 million litres are made up by single malt). Most of this output goes into blends such as Jameson Original
Jameson Irish Whiskey is made from water, malted barley and yeast. The distillation process takes place at 96% alcohol by volume (ABV). The spirit is then diluted to 40% ABV with Irish soft water before being matured for over three years in American oak barrels.
The Jameson Distillery also produces Jameson Caskmates, a unique whiskey which is matured in specially selected ex-bourbon casks previously used to mature Scotch Whisky. It is released as part of a limited edition series that includes variants such as Sherry Finish, Port Finish and Madeira Finish.
