Comber Distillery in Northern Ireland • Go-to-Ireland.com

The Comber distillery was an Irish whiskey distillery until 1956, when it officially closed. Located in the small Northern Irish town of Comber, this distillery had an excellent reputation for the quality of its whiskeys… Unfortunately, the company was unable to cope with the precariousness of the Second World War, and was forced to close down ten years later…

History of Comber Distillery

A Whiskey Distillery founded in the 19th century

The Comber distillery was founded in 1825, when 2 separate distilleries were built:

Upper Distillery
the Lower Distillery

In those days, the 2 buildings produced excellent whiskey, made in the Irish tradition. Each spirit was distilled 3 times in a still, in keeping with the Triple Distillation techniques so popular on the rest of the island. The flagship whiskey of the 2 distilleries was commonly known as “Old Comber”, a whiskey with a strong aroma, whose power delighted Irish whiskey lovers for many years.

Unfortunately, the Lower Distillery proved too costly over time, and was converted into a paper mill, leaving the Upper Distillery with the onerous task of producing Irish whiskey on its own.

Hard times for Comber and his distillery…

World War II, however, was a major blow for Comber’s distillery. By this time, hard times meant that the Irish could no longer afford the “Old Comber”, forcing them to buy food rather than alcohol. Until 1945, the Distillerie de Comber was running at a low level, with huge financial losses and debts.

In spite of everything, the distillery tried to hang on, and finally officially closed in 1956, bringing production of “Old Comber” to a halt. The distillery’s last casks of whiskey, however, were bottled over 30 years later, in the 1980s, and sold at a premium to Irish whiskey connoisseurs.

To this day, a few bottles are still on the market, and are virtually unobtainable due to their high price.

As for the distillery premises, these have been transformed into a large café, decorated with some of the distillery’s old barrels. Although you won’t be able to visit the distillery itself, you can still take a tour and soak up the atmosphere!