The source added they believed Sazerac would be looking for a reasonably large distillery as it could aspire to become a brand selling half-a-million cases. They said said there is quite a bit of interest overseas in Irish whiskey, adding the move by Sazerac to find a new location for Paddy would make sense. Accounts for Paddy Whiskey, which is engaged in the manufacture and sale of the brand, show the company had retained profits of over €2.1m at the end of June 2020. This was up from retained profits of around €1.2m at the end of its previous financial year. In 2018, Sazerac subsidiary Hi-Spirits took over the distribution in Ireland of Paddy Irish Whiskey from Irish Distillers. It is further understood that the New Orleans-headquartered company had also considered building a distillery. At the end of its financial year, Sazerac of Ireland had assets of nearly €172.8m, up from €95.3m in 2019, and liabilities of just over €15.8m.

The Man Himself - Founder - Paddy Whiskey

Another source said they were aware of Sazerac’s interest in either forming a joint venture with a whiskey distillery or building one from scratch. It is understood Sazerac, which owns over 450 brands worldwide, including Southern Comfort spiced whiskey, Fireball whiskey and Buffalo Trace bourbon, has approached distilleries in Ireland with a view to either forming a joint venture or acquiring a distillery to create a brand home for Paddy. An industry source said most brands in the sector, like Sazerac, would be keen to develop their own distillery. Under the deal, Irish Distillers would continue to produce Paddy Irish Whiskey at its Midleton Distillery in Co Cork under a long-term supply agreement with “no impact on roles at Irish Distillers” and all employees maintaining their posts under “current terms and conditions”.