How is Poitín illegal?

barry181091 wrote: »

Poitin is fine until you wake up in the morning with the poitin mouth. That taste (oh you'll know it), where you wish you had vomited in your mouth just to get the taste away.

They say too much of any good thing is bad for you.

Ever notice what a good night of heavy guiness drinking does for you?

sometimes toilet paper just isn't enough....



(Tip - always carry a paint scraper or few sheets of sand paper with you);)

Get Real wrote: »

40% alc vol is yje limit in Ireland.

No idea if anyone else has replied but this simply isn't true. I work in an off licence and we have a 68% Absinthe on sale, not to mention Tyrconnell - an Irish made whiskey - have certain cask strengths over 40%.

Not to mention a multitude of American / Canadian Bourbons and other stuff i've probably never heard of.

Poitin is actually considered a non alcoholic drink in Russia

Herb Powell wrote: »

Because you need a licence to distill. It's nothing to do with % ABV

Is distilling not legal for your own consumption?
What about brewing your own beer and skittles vodka?

There's no upper %abv limit in law.
About 95% is the max you can produce because alcohol takes water for ok the atmosphere.

grenache wrote: »

70% is the legal limit in Ireland. Where I work we sell a variation of Knockeen Hills poitín, which is 70%.

My local off-licence sells absinthe which is 80%.

Jaggy wrote: »

How much is it? Quite a bit i'd expect.

I can't remember the exact price but in the region of 80-100 euro. So it's no surprise it isn't a big seller!

Alec Shapely Stimulation wrote: »

That doesn't mean they are allowed to sell it though. There must be something to the rumour that high alcohol drinks cannot be sold here. Why havent offies started importing some absinthe for instance? I think 42% vodka is the strongest drink ive seen for sale in an offlicence in Ireland.

Even some normal drink appear to be watered down for Ireland and the Uk. For instance I got a bottle of bombay Sapphire gin recently that was bought in duty free it's not a special one or anything and it's 47%, while the one sold here is 40%. It appears ourselves and the UK get a watered down version compared to everyone else.

I bought a bottle of Absinthe in Asda in England, 55% alcohol for over 25s only and they have to ask you if you're over 25 by law even if you look 100.

Quote:
Originally Posted by Jayo2011

The real stuff is illegal for several reasons:
1. You need a distillation licence for one
2. In order to distribute it (even for free) you need an alcohol distribution licence (off-licence)
3. To produce any alcohol (or food) commercially in this country, there are strict food safety guidelines that must be adhered to, and regular HSE visits that insure production premises meets government standards. (no health official will allow REAL poitin to be produced in a bog using traditional methods such as an open turf fire)

Senna wrote: »

Those aren't reasons why it it illegal (because it not), you've just outlined what needs to be done to produce it legally. A 90% version was on the market a few years ago, there used to be a bottle in the bosses house, but I cant remember what the label said.
Poitín used to be made in turf fires but none of the Poitín being made illegally here in Donegal now is made over a turf fire, but its still Poitín.

And if it cant be produced legally, how can Real Poitin be legal?

"A 90% VERSION was on the market a few years ago" = not the real thing
Real Poitin (not the mickey mouse versions) cannot be produced legally in this country for amongst other reasons - those that I outlined above. The % alc content of poitin is not what is disputed here - the version you mention 90% clearly isn't poitin, or if it were, it wasn't properly finished. That would be close to drinking industrial alcohol. A good poitin is usually finished to approx 70% (a beautiful drink that wont poison or blind you)

And yes, I agree that some quiet good versions may be still made without a turf fire, but as I already mentioned - like comparing different qualities of whiskey. A triple distilled Irish whiskey in my opinion is far superior in quality and taste to a single distilled American version. Yet they both call themselves whiskey and have similar %alc content.

Maybe what ye produce in Donegal has a large american influence on it (shortcuts taken to produce the stuff), but what I get in Galway still has the far more superior traditional quality to it. Try some before disputing my point as I have sampled both turf produced and that which is produced clinically over a gas fire. The size, shape, even every dent on a traditional poitin still, not to mention the experience of the operator/distiller all have influencing factors on the flavor and quality of the final product produced.

Maybe you should take a guided tour of a whiskey distillery and it would be better explained to you. Producing whiskey and poitin use a very similar distilling process. Every still in this country produce poitin that vary in taste, same goes for whiskey. Jameson, Powers and Paddy - all produced in Ireland, yet all vary considerably in taste. Just like what you drink in Donegal and I drink in Galway (the home of good poitin)

Loads of the same old myths and mistruths are being trotted out here. It is these myths that are partly to blame for it continuing to be illegal.

I have never once read of any incidence where somebody went blind or died from drinking distilled brewed alcohol -whenever I read about it it is invariably criminal gangs who are selling industrial alcohol. And I have read loads about it.

In many countries it is legal to distil, some have a limited on the size of the still, I think australia & italy limit the still to 5L