Irish whiskey – like its American cousin – continues to grow in popularity, with a 2021 surge in U.S. sales of more than 16.3% according to the Distilled Spirits Council of the United States. This momentum is not lost on Luxco’s Niche Drinks team, which is responsible for sales and promotion of the Irish brands The Quiet Man® Irish Whiskey and Saint Brendan’s® Irish Cream. This fall, the team took a trip to Ireland to immerse themselves in the rich history and culture that inspired these popular, award-winning brands.

The sales team visited Derry, where Niche Drinks is based; Belfast, the hometown of The Quiet Man founder Ciaran Mulgrew; and Dublin, where the team took a cocktail class, making drinks using The Quiet Man Irish Whiskey. “The goal of the trip was to meet the people behind these incredible Irish brands and to have an immersive brand experience,” said Niche Drinks Brand Manager Allison O’Brien. “Spending time with Ciaran, whose father – a bartender in Belfast for more than 50 years – served as the inspiration behind The Quiet Man, gave everyone a deeper understanding and appreciation of the brand as well as a great story to share.”

As Ciaran spoke about his dad and what it meant to him to have a brand named in honor of his father, a local video crew was on hand to document his story as part of a larger piece on the brand’s history.

The video crew also interviewed Niche Managing Director Nial Douglas, who spoke with the crew and sales team about his day-to-day responsibilities at Niche, what the future looked like in terms of growth and innovation, and how honored he was to continue the legacy of Niche and the brands.

“Taking this trip allowed us to see firsthand just how special our craft brands really are,” said O’Brien.