Red Earl – Irish Whiskey

The Battle of Kinsale – the inspiration for Red Earl Whiskey!

As bold as the hero that inspires it’ Red Hugh O Donnell is known as one of the great heroes of our Irish history. As chieftain of a powerful Irish dynasty in north west Ireland, he led the success of numerous battles against the forces of Queen Elizabeth I. The valiant young man became Earl of Tyrconnell after escaping five years of captivity in Dublin Castle at the hands of the English army. As chieftain, he formed a number of alliances with various Irish clans to challenge English power in Ireland. This included the powerful alliance with rival clan, the O’ Neills. The Irish army returned to Ulster and our hero Red Hugh set off to Spain to seek further help as Ireland was now completely under British rule. Red Hugh died after just nine months of being in Spain, where it is believed he was poisoned by a British spy while he slept. Today he is buried near the Rioja wine region in Spain.