The Craft Irish Whiskey Co. races ahead as the new sponsor of The Prestbury Cup at The Cheltenham Festival™

LONDON, March 13, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- The Craft Irish Whiskey Co., creator of the world's Best Irish Single Malt of 2022, has been announced as the new sponsor of The Prestbury Cup at The Cheltenham Festival™. The sponsorship represents the second year running that The Jockey Club and The Craft Irish Whiskey Co. have partnered at the Home of Jump Racing, Cheltenham Racecourse. Founded in 2018 by Irish entrepreneur, Jay Bradley, The Craft Irish Whiskey Co.'s second release, The Emerald Isle, attracted record-breaking attention in 2021 selling at auction for $2 million to become the most expensive whiskey in the world ever bought at a live auction.

Following on from its successful sponsorship of the Festival Plate Handicap Chase in 2022, the luxury whiskey company is returning to Cheltenham as the sponsor of The Prestbury Cup. Celebrating the annual challenge between Great Britain and Ireland for Festival winners, The Prestbury Cup runs from the first race of the four-day meeting on Day One until either country has 14 winners or more. With Ireland having claimed the Cup six times compared to just two for Great Britain, the competition this year will be fierce!

The company is also sponsoring the Leading Trainer, Owner and Jockey, a nail-biting race which lasts four days and traditionally goes down to the wire. Will Paul Townend triumph again in 2023, after five wins over four days in 2022 secured him the Leading Jockey title, and can Willie Mullins improve on his 2022 Leading Trainer title where he recorded an incredible ten winners?

Alongside the excitement of the racing, Owners, Annual Box-Holders and Cheltenham Club Members will be able to toast to their winnings with a glass of the finest Irish whiskey. The three single malts crafted by Jay Bradley at The Craft Irish Whiskey Co. each took home medals from the World Whiskies Awards 2022, with The Devil's Keep winning world's Best Irish Single Malt, and The Taoscán and The Brollach taking Silver and Bronze in the same category.

Jay Bradley, Founder, The Craft Irish Whiskey Co. said "I couldn't be more thrilled to be returning to the Home of Jump Racing this year with our sponsorship of The Prestbury Cup. I'm a huge fan of horse racing and own a number of my own racehorses.  It's an honour to bring our rare Irish single malts to this incredible racecourse and allow whiskey fans the opportunity to add an extra touch of luxury to their racing experience. I'll be at the Festival and while I'll be cheering on all the jockeys, I think you can guess which side I'll be rooting for in The Prestbury Cup!"

Jack Royle, Head of Partnerships for The Jockey Club, added:

"We are delighted to take our partnership with The Craft Irish Whiskey Co. to another level.

"It is great to have a sponsor committed to supporting all of the awards at The Festival and I would like to extend our thanks to Ian and all the team at The Craft Irish Whiskey Co."

The Craft Irish Whiskey Co.

The Craft Irish Whiskey Co. is on a mission to reinvent Irish whiskey, elevating its potential as a luxury product and restoring Ireland's reputation for crafting the finest whiskeys in the world.

Formed in 2018 by Irish entrepreneur Jay Bradley, The Craft Irish Whiskey Co. was born from a desire to return Irish whiskey to the heights it once enjoyed. To achieve such a goal has taken a complete reimagining of the craft; honouring centuries of tradition but questioning convention and adding scientific understanding to reinvent the maturation of the whiskey. No expense is spared, no corners are cut.

While the rise of mass production and blends has pushed this art to one side, the company is invested in restoring it by adding scientific knowledge and a willingness to push boundaries. Underfilling the barrels allows maturation to start at once. Adding water before maturation, or before finishing, allows the water and whiskey to marry over time and allows the whiskeys to be bottled at cask strength to preserve the complex flavour profiles and rich viscosity. Using ultra-premium finishing barrels to mature the single malt delivers rich, rounded notes, while a deep understanding of barrel craft ensures the barrels are moved, rotated and the whiskey disgorged into new ones to create a tailored journey. The whiskeys are accompanied by skilfully designed and scientifically-perfected accessories that deliver a whiskey experience worthy of the liquid.

In 2021, The Craft Irish Whiskey Co. became the most highly awarded new company of the year amassing a total of seventeen awards across both Taste and Design for four of its ultra-rare whiskey releases. In 2022, the company continued this award-winning streak, adding the world's Best Irish Single Malt at the World Whiskies Awards for The Devil's Keep, and a perfect score to achieve Platinum at the A'Design Awards for The Emerald Isle.

The Craft Irish Whiskey Co. is the partner of the Michelin Guide Great Britain & Ireland 2023.

For more information visit www.craftirishwhiskey.com

About The Jockey Club

One of the largest sports businesses operating in the UK today, The Jockey Club is at the heart of so many aspects of Britain's second-biggest spectator sport. We run 15 of the UK's leading racecourses – large and local – where we're charged with looking after some of the nation's biggest events, including the Randox Grand National at Aintree, the Cheltenham Festival, The Cazoo Derby Festival at Epsom Downs and the QIPCO Guineas Festival in Newmarket. We welcome thousands of racehorses a year to our training centres in Newmarket, Lambourn and Epsom. We run The National Stud in Newmarket and our charity, Racing Welfare, makes help available to all of racing's people. We are governed by Royal Charter to act for the long-term benefit of British Racing and our Patron is Her Majesty The Queen. For more information please visit www.thejockeyclub.co.uk

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