NUJ chief lauds new history of iconic Offaly whiskey liqueur

The Irish Secretary of the NUJ, Seamus Dooley, has lauded a new history of iconic Offaly distilled whiskey liqueur, “Irish Mist.”

The Ferbane native, who launched the book in Tullamore on Friday night last, said it was appropriate that the wonderful publication, “Irish Mist: the story of Tullamore’s whiskey liqueur, 1945-1985,” was launched in the Offaly History Centre on Bury Quay, the building which once had been its home.

In an extensive address, Mr Dooley, who previously worked for the Tullamore Tribune, said: “My first task is to congratulate the editors Michael Byrne and John Flanagan on a wonderful publication. You have been well served by an impressive lineup of contributors including Guy Williams, Brian Jaffray, Ger Scully, Mike Murphy, Gerry Molyneaux, Anne Williams, Camillus Dwane, Frank Nicholson and Peter Hallgarten.

Irish Mist was not just a triumph of distilling, it recognised as an example of the importance of good design, strategic marketing and attention to detail. So too is this book and I want to pay tribute to all involved in what I think is a very important initiative.

All too often the history of successful companies tends to be dry and dusty, focusing on facts and figures but devoid of personality. Michael and John have managed to capture the essence, may say the spirit, of Irish Mist, the personality of those who brought Ireland’s first whiskey based liqueur and all those who helped to make Desmond William’s dream a reality.

Irish Mist may include secret ingredients but the key ingredient in this book is passion.

The passion of the authors and contributors is obvious, but so too is the passion of the Williams family, of Bill Jaffrey and of everyone involved at every level within the company.

Desmond’s artistic and literary links were of course key ingredients in the success of Irish Mist. He developed a carefully cultivated image, using extravagant bright colours and distinctive packaging chosen by Louis Le Brocquy. What an inspired choice that proved to be.

Desmond also deployed his father in law in the promotion of his new product. He had married Brenda, daughter of Oliver St John Gogarty, celebrated in the poem Golden Stockings

Golden stockings you had on
In the meadow where you ran;
And your little knees together
Bobbed like pippins in the weather,
When the breezes rush and fight
For those dimples of delight,
And they dance from the pursuit,
And the leaf looks like the fruit.

So he was fortunate in his choice of father in law!

And serendipity played it’s part in another way.

Among the most influential pubs in New York was Costello’s’ in the heart of Manhattan.

Costello’s was run by Tim Costello from my hometown, Ferbane, who despite rudimentary national school education was a hugely influential figure on New York’s bohemian literary scene in the Fifties. He became what we would now call a brand ambassador for Irish Mist.

Until Michael Byrne alerted me to the existence of this pub I was unaware of Tim, whose regular patrons included Ernest Hemingway, John Steinbeck, John O’Hara, Maeve Brennan, New Yorker illustrator James Thurber and the influential journalist and author John McNulty who found inspiration in Tim and the characters who frequented Costello’s bar. Thurber’s artwork adorned the walls.

There are many references to Tim Costello in the archives of the New York Times, the New Yorker and Esquire ,magazine.

Tim was the son of James Costelloe and Teresa Flynn and was born on September 5, 1895. He began his working life as a hackney driver in Dublin and on November 2nd, 1922, was summonsed for “driving a motorcar on the public highway at a speed which was dangerous to the public.” He was sentenced to serve three calendar months in Mountjoy and fined £10.

Records show that he departed for America in 1927. He met his future wife, Kathleen Gordon on the Celtic as it sailed for the Port of New York. He worked t as a chauffeur before opening a saloon on Third Avenue in the late Thirties or early Forties.

Tim Costelloe died in 1962. His life is an important footnote in the literary history of New York.

And there’s a twist.

On an August evening in 1955 Marlyn Monroe reclined in her chair, enjoying a cigarette and ordered a screwdriver, Vodka and Orange juice.

Not recognising his guest Tim Costello politely refused, declaring, “Sorry, we don’t serve breakfast”.

“OK, make it Vodka on the rocks”.

I note from this book that Anne Williams made no mistake when she encountered Telly Savalas and his mother and introduced him to the joys of Irish Mist.

Reading this book was like a step back in time. In the forward I pay tribute to Bill Jaffray. In doing so I want to congratulate Brian for the affectionate and deeply personal tribute to his father, who really was a unique man of great integrity and charm. I know he and Kathleen would be very much at home in this setting.

Reading this book brought to mind John Montague’s fine poem “Like Dolmens Round My Childhood, the Old People”,

For many here tonight the characters mentioned were indeed dolmens, upstanding, distinct, strong and solid. Seemingly permanent figures but no on lives forever and we are left with memories, traces of lives well lived. Happily many are however still with us and Offaly History are to be congratulated on enuring that so many stories have been saved.

There is a saying “if you could only bottle it” but in this case Irish Mist has been brought to book in a way which does a real service to Irelands legendary liquer.

The story of Irish Mist is as intriguing as the legendary liqueur, a tale interwoven with the social, cultural and economic life of Tullamore in the Sixties, Seventies and Eighties.

Offaly History, Offaly County Council and Creative Ireland deserve credit for this initiative in celebrating the history of Irish Mist. History is not of course just about the captains and the kings and while it is appropriate to salute the Williams family, and Desmond in particular, this book rightly examines the role of the workforce, the importance of Irish Mist to Tullamore and to the life of the community.

This could well be a useful template for other companies and organisations in the public and private sector in the Midlands, not least Bord na Mona and the ESB.

I was struck in reading the book by the impact of the Williams Group not just on the economy but on the social and community life of Tullamore. The social capital evident in the Tullamore Credit Union, the Musical Society, in sports, arts and culture – the very existence of a loyal employer of that scale allowed people to live, work and contribute to the community.

I think that also explains why the transfer of Irish Mist from the town was the source of such disappointment."