The Old Bushmills Distillery, located in Antrim, Northern Ireland, was formally established in 1784, the date embossed on the subject bottle. This makes it one of the few businesses presented on this website that dates back as far as the 18th Century. That being said, today Bushmills claims that the distillery’s roots date back even further when you consider that King James I granted the village of Bushmills a license to distill whiskey in 1608. In recognition of this earlier date, the distillery recently celebrated its 400th year anniversary.
Regardless of which date you choose to recognize the distillery has been around for a long time and the key to its longevity, according to a profile of the business published in “The Industries of Ireland, Part 1, Belfast and Towns of the North, 1891,” is location, location, location.
Far up in the north of County Antrim, close to the Giant’s Causeway, and in the midst of some of the grandest of Irish scenery, stands the little village of Bushmills, a quaint and interesting hamlet in itself, and specifically noteworthy from the fact that here is situated the famous old Bushmills Distillery. The establishment is at once the oldest and one of the most celebrated of typical Irish distilleries and the merits of its product in high-class whiskey are known in every land under the sun. The secret of the success of this whiskey undoubtedly lies in the quality of the water of the river Bush, which flows through peat bogs for a long distance, and thus yields a liquid which is specially suited to the distillation of superior malt whisky. The valuable properties of this water seem to have been known for upwards of a century and a half, and many an “illicit still” must have done a “roaring trade” at Bushmills during the latter half of the last century. In 1784 a more legitimate order of things was instituted, for in that year the Bushmills Distillery was founded…
The feature went on to say it wasn’t just the water that did the trick, but the local barley as well:
Not only is the Bushmills Distillery characterized by the rare excellence of its water supply, but it is also distinguished for its distilling processes… At Bushmills, the old pot-stills are exclusively used and the spirit is extracted from the very best malted barley only. The neighborhood has a widespread fame in the matter of barley, and most of the grain used in the production of Bushmills whiskey is grown hereabouts.
This early 20th Century full page advertisement found in the July, 1924 edition of the “Ulster Bulletin” featured both an early 1900’s panoramic view of their Antrim facility as well as a close-up of their famous pot-stills.
Those pot stills have been intrinsically associated with the businesss throughout much of its history, so much so that over the years they came to represent the distillery’s product. As a result, they were ultimately incorporated into the whiskey’s trademark, a fact featured in this April 27, 1907 advertisement found in an illustrated British newspaper called “The Sphere.”
Most turn of the century Bushmills bottles, including our subject bottle, feature the pot-still trademark.
Although the distillery was officially established in 1784, it’s not exactly clear when their whiskey first became generally available to the public. It wasn’t mentioned in the local newspapers until the mid-1820’s when it was offered for sale by a local Belfast dealer named William Carson whose advertisement appeared in the May 28, 1828 edition of the “Belfast News-Letter.
The advertisement claimed Carson received shipments from Bushmills Distillery on a regular basis and that the whiskey was “much esteemed for Private Family use,” all but confirming that the whiskey was being distributed locally in Belfast by then (though likely much earlier).
Around this time the proprietor was a man named James McKibbin (sometimes McKibben) who authored this item, part advertisement and part help-wanted ad, that appeared in the September 13, 1831 edition of the Belfast-News-Letter.”
By the mid-1830’s McKibbin’s product had made its way from Belfast to England, as evidenced by the following May 29 1835 advertisement found in the “Liverpool Mercury General Advertiser.” The advertisement, run by a local Tea, Wine and Spirit Dealer, suggests that the whiskey’s appearance in England was a relatively recent occurrence, reading in part:
The Subscriber offers for Sale, in quantities not under two Gallons, a large Stock of the justly celebrated BUSHMILL’S OLD MALT WHISKEY.
The very great expense the Manufacturer has entered into in improvements, in order to secure a completely pure Spirit, has hitherto kept the Whiskey at a price which has prevented it from being more generally sold in England by the Trade, and accounts for the common remark of connoisseurs, that there is no getting such delightful Whiskey in England as they have met with in Ireland, to obviate which it is now offered at the smallest possible profit, and the Trade supplied at Distillery prices, adding Expenses…
At around the same time, and even prior to its migration to England, Bushmills was making its way across the Atlantic in limited quantities where, in 1832, this November 27th notice in the “Philadelphia Inquirer” announced five puncheons were arriving on a ship called the “Charles Wharton.”
Over the next decade McKibbin had certainly made improvements to the distillery such that in January, 1846 this “Belfast News-Letter” notice announced that 15,ooo gallons of “pure MALT Whiskey” from the Bushmills Distillery were on the market in Belfast.
James McKibben passed away suddenly on August, 5 1847 after which I can’t find any newspaper mention of the distillery until 1852 when this “Belfast News-Letter” advertisement associated it with Quill, McCarthy, & Co. The advertisement mentions that the Malt Whiskey:
so long known for its purity and mellow flavor (is)now admitted to be fully equal to that made by the late Mr. Mckibbin.
This suggests, at least to me, that the distillery may have been closed or poorly operated for a while after Mckibbin’s death.
In the early 1850’s, it appears that a man named Allan Mill managed the distillery for Quill. McCarthy & Co. He passed away in November, 1853, after which December advertisements found in the “Belfast News-Letter” named:
JOHN MILL, Successor to ALLAN MILL, Bushmills Old Distillery, Pure Malt Whiskey.
Early the following year a February 27, 1854 notice in the “Belfast News-Letter” announced that the distillery was up for rent.
The distillery re-opened later that year as evidenced by a notice that appeared in the September 15, 1854 edition of the “Belfast News-Letter.”
Two years later a March 15, 1856 advertisement for the distillery continued to name John Mill as the successor to Allan Mill, so its likely he formally leased the distillery in the Spring of 1854, re-opening it later that year.
It was certainly open in the Fall of 1856 when a party celebrating the cutting down of the harvest occurred at the distillery. It was described in the September 13th edition of the “Belfast News-Letter.”
On the evening of Friday the 5th, the laborers employed on the estate of John C. Anderson, Esq., of Bushmills were sumptuously entertained on the occasion of their finishing the cutting down of the harvest. The party, in number above 200 persons, assembled in a large store at “Bushmills Old Distillery,” and, after partaking in dinner and a plentiful supply of whiskey, they commenced dancing, which was kept up with great spirit till an early hour next morning…
There’s little mention of the distillery during the late 1850’s, so how active it was at that time is unclear. Then sometime in 1860 or 1861 Patrick Corrigan and James McColgan operated the distillery under the name “Corrigan & Co. An announcement to that effect, dated September 9, 1861, appeared in several September and October editions of the “Belfast News-Letter.”
Five years later, the February 1, 1865 “Belfast News-Letter” announced that Corrigan suffered an injury while working in the distillery, an injury he would never recover from.
Mr. Patrick Corrigan, the proprietor of Bushmills Distillery, was seriously injured a few days ago by being crushed by a portion of his machinery…
A book entitled “Whiskey Women,” by Fred Minnick, picks up the story at this point.
When owner Patrick Corrigan died in January, 1865, he confidently left Bushmills to his “loving” wife, Ellen Jane, who took the Irish whiskey to new heights.
Usually listed in business correspondence as E. J. Corrigan, widow of Patrick Corrigan, Ellen Jane wielded great power. She ran the distillery with James McColgan, but she handled most of the business affairs while James made the whiskey… When Ellen Jane took over, Bushmills was an extremely successful operation that produced about 80,000 gallons of whiskey a year…
The distillery remained in the hands of Ellen Jane Corrigan until 1880 when, according to a story written later, in the March 12, 1895 edition of the “Belfast News-Letter,” a limited liability company was established under the name of “The Bushmills Old Distillery Company, Limited.”
The business operated under that name for a little over ten years, from 1880 to 1891, during which time Bushmills whiskey won a number of international awards as evidenced by this advertisement that appeared in the “Belfast News-Letter” on December 16,1887.
Later an October 5, 1889 advertisement published in “St. Stephen’s Review” provided this glimpse of their 1886 Gold Medal winning display at the Paris Exhibition.
Much of this was accomplished at the same time the business was recovering from an 1885 fire that destroyed a significant portion of the distillery. The fire and its aftermath were described in the November 27, 1885 edition of the “Belfast News-Letter.”
FIRE AT BUSHMILLS DISTILLERY
A fire occurred here last night, by which the greater portion of the distillery, the property of the Bushmills Old Distillery Co. (Limited), was destroyed. The fire originated during the night in a room in which paint and oils of various kinds were kept. Before it could be extinguished it had caught a barrel of petroleum, after which it spread rapidly. None of the bonded stores were touched, the stills, coppers, the refrigerator, and the dynamo machine used for generating the electric light, are uninjured, but all the machinery in use in the building, which was put in only about a year ago, is destroyed. The liquor in the stills had to be allowed to runoff. The total amount of loss is not yet known, but, in all probability, it will be covered by insurance.
The distillery rebuilt after the fire and the business ultimately reorganized in 1891, slightly changing its name to the “Old Bushmills Distillery Company, Ltd.” The prospectus for the new company that appeared in the November 14, 1891 edition of the “Belfast News-Letter,” read in part:
The directors are Mr. C. C. Connor, Mayor of Belfast, and Mr. James S. Boyd, Waring Street, Belfast. The prospectus states that the company within the last few days purchased as a going concern the business property, goodwill and effects of the Bushmills Old Distillery Company, Limited, the proprietors of the well known distillery at Bushmills in the county of Antrim, and the sole manufacturers of the famous “Old Bushmills Whiskey,” and owners of the registered trade mark “Old Bushmills.”
Several years later the business, in financial trouble, was in liquidation when it was acquired by a newly formed company that maintained the “Old Bushmills Distillery Company. Ltd.,” name. The new company’s prospectus, published in the August 22, 1896 edition of the “Belfast News-Letter” included this list of company assets which at the time were valued at over £100,000.
The prospectus went on to include a general description of those assets which provided this turn of the century snapshot of the distillery and its facilities.
The distillery proper occupies a freehold site of about six acres, in addition to which there are about sixteen acres of accommodation land and a farm of nineteen acres held on lease. There is also an office and stores on Hill Street, Belfast; stores in Market Place, Bushmills; bonded stores in Short Street and Albert Square Belfast.
The distillery was destroyed by fire in the year 1885, and was subsequently re-built in the most substantial manner, and is furnished with plant of the best and most modern description. Since the date named a considerable amount has been spent annually in maintaining and improving the buildings, machinery, etc., with result that the concern is in thorough working order; moreover the distillery is so constructed that with a very small outlay its production capacity can be doubled.
Upon the property there is a good manager’s residence, also laborers’ cottages and ample stabling. The storage accommodation is very extensive , and is capable of warehousing about one million gallons of Whiskey…
The distiller is situated in the center of a large barley-growing district, and ample supplies are available from farmers in the immediate neighborhood…There is good local demand for grains at remunerative prices, and there is upon the distillery premises, a grain drying machine with all the necessary working gear…
The importance of an adequate and suitable water supply is obvious, and in this respect the distillery is particularly well situated, the Company having become sometime since, by purchase, the absolute owners of the entire water rights involved.
The prospectus went on to say:
Arrangements are being made for the sale of the whiskey throughout the United Kingdom, the Colonies and the United States on a much more extended scale than hitherto…
True to their word, not long after the acquisition Bushmills began to increase their presence in London as evidenced by this story that appeared in the March 28, 1898 edition of the “Belfast News-Letter.”
THE OLD BUSHMILLS DISTILLERY COMPANY, LTD. This company have opened new offices and stores in London, and a large quantity of whiskey was sent forward to be stocked there. Eleven vans were employed in carting this large consignment to the quay…
The next day this advertisement for their new London facilities appeared in the “Belfast News-Letter.”
By the turn of the century the company also began to increase their presence in the United States when they designated the well known firm of Alex D. Shaw as their agent there.
As far as I can tell, prior to associating with Shaw the marketing and sale of Bushmills in America was uncoordinated and fully reliant on the effort of individual local importers/wholesalers. Newspaper advertisements were scarce and when they did appear Bushmill’s was typically listed within a menu that included a host of imported items. This August 26, 1848 item found in several editions of a Louisiana newspaper called the “Concordia Intelligencer” was typical.
The distillery attempted to change this in the early 1880’s, when an Irishman named Oliver Anketell was named the sole agent in the United States for both Bushmills as well as another Northern Ireland distillery, Combers. A native of Ireland, who arrived in the United States in 1840, according to Anketell’s profile, included in the “Industries of New Jersey,” published in 1882, he was a local New York/New Jersey businessman.
Oliver Anketell, Grain, Flour, Hay, etc., No. 395 Market Street. – The house dates its origin back to 1853, when Mr. Anketell located in Newark and began in business. He now occupies a storehouse, 50 x 30 feet, with a large basement, and carries a complete stock of grain of all kinds, choice family flour of the various brands, feed, hay by the bale or ton, straw, etc….He also has considerable business interest in New York, having his office at No. 26 William Street. He is sole agent in the United States for the unequalled Old Bushmills Irish whiskey, his New York office being used for said business. He also acts for the famous Comber distillery in Belfast.
This announcement, one of the first I can find associating him with Bushmills, appeared in the December 25, 1882 edition of the “Beaufort Wine and Spirit Circular.”
Anketell’s New York business, sometimes called the Belfast Warehouse, was listed in the New York City directories at 15 Water Street (1881 – 1882) and later at the 26 South William Street address named in the above notice (1883 to 1892). By 1894, he’s no longer listed.
During this time Anketell apparently represented a variety of Irish products one of which, Edwards Soup, was advertised under his name in the May 3, 1890 edition of the “Brooklyn Daily Times.”
That being said I don’t see any Anketell advertisements specifically touting Bushmills and the whiskey’s presence in wholesale and retail liquor advertisements continued to be scarce during this time, all suggesting that the Bushmills product was not Anketell’s primary focus.
By the mid-1890’s with Anketell, apparently no longer in business, the Alex D. Shaw company entered the picture. This June 10, 1899 advertisement found in “Brooklyn Life” was one of the first I can find that specifically referenced Alex D. Shaw as the agent for Bushmill’s Pure Malt Whisky.
Wholesale wine and spirit merchants and importers, according to a brief history of the business found in the 1920 edition of “Harper’s Directory,” the business was:
established by Alex D. Shaw, who started in the Wine Trade in 1859 and founded his own firm in 1882. In 1899 he started a branch house in Chicago and in 1908 one in San Francisco…
As far as I can tell, over the next 15 plus years the distribution and resultant popularity of Bushmills whiskey grew considerably in the United States. Likely the result of Shaw’s branch houses in New York, the midwest and west coast by the end of the decade the whiskey was appearing in liquor advertisements found in newspapers throughout much of the country.
So, around the turn of the century, with increasing presence in the United States, London and other parts of the world, the company’s mood back home in Ireland was quite optimistic, as evidenced by this summary of their 5th annual stockholders meeting found in the November 29, 1900 edition of the “Liverpool Mercury.”
The fifth annual meeting of shareholders was held in Cannon-Street Hotel, London, yesterday. The Hon. Herbert J. Allsopp, who presided and moved the adoption of the report, said that during the past year the sales had been well maintained, and for this they were mainly indebted to those districts in which Old Bushmills whiskey was best known. There were undoubtedly signs that in other localities the whiskey was becoming more popular and more appreciated by those who appreciated a good liquor. Their export trade showed a most satisfactory development. The war in South Africa had stopped business there; in Western Australia they had been successful in securing the services as agent of a gentlemen who knew the trade well – he was a great admirer of the Old Bushmills whiskey – (laughter)- and most anxious to push it on his friends and on the market. In America the trade had also increased, and Bushmills was shaping towards being a leading whiskey in the States.
As far as I can tell this optimism continued through the mid-teens at which time things began to change. Summaries of company stockholder meetings held during this time tell the story. The first, found in the December 16, 1916 edition of “The Times,” indicated the company was still recommending stock dividends that year despite the impact of World War I on both sales and operations.
The Chairman, after stating that he was presiding in the absence of the chairman of the company, said that many of their employees had joined his Majesty’s Forces, and regretted that a number of them had made the supreme sacrifice, while others had been severely wounded. The war was having a serious effect on the business of the country, and their own company was not an exception. Nevertheless, the year on the whole had been a satisfactory one, and the results justified the directors in recommending an increased dividend on the Ordinary shares…
According to a summary of their 1917 stockholder meeting found in the December 13th edition of “The Times,” by that time the company was living through increased war-time restrictions one of which was the cessation of distillation.
The Chairman observed that we still had to put forth our best energies to crush the German dream of world-conquest and to settle for generations to come the fate of the civilized world. To do this we had had and will still have to submit to many drastic restrictions which, while preventing the extension of all businesses, including that of the company, must necessarily tell on its future prosperity…
That being said, in spite of all their war-time troubles, at the 1918 stockholder meeting the company announced the acquisition of another distillery. The December 12, 1918 “London Times” told the story.
The Chairman stated that, in view of the stoppage of distillation, the directors had to excercise the greatest care in order to husband the company’s resources, so that when times became normal again they would be in a position to continue and, if possible, extend their operations to meet the growing demand for their products. The board were pleased to report the purchase of the Comber Distilleries, situate at Comber Co. Down, a few miles from the head office of the company. The old established concern had a large trade, not only in Ireland, but with the brewers and wine and spirit merchants in England and Scotland. Their whiskey enjoyed a high reputation and the directors hoped not only to keep up that connexion but also very largely to extend the business when times permitted…
In 1919, finally free of war-time restrictions, the tone of the company’s 1919 stockholder meeting, summarized in the December 11, 1919 edition of “The Times,” was bitter sweet, announcing that at the same time they were recovering from war-time restrictions they were faced with the advent of prohibition in America.
Gentlemen, my colleague, Mr. Hoey, when speaking to you just after the Armistice I think foreshadowed a brighter future, but, although 12 months have since elapsed, it is only know that we are beginning to feel that the many restrictions – necessary, no doubt, for the carrying out of the war – are being removed. We are again allowed to manufacture our product, and more wonderful still in the last few days the Government, yielding to public outcry, have allowed to remove from bond the whiskey that is lying matured. In these circumstancs we meet today under a brighter aspect…
We have lost our United States trade, which was a big asset, and we can only hope that the good sense of the American people will see the folly of their elected representatives.
At the meeting company officials went, on one hand, to announce the business was on a “sound financial footing,” even announcing an 8% dividend as well as the transfer of £5,000 to a reserve fund, while on the other hand, they went on to enumerate a number of significant upcoming expenses.
The payment of the dividend and bonus will leave a substantial balance at the credit of profit and loss account, but out of this has to be paid the income-tax for the year 1919-20 in January next. It is also likely that a substantial payment will have to be made to the authorities for excess profits duty. A considerable sum will have to be paid for the restoration of the portion of the Comber Distillery which was destroyed by fire, and over and above the amount which was received from the insurance company…
Apparently, with the loss of the American market, they weren’t able to make things work and less than a year after that 1919 stockholder meeting proceedings to dissolve the company were initiated. Court records, “H. Edwards (H. M. Inspector of Taxes) vs. The Old Bushmills Company, Limited (in liquidation)” tell the story:
In February 1920, the company received an offer to purchase all their fully paid ordinary shares at a price of £3 per share, which offer was shortly afterwards raised to £3 10s per share. The offer was not accepted, and at an extraordinary general meeting of the company held on 9th July, 1920, it was resolved to wind up the company voluntarily, and Mr. Thomas R. Burns was duly appointed liquidator. The resolution was confirmed on 5th August, 1920.
A notice to that effect was published in the August 14, 1920 edition of”The Times.”
The court records went on to say:
In pursuance of this resolution the Comber Distillery was sold on 31st December, 1920, in its entirety with a portion of its stock. Owing to certain difficulties… the Old Bushmills Distillery was not put up for sale until March, 1921, when no offer of purchase was received. In the meantime, in order that he might be in a position to offer the distillery as a going concern, the liquidator continued distilling operations, though on a reduced scale up to March 1921. No whiskey was distilled after that date.
The liquidator continued to sell on behalf of the company the stocks of whiskey with all possible expedition, but owing to the difficulty of finding purchasers at any given time for more than a limited quantity of one brand of Irish whiskey, the sales extended over a period of more than two years.
That whiskey, in addition to landing locally, was apparently making its way to Canada where it was being advertised in the mid-1920’s, as evidenced by this August 12, 1925 ad found in Winnipeg’s “Free Press Evening Bulletin.”
At the same time, an April 8, 1925 story in London’s “Evening Standard,” made it clear that some of the Bushmills whiskey was making its way to the United States as well, albeit illegally.
The sale of bootleg liquor in New York has now reached the point of development where formal price lists are issued at regular intervals to customers. Places putting out these lists are known to so many people that it is almost unbelievable that the Prohibition enforcement agents do not know them, too.
I have before me as I write one of these lists. It contains one hundred and thirteen items of liquor… Prices, per case of dozen quarts are:
Note: the partial reproduction of the list shown above exhibits U.S. dollars on the left and the pound sterling on the right.
As far as I can tell, sometime after the liquidation wound up in March, 1923, the distillery was acquired by Samuel Wilson Boyd who, along with his sons, Wilson and Austen, would own and operate the distillery for the next 20 plus years. A story in the November 6, 1932 edition of the “Chicago Tribune” made it clear that by the early 1930’s the Boyd’s were positioning the distillery for the repeal of Prohibition in the United States.
GET READY FOR U. S. TO GO WET
Austen Boyd, chief of the century old Bushmills whiskey firm, returned today from America, where in anticipation of the United States going wet, he has made selling arrangements to cover America from the Atlantic to the Pacific.
“I have no doubt that prohibition will be wiped out or modified,” he said. “My firm has been manufacturing reserve whiskey for the last ten years in expectation of prohibition going by the board. A Roosevelt victory will speed the end of the bootlegger’s trade.”
Boyd’s selling arrangements in the United States certainly included the revival of the distillery’s previous arrangement with Alex D. Shaw who as early as 1935 ran a series of Bushmills advertisements under the heading “Four Greats.” One featuring “four great” leaders featured George Washington.
WASHINGTON – one of the world’s four great leaders
First in war, first in peace, first in the hearts of his countrymen.
OLD BUSHMILLS – one of the world’s four great whiskeys.
First in quality, first in taste, first in the choice of its countrymen.
Other greats making the cut included Napoleon (General), Gibraltar (Fort), Empire State (Building), Man O’War (Racehorse) and Normandie (Ocean Liner)
As you might expect World War II resulted in another shut down of the distillery however, as early as 1945, a January 8th story in the “Liverpool Daily Post” announced that production was once again starting up.
Distilling in Northern Ireland is now being allowed on a basis of 33-1/3 percent of the average pre-war output. Bushmills distillery started production a few weeks ago. Comber has now started, and Coleraine distillery is ready.
Shortly after re-opening, the distillery was acquired by Sir Isaac Wolfson who, according to a March 7, 1962 story in the “Daily Telegraph,” operated it as a subsidiary of General Guarantee Corporation, a £12 million industrial group that was wholly owned by Wolfson family interests.
A March 17, 1950 advertisement in New York’s “Daily News” makes it clear that while ownership may have changed, the packaging of their whiskey had changed very little, if at all.
Wolfson owned and operated the distillery until 1964 when a July 17th London “Daily Herald” story announced Wolfson had sold the distillery business to Harrington United Breweries.
Sir Isaac Wolfson has sold his distillery for £1,550,000. It is called Old Bushmills and those that like Irish say that the whiskey is as smooth as silk.
It wasn’t strictly Sir Isaac’s. It belonged to his hire purchase finance company, General Guarantee Corporation. That, in turn, is owned by Drages and Sir Isaac is the master mind of both.
The buyers are Harrington United Breweries, who own nearly 3,000 pubs, bottling stores and off-licenses. For the Old Bushmills distillery they are paying £750,000 in cash and one million in Charrington shares…
Eight years later, an October 19, 1972 story in the “Burton Mail” announced that the business had been sold again.
Joseph Seagram and Sons, Inc., have completed acquisition of one Irish distilling company and the purchase of 15 per cent interest in another.
Seagrams, the U.S. subsidiary of Canada’s Distillers Corp, Seagrams Ltd., said they bought the Old Bushmills Distillery Co., Ltd. and had bought 1,603,284 new ordinary shares of Irish Distillers Groups Ltd.
They described Bushmills as the maker of the largest selling Irish whiskey in export markets and said Irish Distillers were the largest distillers group in Ireland.
The company said that, as part of the transactions, Seagrams agreed to sell Irish Distillers a 25 per cent interest in Old Bushmills.
As far as I can tell, when the dust settled, Seagrmas owned 75% of the business and Irish Distillers Groups, Ltd., the remaining 25 percent. Over the next several years it appears that Irish Distillers Ltd. continued to acquire a larger percentage of the business until a January 5, 1978 story in “The Guardian” announced that they had become the sole owner.
SEAGRAM, the big Canadian drinks giant, is selling its interest in one of the best known brands of Irish whiskey in a £1,200,000 shares deal. The group’s 20 per cent stake in Old Bushmills Distillery Company is being taken up by the existing 80 per cent shareholder Irish Distillers
Penrod and Ricard acquired Irish Distillers in 1988, later selling it to Diageo for £200 million. Ultimately, Diageo effectively traded the Bushmills business to Casa Cuervo in exchange for the Don Julio tequila brand. The deal was summarized in the November 3, 2014 edition of “The Standard.”
Spirits giant Diageo agreed with Mexico’s Casa Cuervo to gain control of tequila brand Don Julio in return for Irish whiskey Bushmills.
Diageo will take control of the remaining 50% of Don Julio that it does not already own and receive a $408 million payment from Mexico’s Beckmann family when the deal completes next year. Bushmills will be sold to the Beckmann’s Jose Cuervo Overseas.
Today, Proximo Spirits owns both Jose Cuervo and Bushmills.
The bottle I found was blown in a mold, roughly 2-3/4 inches square in cross section and contains a fifth of a gallon.
The base is embossed “N & Co (STH) Ltd.,” which I suspect represents the glass factory of Nutall & Co., located in St. Helens, Lancashire, England. According to a paper compiled by Bill Lockhart, Beau Schriever, Bill Lindsey and Carol Serr, found on the Society of Historical Archeology’s Bottle Website, Nutall & Co. was in business from approximately 1871 to 1913. Furthermore, they suspect the company became a limited corporation in 1900. More on Nutall & Co. can be found on the SHA website at the following link. http://sha.org/bottle/pdffiles/Nutall.pdf
This suggests the bottle was manufactured between 1900 when Nutall & Co. incorporated and their 1913 end date. Consequently it was likely imported to the U. S. by the Alex D. Shaw Company during this time. It certainly resembles the bottles pictured in turn of the century Shaw advertisements.
Today’s version is not all that much different.
