Blarney & Whiskey

Sunday we traveled to Blarney to see the famous Blarney Castle and the Blarney Stone.

The stone is believed to be half of the Stone of Scone which originally belonged to Scotland. Scottish Kings were crowned over the stone, because it was believed to have special powers. In order to reach the stone you need to climb up many narrow and spiral stairs to the top of the castle. The stone itself is set in the wall below the battlements and to kiss it, one has to lean backwards (holding on to an iron railing) from the parapet walk. The powers of the stone are that whoever kisses it will be gifted the eternal gift of eloquence (in Irish 'solabharthact') - the 'Gift of the Gab'. Both Tim and Chris actually kissed the stone...photos coming soon!


Blarney Castle was originally a timber hunting lodge built in the 10th century, which was replaced by a stone castle in 1210. The present day construction was completed by Dermot McCarthy, King of Munster in 1446.

After lunch and shopping in Blarney we then ventured to Midleton and took a tour of the Jameson Whiskey Distillery. The grounds include both the original 18th Century buildings as well as the new facility built in 1975. Irish whiskeys are distilled 3 times and age for a minimum of 3 years in oak casks ~ Jameson whiskeys are aged for a minimum of 7 years. Tim purchased a bottle of 12 year whiskey that was only available at the distillery and is not exported outside of Ireland.