Happy St Patrick’s Day!

We want to wish you all a Happy St Patrick’s Day from everyone at Killowen Distillery.

This is a time of the year when we celebrate the contribution Ireland and her diaspora have made around the world while remembering our patron saint; Patrick. 
As Patrick came to Ireland from a foreign land as a young man, many Irish have since made similar journeys over the centuries and have helped enrich the world with many of our customs and personalities, as such this is a perfect day to show compassion and help to others on the move today. 
We hope you all have a ball with your friends, families or favourite bar tenders this weekend but before we go – we would love to tell you the story of St Patrick coming to the site that is now Killowen Distillery.

St Patrick first arrived in the area now known as County Down and set up camp around Downpatrick and Saul.

His area is now generally known as the Kingdom of Mourne …

It’s said, was made unwelcome by some local chief in this Low Mournes where we are today where we continued to abuse the good folk just across the river, Defiantly Patrick threw his sandal to mark out the ‘forbidden area’ and the footwear landed a distance of twelve Irish miles away at the Cassy Water where Killowen Distillery sits today. The Saint didn’t apply curses but he was indicating at least that this area was beyond his blessing and influence! THis likely explains our fighting spirit at Killowen Distillery.

Right up to more recent times this river formed a territorial division between the baronies and later it marked the administrative line between the Councils of Down and Newry and Mourne, before their recent amalgamation.

The story comes to life in Tom Porters version of the local legend, sure its no wonder County Down is the real capital of Irish Whiskey.

Boundaries of Mourne

On his way from Saul to Tara

Patrick stopped to rest one day

On a heather-covered hillside

Overlooking Dundrum Bay

And from the crystal mountain stream

That flows from Donard’s seat

He quenched his thirst, gave thanks to God

And bathed his aching feet.

He sat there on a granite slab

And looked across the Bay

And saw the lovely Mona’s Isle

A wheen o’ miles away.

The day was warm, the sky was blue

The larks sang loud and clear

When round the shoulder of a hill

He saw three men appear.

Now Patrick was a civil man

And he bid them time of day

He could see they looked uneasy

So he let them have their say.

They’d come, they said, from round the hill

Between the mountain and the shore

‘..but ours is not the happy land

That it always was before.

The folk there’s always fighting

They’re murderin’ each other.

We cannot do a thing with them

We need your help, dear brother.

If you could come and see if you

Can make them mend their ways

For if you don’t we’ll all be killed

It’s been goin’ on for days’.

‘I haven’t time to go,’ says he

‘But I’ll tell you what I’ll do.

I’ll stop this fighting here and now’.

And with that picked up his shoe

He stood there at the water’s edge

With his sandal in his hand

‘Blood!’ says he, ‘will ne’er be spilled

From here to where this lands.’

‘Stand back!’ says he. The men stood back

He flung with all his might

They watched the shoe fly through the air

Till it disappeared from sight.

They thought that it was lost for sure

But then they heard next day

It had landed in another stream

Twelve Irish miles away.

The fightin’ stopped right then and there

The blood it ceased to flow

It’s been known as the Kindly Mourne

Since that time long ago.

Those streams still mark the ends of Mourne

They both flow to this day

The one into Lough Carlingford

Th’other to Dundrum Bay.