Irish whiskey roaring back after decades of decline

Irish distillers are closing the market gap on their hitherto dominant Scottish rivals

Karen Gregory, a tourist from Oklahoma, visited Dublin this week, inhaled an aroma of malted barley at Teeling Whiskey Distillery, and picked a side in a centuries-old contest. Definitely Irish. It's lighter and brighter. Scotch is too heavy."

The crowd of visitors merrily sipping neat whiskeys, whiskey cocktails and whiskey-infused coffees suggested more converts to the Irish side of a rivalry that has pitted two venerable traditions in a battle for market domination.