Drink

The understated whiskies of Ireland have expanded far more shyly into the luxury stratosphere than their bold Scottish cousins. But two of the Emerald Isle's big boys - Jameson and Bushmills - have just released special high-end bottles that should make any malt collector's shelf.

Pot-stilling in at $237 is Jameson's Rarest Vintage Reserve, which takes on a soft, grapey sweetness from aging in port casks, but is otherwise the epitome of the brand's elegant restraint. Its flavors of caramel, pipe smoke and almonds hum across the palate with a power and polish that swells and resonates for minutes. The $100 Bushmills 1608, meanwhile, created to honor the distillery's 400th anniversary, has a bigger, brassier brogue. Aged in oloroso sherry casks (and some American oak), it brings a core of sweet toffee wrapped in figgy molasses, but also a lusty pitch smoke that lingers with hints of bitter chocolate and sea salt for a long finish.

Both can be special-ordered in Pennsylvania, but the Bushmills is also available by the bottle in New Jersey, where Joe Canal's in Delran has a great price of $79.99. The Jameson is surely a connoisseur's splurge, but you can take it for a test sip by the snifter at a couple of local restaurants. Mahogany, at 1524 Walnut St., sells 2-ounce pours for $38, discounted to $25 for the month of March.

- Craig LaBan