Roe & Co
A surprisingly soft Irish blend for 45% ABV. Roe & Co keeps things uncomplicated, with vanilla, ripe pear, gentle spice and a creamy finish.
Tasting notes
Watch the review
THE BOTTLE
Roe & Co is a modern Irish whiskey built around a much older name.
George Roe was one of the major figures in 19th-century Irish whiskey, with his Thomas Street distillery once operating in the heart of Dublin’s distilling district. The original distillery eventually closed in 1926.
Diageo revived the Roe name with the launch of Roe & Co in 2017, followed by the opening of the Roe & Co Distillery in Dublin in 2019, close to where George Roe’s old operation once stood.
The bottle we reviewed is the earlier 45% ABV Roe & Co blend. It’s a non-chill-filtered blend of malt and grain Irish whiskeys matured in bourbon casks and carries no age statement.
That 45% matters to our review because the whiskey drinks much softer than we expected from the number on the label.
OUR TAKE
What surprised us most about Roe & Co was the 45% ABV.
We expected that strength to show itself more than it did. Instead, this drinks remarkably soft.
There’s vanilla, ripe pear and honey, followed by some gentle spice and a creamy finish. Nothing really pushes too hard, and there isn’t much heat getting in the way.
The trade-off is complexity.
This isn’t a whiskey where we kept finding new layers as we drank it. If you’re looking for something bold or particularly complex, we’d probably point you towards another bottle.
Roe & Co is balanced, uncomplicated and very easy to drink. You can pour it neat and get exactly that: a relaxed Irish whiskey that doesn’t ask much from you.
For us, the interesting part is that it manages to do that at 45% ABV. The number suggests something with a little more weight and intensity, but that’s not how it came across in the glass.
We wouldn’t choose Roe & Co when we want an Irish whiskey to really hold our attention. We’d choose it when we want something smooth, simple and easy to enjoy.
If you're new to Irish whiskey, the soft character makes it approachable despite the 45% ABV. It also works if you already drink whiskey but sometimes just want something uncomplicated.
If you're looking for layers of flavour or a bottle that changes considerably as you spend time with it, this probably isn't the one we'd point you towards.
Vanilla, ripe pear, honey and gentle spice lead into a creamy finish, and there's very little about it that feels difficult or overpowering.
It isn't particularly complex, and at around ₹2,400 in Gurgaon we'd want to be clear about that. But if what you're after is a smooth, balanced Irish whiskey that's easy to pour and easy to enjoy, Roe & Co does that well.
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Frequently asked questions
Who was George Roe?
George Roe was one of the major names in Dublin whiskey during the 19th century. His George Roe & Co distillery on Thomas Street grew to become one of Ireland's largest distilleries before eventually closing in 1926. The modern Roe & Co brand was named in his honour.
Is the Roe & Co Distillery the original George Roe distillery?
No. The modern Roe & Co Distillery occupies the former Guinness Power House in Dublin's Liberties, close to where George Roe's historic Thomas Street distillery once stood. The old distillery closed in 1926, and the modern Roe & Co Distillery began production in 2019.
Why is our Roe & Co bottle 45% ABV when newer bottles are 40%?
They're different versions of Roe & Co. The original blend launched in 2017 was bottled at 45% ABV and was non-chill-filtered. Roe & Co's current website also lists a newer 40% ABV Signature Blend.
The bottle reviewed here is the earlier 45% expression, which is why this review should not be used as a tasting reference for the newer 40% version.
Is Roe & Co an Irish whiskey from Guinness?
Roe & Co is owned by Diageo, the same company that owns Guinness. The connection goes a little further than ownership: the modern Roe & Co Distillery was built inside the former Guinness Power House at St James's Gate in Dublin.
What does non-chill-filtered mean?
Chill filtration is a process used to remove compounds that can make whiskey appear cloudy, particularly when it's cold or diluted. A non-chill-filtered whiskey skips that process.
The 45% Roe & Co reviewed here was released without chill filtration. You may occasionally see some haze after adding water or chilling a non-chill-filtered whiskey, and that's completely normal.
How should you drink Roe & Co?
For the 45% bottle we reviewed, we'd start neat. It drank surprisingly softly for its strength, so we didn't find that the higher ABV made it difficult to drink on its own.
It can also work in mixed drinks. Roe & Co was developed with cocktails in mind, and the brand currently suggests serves ranging from a simple Highball to its take on an Old Fashioned.