Spirited Champion: Whiskey Tasting With One of Ireland's Best At Four Seasons Dublin

If you can imagine yourself sipping some of the world’s best whiskeys with a vaunted connoisseur in one of Dublin’s most revered whiskey bars,  you’ve come to the right place.

Maybe you’ve dreamed of a round of golf with Phil Mickelson or a game of pick-up ball with Kobe Bryant. Reality check: not going to happen. But there’s nothing stopping  you from another amazing experience sure to tipple the fancy of any spirits aficionado: sipping a refined single malt with another feted champion on his home turf.

Four Seasons Dublin is serving up an incredible opportunity to rub shoulders and sip the finest whiskeys from around Ireland and the world with former Irish whiskey-tasting champion Kobus Van Zyl (Irish whiskey-tasting champion…need we say more). Holding the title from 2005-2007, Van Zyl then had to leave the competition to give others a fair shot. One of the country’s pre-eminent whiskey connoisseurs, his travels have taken him from Scotland to Kentucky and every distillery in between. Saddle up beside him and he’ll tell you the name, age, country of origin, alcohol strength, distillery and price of every spirit from Lagavulin to Laphroaig. And don’t worry if you can’t pronounce the names, he can help with that too.

All this excellence happens at the Four Seasons’ stately The Bar, which features one of the largest and most exclusive Irish whiskey lists in the country. So If you’re ready to sip with the pros, put the Four Seasons Hotel Dublin on your bucket list. Sláinte!