Tullamore DEW VS. Jameson Irish Whiskey Review

Deciding which Irish whiskey to buy in the coming weeks will be difficult. There is quite a bit of cheap but good Irish whiskey on the shelf. Still, two names absolutely dominate this conversation – Jameson Irish Whiskey and Tullamore DEW Irish Whiskey. Which begs the question, which is better and is it worth spending hard-earned money?

To be fair, these whiskeys are very similar.

They are both “triple distilled” Irish whiskey blends (although not exactly the same, which I will discuss below). They have the same Proof/ABV. They both cost less than $30 and can be found on pretty much every single liquor aisle coast to coast. Tully is made in central Ireland. Jameson is made in Midleton in County Cork deep in the south of Ireland. Both are marketed as blended whiskeys. Tullamore has a huge advertising campaign for Tully & Tonic. Jameson is being auctioned off as a base for ginger ale whiskey highballs with a hint of lime.

To settle this battle of Irish whiskeys, I did a blind tasting of neat pours in a Glencairn glass. That is, I let my wife pour me a glass and handed it to me without knowing what it was. I even closed my eyes so I couldn’t see the color. Why? These look nearly identical, but Tullamore is slightly more amber.

So which one is better? Jameson or Tullamore DEW? let’s find out

Also Read: The Top 5 UPROXX Irish Whiskey Posts of the Last Six Months

Part 1: The Irish Whiskey Tasting

taste 1

Flavor notes:

Nose: Light green chili is accented by lemon candy, soft maltiness, hints of sweet grass and honey-dipped almonds on the nose.

Palate: The palate opens with hints of chocolate malt with a dash of vanilla alongside creamy honey, nutty cakes and hints of woody spice barks with just a hint more of that dry sweet grass.

End: The fermentation water comes through at the end, but doesn’t unduly dull the honeyed nuts and smooth grassy maltiness.

First thoughts:

The lemon on the nose means it must be Jameson. Other than that it was nice overall. There were layers that felt simpatico and built towards something.

taste 2

Flavor notes:

Nose: Sweet malt biscuits and bright orchard fruit dominate the nose with hints of fresh pear, green grass and autumn leaves with hints of black pepper.

Palate: Butterscotch and sweet honey malt push the taste towards fresh pear slice with orange oils and a hint of nuttiness.

End: There are hints of spicy oak and soft malt on the finish with hints of vanilla, but it all fades to watery nothingness fairly quickly.

First thoughts:

It starts out so strong, but then it just sort of goes away.

Part 2: Ranking Jameson and Tullamore DEW

2. Tullamore DEW Irish Whiskey Triple Distilled – Flavor 2

ABV: 40%

Average price: $24

The whisky:

Tullamore’s entry-level whiskey is a blend of triple-distilled single grain, single malt and single pot (malt and unmalted barley mash) whiskeys. These spirits are then matured in a combination of refillable whiskey casks, ex-bourbon and ex-sherry casks before being blended, tasted and bottled.

bottom line:

This one started much stronger than the Jameson but just couldn’t survive the landing. It washes out quite dramatically and quickly on the finish, leaving little on the palate. It’s a shame as this is the more complex single malt whiskey with an extra cask in the blend.

1. Triple Distilled Jameson Irish Whiskey – Flavor 1

ABV: 40%

Average price: $29

The whisky:

The whiskey is a blend of single pot still (made from malted and unmalted barley) and single grain whiskeys. These whiskeys are aged in ex-bourbon casks and ex-sherry casks until they reach the classic sweet spot that makes Jameson Jameson. These casks are then blended, inspected and bottled.

bottom line:

It was rounder and had a little more depth. It was still light, don’t get me wrong. It’s clearly a whiskey you’ll want to mix into a highball, but there was just more to play with here.

Part 3: Final Thoughts

Look, they’re mixing whiskeys. They are built this way in Ireland and marketed this way. No one is saying these are some incredibly complex whiskeys that will change your life as a whiskey drinker.

These are perfectly fine standard highball blend whiskeys. This means that they are suitable for mixing with sparkling water and drinks such as ginger ale or tonic. I wouldn’t use them for cocktails. There isn’t enough going on in any of these whiskeys for this application.

Still, Jameson is the clear winner. It just has more depth and a much better finish.