Black Irish
Mariah Carey’s Black Irish Liqueur can’t be sold in the UK or EU as the Black Irish trademark already belongs to Irish company Darker Still Spirits.
In August 2020 Mariah Carey joined the ranks of other celebrities promoting spirits brands: George Clooney, Bruno Mars, Bob Dylan, JAY-Z, and Diddy all spring to mind. The singer and actress announced the US launch of her Black Irish Cream Liqueur, which she said was inspired by her mixed Irish and African-American roots.
Carey hit a snag, however, when she tried to trademark the name in the UK and the EU. The name Black Irish was already trademarked in both markets by Darker Still Spirits, an Irish company who had already released their own Black Irish in May 2020. This is a unique dark spirit that brings together two of Ireland’s biggest liquid exports, Irish whiskey and dark stout.
Since then, Carey’s lawyers have been unsuccessfully trying to persuade Darker Still Spirits to relinquish the trademark, which they are naturally refusing to do, having got there first and already having a Black Irish product on the market before Carey. They acquired their trademark back in 2015, a full five years before Carey.
What is Black Irish?
Black Irish is a triple-distilled blended whiskey that is matured for three years in deep-charred ex-bourbon casks. The whiskey is then blended again, this time with a blend of a strong stout and a barrel-aged stout, which not only turns the spirit black but also helps reduce the cask-strength whiskey to its bottling strength of 40% ABV (80 proof). In a way it’s like having your whiskey and your whiskey chaser in the same glass!
Black Irish Bottle
Not only is the spirit unique, so is the bottle it comes in. It’s designed not like a conventional spirits bottle but more like a giant beer bottle, with a label to match. The top looks odd at first as there’s both a crown cap and a flip-top. When you’ve taken the crown cap off, you can then use the flip-top to reseal it.
Tasting Black Irish
I must admit that I couldn’t quite get my head round what a combination of Irish whiskey and dark stout would taste like. Peculiar, was the first thing that came to mind. However, tasting it was a total surprise and delight. If you take into account the smoother and slightly sweeter nature of Irish whiskey, and then the same for the stout, it’s a perfect match.
Black Irish has delicious aromas and flavours of coffee, caramel and chocolate, with some vanilla, and hints of orange and spices. This is going to make a wonderful and very different after-dinner drink, though I sipped it while cooking dinner and had no complaints. You could mix it with cola or ginger for a long drink, and I think it’ll be amazing poured over vanilla ice-cream.
It’s a very versatile spirit, and the Black Irish website has numerous suggestions as to how to enjoy it in cocktails and what they call shorttails. Tabasco sauce, anyone?
Buying Black Irish
You can buy this direct from the Black Irish website and it’s available in an increasing number of countries internationally. If you’re in the UK you can buy it from Amazon. You can also buy it at Master of Malt, with international shipping.
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