In 1961 I joined B. Daly & Co Ltd and two years later SI was transferred to Irish Mist (another wholly owned Williams company) to supervise the production line in the Bond Store. I joined up with Joe Scally, and I was still with him until I finished in 1985 over 22 years later. Joe and I were always involved in Production. We overcame many difficulties in the area over the years due to expansion and increased demand for output, with changes in packaging and design etc. I started on the middle floor of the Bond Store. We shared the building with Tullamore Dew. We had a staff of about 12 at the time, with no machinery as the output was small. Within a short time later, in 1966 due to increased demand, we had to move to the top floor. We became much more mechanised and we saw a dramatic increase in output, and also a big increase in staff numbers. We also saw the introduction of the Figurine, Blue decanter, the pocket Flask, the Waterford Glass decanter, and many more display packs, introduced onto the market. In 1966 a new office block was built, along with a new laboratory and a compounding unit.
Within a few years we were congested again because of the growth in sales and lack of space, and difficulty of access to the top floor, and with only one entry/exit door to the building to get all materials up and down. In 1970 we had to find more space to allow for a further increase in output and we left the Bond Store and moved to a newly built warehouse, with offices and canteen all under the one roof in O’Connell (Row) Street at the back of Bury Quay. This was a major move and allowed for greater expansion to meet demand, as again sales improved dramatically. The whole complex was very impressive to the many groups of visitors, who came to visit from all over the world. It was something the Williams family could be very proud of as we were also.
1980 saw a further upgrading and modernisation of the production line, and much more automation, with the introduction of new packaging and improved quality standards. Irish Mist Liqueur was a quality product and received many awards, Gold and Silver in Trade Fairs around the world, Irish Export Awards, and Quality marks. Irish Mist was exported to over 80 countries around the world and was the first Irish liqueur to achieve worldwide success. Every bottling operation had a reference number, every carton had a number, and every bottle carried the date it was produced, and all the information including the destination of the consignment was recorded in the bottling register. If there was a complaint, and they were very rare, it could be traced back to the initial operation.
The production of Irish Mist Liqueur took place ‘Under Bond’ which meant it was under the control of Customs & Excise. They had a record of every operation, including the number of cartons produced daily, as they all had to be accounted for.
The staff from all sections of the company deserved great credit. Through their dedication and hard work, they contributed to building a very successful company, and helped to create many jobs and put Tullamore and Ireland on the map around the world.
1985 saw a big downturn in the economy both at home and abroad, and a decision was made to sell The Irish Mist Liqueur Company Ltd to Cantwell & Cochrane in Clonmel.
The bottling operations ceased on 27th November 1985, and the last bottle of Irish Mist bottled in Tullamore came off the production line on that date at 4.30 p.m. The announcement of the sale and the closure came as a major shock to all of us. The feeling is something you have to experience to believe. I saw the company grow and expand from its infancy and experienced many milestones on the way. I enjoyed the challenge that each task brought, and I was very sorry to see it close.
The compounding operation remained for a further twelve years until 1997, with six of a staff remaining. The Irish Mist Liqueur was transported by road and was bottled in Clonmel during that time.
Jobs were very scarce due to a recession at the time, but fortunately most people because of their training and experience got work soon after. Irish Mist had many dedicated and hard working staff. Many families like the Connollys, Bolands, and McNairs, had four or five members of their families, some even had second and third generations, working in the production plant. I am still reminded when I meet with some of them that I gave them their first pay packet. The detail of your pay was written on the outside of the envelope and real money inside during my early years. It was a good company to work with, and the records will show that we never had a strike or a serious work accident.
The social events like the Christmas Party, the summer bus outings, the sing-along at the ‘going away’ leaving parties and get-together in The Murals Bar or Hugh Lynch’s and many more events, were very enjoyable occasions.
I have many memories of my twenty-five years working with the company like seeing:
The company grew and expanded over the years.
I saw the new office block, the laboratory, and the compounding section being built,
Leaving Bury Quay and moving to a newly built warehouse in O’Connell Street.
The satisfaction of getting production runs ready in time for shipment, and seeing the large shipping containers setting off on their destination, around the world.
I escorted many groups of visitors on a tour of the Plant, who came to Tullamore to visit us, and to see where Irish Mist was made, or compounded to use the correct term.
The announcement of the closure and the sale of the Company was the major blow.
The vision of the last bottle of Irish Mist Liqueur bottled in Tullamore on 27th November 1985 is a memory I will never forget, after seeing so many bottles coming off the production line in all shapes and sizes over the years. The absence of not meeting up with your colleagues daily, with whom you worked with for so long, was a big change to all of us after the closure. The closure of B. Daly & Co Ltd warehouses in the distillery in 1984 was the end of an era. I saw the last cask of whiskey being rolled out of No.13 warehouse. The doors that were locked both day and night, now being left open for the first time in almost a century.
The distillery was the birthplace of Tullamore Dew whiskey, Irish Mist Liqueur and the origin of the famous slogan ‘Give everyman his Dew’.
These are but a few of my memories of work in Irish Mist Liqueur Co Ltd and there are many more. Finally, we all lost many good friends and colleagues who died over the years some of whom gave their lifetime working for the company. The following is a list of deceased members who died from 1970 to date: Mr Desmond Williams, Mr Edmund Williams, Mr Bill Jaffray, Joseph Scally, Paddy Brady, Michael Horan, Ray Kelly, Joseph Kirwan, Michael Connolly, Thomas O’Toole, Mick Joe Coughlan, Michael Scully, Dominick McEvoy, Sonny Conway, Bernard McGowan, Daniel O’Brien, Joseph Pyke, Eamonn Gleeson, Oliver Cleary, Chris Wright, Margaret Bryant, Margaret Middleton, Angela Hyland, Gladys Adams, Joan Dunne. The following have also passed on since the Reunion: Celine Conway, John O’Grady, Joe Connolly, Joseph (Gossy) Boland and our former chemist and a director for many years Pat Given. ‘May they all rest in Peace’.
There was a reunion of the staff held 30 years after the closure, in the Bond Store at Bury Quay, on 2nd April 2016. It was a wonderful nostalgic occasion and was thoroughly enjoyed by all. [This is covered in the final chapter of the Irish Mist history published on 1 December 2023]
This article is slightly abridged from that published in Irish Mist: The story of Tullamore’s whiskey liqueur, 1945–1985, Michael Byrne and John Flanagan (eds), (Offaly History, Tullamore, 2023), 275 pp, €20 pb. The new book was supported by Creative Ireland and Offaly County Council. The book can be purchased from Offaly at its online shop and also at our Bury Quay history shop and Midland Books, Tullamore.
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