The last of Denmark’s rare older Teeling stock got one final night out. On 12 March 2026, Juuls Whisky Shop and Teeling Whiskey closed a long partnership with “The Last Dance,” a sold-out tasting in the vaulted Frederiksberg Basement in Copenhagen. Eight whiskeys were poured, topped by a 32 Year Old finished in rum and Pedro Ximénez casks and a 30 Year Old distilled in 1991. Teeling’s Darran Lovely hosted. This is what was in the glass, what stood out, and where the range still in production can be found.
What “The Last Dance” was, and why it mattered
This was not a routine line-up. It was the final collaboration between Juuls Whisky Shop and Teeling, built specifically to empty the last of the rare, older Teeling bottlings held in Denmark. A sold-out room, the oldest stock in the country, and a clear sense that this particular door was closing.
Teeling’s Darran Lovely set the scene before the first pour. He walked the room through the golden age of Irish whiskey, the long collapse that left Dublin without a working distillery for decades, and the rebuild led by the Teeling family. It framed the night well: these bottles are not just old, they are survivors of an industry that very nearly disappeared.
Who Teeling are, and why the age statements are unusual
The Teeling name in Irish whiskey goes back to 1782, when Walter Teeling opened a distillery on Marrowbone Lane in Dublin. The modern company was re-established in 2012 by brothers Jack and Stephen Teeling, and in 2015 the Teeling Whiskey Distillery became the first new distillery to open in Dublin in over 125 years. Its three pot stills are named after Jack Teeling’s three daughters.
That timeline explains the bottles in the room. A distillery that started distilling in Dublin in 2015 cannot pour you a 30 Year Old of its own make in 2026. The oldest expressions here are sourced from much earlier distillate, including stock from Cooley Distillery in County Louth, one of Ireland’s pioneering independent distilleries. The early-1990s Cooley single malts have a strong reputation as fruit-forward Irish whiskey, which is exactly the style the 30 Year Old delivers.
The standout drams
The two oldest bottlings were the reason most of the room was there, and they earned it.
Teeling 32 Year Old (rum and Pedro Ximénez casks) Nose: dried tropical fruit, raisin, soft oak Palate: silky, sweet, layered tropical fruit from the rum and PX influence Finish: long and gentle for the age ABV: not disclosed at the tasting | Cask: rum and Pedro Ximénez Note: the most talked-about pour of the night. At 32 years it stayed supple rather than woody, which is the trick old whiskey rarely pulls off.
Teeling 30 Year Old Vintage Reserve (2021 release) Nose: fresh orchard fruit, roasted nuts, dark chocolate Palate: velvety, deep peach and apricot, a touch of citrus and light smoke Finish: long, with spicy oak and a note of smoked sea salt ABV: 46% | Cask: ex-bourbon for 21 years, then nine years in Sauternes wine casks | Non-chill-filtered Note: distilled in 1991 at Cooley, around 4,000 bottles, and named World’s Best Irish Single Malt at the 2024 World Whiskies Awards. A classic early-1990s Irish fruit bomb with a wine-cask polish.
Teeling Blackpitts Big Smoke Cask Strength Nose: campfire earthiness, orchard fruit, maple syrup Palate: charred apple and pear, vivid peat smoke, salt, a floral lavender note Finish: dry wood spice fading to a long, smoky, savoury close ABV: 56.5% | Cask: 100% ex-bourbon | Double distilled, heavily peated, non-chill-filtered Note: peated Irish single malt is rare, and at cask strength this one brings genuine coal-fire intensity to a category not known for smoke.
The full eight-whiskey line-up at a glance
| Whiskey | Age | Cask | Style note |
|---|---|---|---|
| Teeling 32 Year Old | 32 | Rum + Pedro Ximénez | Silky, tropical, the star of the night |
| Teeling 30 Year Old Vintage Reserve | 30 | Bourbon + Sauternes finish | Peach, apricot, fruit-forward, 46% |
| Teeling Rising Reserve No. 2 | 21 | Marsala | Maritime, salty edge |
| Teeling Rising Reserve No. 4 | 21 | White wine | Bright tropical fruit |
| Teeling Wonders of Wood 2nd Ed. | — | Portuguese oak | Savoury marmalade, tannin |
| Teeling Wonders of Wood 3rd Ed. | — | Virgin Swedish oak | Herbal, ginger-led, fuller body |
| Teeling Blackpitts Big Smoke CS | NAS | Ex-bourbon, peated | Cask strength bonfire smoke, 56.5% |
| Teeling IPA Cask (DOT Brewing) | — | Ex-IPA beer cask | Hop and malt, modern craft crossover |
The Teeling 21-year-olds, side by side
Tasting the Rising Reserve No. 2 (Marsala cask) next to No. 4 (white wine cask) was the most instructive part of the night. Same age, same lineage, two clearly different drams. One carried distinct sea notes and a salty, maritime character. The other leaned bright and tropical. It was a clean lesson in how much the finishing cask shapes the final whiskey.
The experimental oak: Portuguese versus Swedish
Teeling devote a meaningful share of production to experimental maturation, and the Wonders of Wood series is where that shows. The 2nd Edition in Portuguese oak brought savoury marmalade and firm tannin. The 3rd Edition in virgin Swedish oak went the other way: more robust, herbal, with a clear ginger-led spice. Two forests, two very different results from the same spirit.
The modern end: smoke and a beer-cask crossover
The night was not all old and rare. Blackpitts Big Smoke Cask Strength brought heavy bonfire smoke, unusual for Irish whiskey and welcome for it. The Teeling IPA Cask, made with Dublin’s DOT Brewing, sat at the other extreme: a beer-cask whiskey that shows where modern Irish craft is willing to go. Together they made the point that Teeling is not only trading on its old stock.
Is a night like this worth it?
For anyone who can get to a Juuls and Teeling tasting, yes. The draw here was access. A 30 and 32 Year Old Irish single malt poured side by side, with the people who know the liquid in the room, is not something you can engineer at home for the price of a ticket.
This specific event was a farewell, so the exact line-up will not return. But the format is the lesson: when a specialist shop runs the last of a distillery’s older stock, that is the one to book. Most of the headline bottles here are long sold out at retail. The range still in production, including Blackpitts and the core single malt, remains available, and Juuls is the place to ask first in Denmark.
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Frequently asked questions
What was Teeling’s “The Last Dance” tasting? It was a sold-out Irish whiskey tasting held on 12 March 2026 at the Frederiksberg Basement in Copenhagen, hosted by Juuls Whisky Shop and Teeling Whiskey. It was the final collaboration between the two and poured the last of the rare, older Teeling bottlings held in Denmark.
Which Teeling whiskeys were poured? Eight in total: the 32 Year Old (rum and PX casks), the 30 Year Old Vintage Reserve, Rising Reserve No. 2 and No. 4 (both 21 years), the Wonders of Wood Portuguese and Swedish oak editions, Blackpitts Big Smoke Cask Strength, and the IPA Cask made with DOT Brewing.
What is the Teeling 30 Year Old, and is it good? The Teeling 30 Year Old Vintage Reserve was distilled in 1991 at Cooley Distillery, matured 21 years in ex-bourbon casks then nine years in Sauternes wine casks, and bottled at 46% without chill filtration. It was named World’s Best Irish Single Malt at the 2024 World Whiskies Awards. Expect peach, apricot and orchard fruit.
What does Teeling Blackpitts Big Smoke Cask Strength taste like? It is a heavily peated Irish single malt, double distilled and matured fully in ex-bourbon casks, bottled at 56.5% cask strength and non-chill-filtered. Expect campfire smoke, charred apple and pear, salt and a floral lavender note, with a long, dry, savoury finish. Peated Irish whiskey is rare, which makes it notable.
Where can I buy Teeling whiskey in Denmark? Juuls Whisky Shop is the long-standing Teeling partner in Denmark and the first place to ask, especially for older or limited bottlings. The very old 30 and 32 Year Old from this event were the last Danish stock and are effectively sold out, but Teeling’s in-production range remains available there and at specialist retailers.
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