The Ad…
The Front of the Bottle…
The Back of the Bottle…
The Verdict…
- Appearance: Pours like watered down maple syrup. Really long legs after giving it a swirl. Thanks to the addition of caramel coloring, it has a rich amber hue.
- Aroma: Butterscotch and Balsamic Vinegar, but not in a good way. I actually opened up a bottle of 18 year old Balsamic Vinegar to confirm that my nose wasn’t completely crazy.
- Taste: Syrupy sweetness that does a good job of masking it’s 50% ABV. Caramel, butterscotch, and yes, a hint of balsamic vinegar tartness.
When we first opened The Knot, we thought we were going to be drinking Irish Whiskey (Limpd picked this up for $20). Upon further inspection, we noticed that the word whiskey is nowhere to be found on the front or back of the bottle (FYI, the website link on the back label doesn’t work). This is more of a whiskey liqueur, and not a very good one at that. After drinking some Sazerac Rye, Highland Park 18, Eagle Rare 17, Lagavulin 16, and one or two more whiskies, this stuff is just too sickeningly sweet. Adding a good slosh of water (mostly to clean out the glass and go back to the good stuff) helped to make it taste a bit better, but it’s still not something that I would want to try again anytime soon. A clever ad and some clever words on the back of the bottle do not a good beverage make! I guess Limpd’s habit of picking up a “pretty bottle” every once in awhile didn’t pay off this time around. Only one question remains… what the f#$% is this stuff?
For an alternative view and some more insight into this very odd beverage, click on over to Slainte: The Irish Whiskey Blog.
Categories: Booze Review, The Knot
AMKrouse
The Alemonger
G-LO
limpd
The Wookie
The ROK
Sarah -BeautifulTangibleThings
The Astounding Prism
It's just the booze dancing... 
The description on the Irish Whiskey Blog is spot on calling this stuff “Celtic Southern Comfort”. Sweet and over flavored. I can see this being a hit with the ladies. I am not sure what this stuff is either but I know it is not Whiskey.
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I swear I don’t know how you got the balsamic vinegar note on this. However, having just bought this and was thrown back by the scent of TEQUILA, my taster notes are just as awful. After I take this glass, which I did convenience with ice, I’m going to put a splash in with a good pour of my wife’s beloved Teelings to see if it gives it a little flair. If I don’t like that I will put it the garage for emergency reserve and to fend off overzealous neighbors…….cheers
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I received a bottle of this as a gift. It was presented as Irish whiskey, but clearly is not… It sat around until I found a good use for it. It works fine in a hot toddy. I like mine with a slice of lemon, some honey and a few cloves. If you’re stuck with a bottle of this, try it!
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That’s a BRILLIANT idea! Thanks for sharing. 😁
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Thank you boys for saving me…I’ve seen the bottle at several local establishments, including a few Irish pubs (where the barkeep always refers to at as Irish whiskey), and would have tried it sooner or later. Now it will be never!
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You’re very welcome Stan! Always happy to help a fellow aficionado. 🙂
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Let’s not give up on the Knot too soon. It may have a place alongside things like wine coolers, Zima, Mike’s Hard Lemonade, cosmos, etc. … as an L.P.R. (Liquid Panty Remover).
… I may also try it as an engine degreaser!
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Easy with the L.P.R. reference. Doesn’t your buddy have a patent on that phrase with his winemaking hobby?
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OK C.P.R.? Celtic Panty Remover.
What? C.P.R. is taken too. Damn the Healthcare Industry.
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I like that warning pasted on the back of the bottle. I think not all alcoholic beverage contains that kind of warning. I hope other liquor company would do the same.
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While I take full responsibility for the purchase of this caramel swill, I must offer in my defense that I was horribly misled by the bottle. Once again, I saw something shiny and was done in by the packaging.
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It was a valiant effort to try something new without breaking the bank. We’ve all spent more on worse things. I too have been tempted by The Knot when I’ve seen it in the Irish Whiskey section of numerous wine & spirits shoppes. I can now say that I have had it, and that I doubt that I’ll ever have it again.
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Doubt you’ll ever have it again? Right, like you are not still drinking the Root and the Fernet Branca. I bet you’d go back to the Tamdhu or even the Knot.
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The difference between The Knot and those other two fine elixirs is that I actually enjoy them.
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I think the Knot and the Root are the same beverage in different packaging. They are both owned by the same company.
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I just bought the bottle tonight, i’ve been a jack guy for a while and have been trying other whiskeys. I saw the cool bottle and I figured “the Kracken rum has a cool bottle and was good this should be too”……I was wrong, it’s so sweet it makes my nose curl up.
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Well, I ran this by a female product testing panel and while they all commented on the strength of the alcohol, no one turned it down. Perhaps, the sweetness lends itself more to a ladies beverage.
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I wonder if this stuff is popular on college campuses. You know how those crazy kids like their shots of uber-strong beverages. I wouldn’t be surprised if I saw this mixed with that vile Red Bull energy drink.
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well I have found many people do like this product as wel as I did, However I was drinking muck Absolute right before The Knot!
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While some of the fellas certainly didn’t care for it, I think I was more disappointed as The Knot is more of a cordial than it is a whiskey. Certainly, not something to be shooting back with more traditional whiskies, the ladies (who may have only been having one) really seemed to enjoy it.
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On this beautiful 2013 St. Patty’s Day I decided to try The Knot out of homeage to my almost pure-blooded Irish heritage. I rarely stray from high quality vodka as whiskey tends to make me more than a little bit rowdy. I really enjoyed this. Smooth and butterscotchy. A plus is I haven’t punched anyone yet, nor do I feel like doing so.
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It says Liqueur in tiny little letters on the bottom right side of the front label. Of course, I was taken in by the pretty packaging and didn’t notice it until I took a drink. I am trying not to be angry at it. Perhaps a sweet after dinner drinky thing?? At any rate, I called the shop I got it from and they had not noticed the little Liqueur on the label either.
Next time, I will do my research BEFORE I pop over there LOL
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Ah yes! Research is very important. I still wonder why liquor stores stock it near the Irish whiskey. Makes no sense to me.
Thanks for stopping by!
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Bought The Knot thinking it was whiskey. Really disliked it, and could not stand drinking it neat. I was bummed because I didn’t research it before I bought it. Experimented a bit and find it is ok when used in a manhattan; try it with a bit of sweet vermouth, dry vermouth, bitters. And yes, it must be shaken. Don’t know what to call it, maybe a Manknotan ???
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LOL! That’s genius!
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That is brilliant. I am going to try it in an Irish Coffee and skip the crystallized sugar altogether. Might also go well in hot cocoa.
I am a perfect manhattan person (with a dash of angostura and a dash of absinthe)
Just tried it in an Irish coffee, not bad.
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I like The Knot whether its called a whiskey or a liquer. It will be a spirit to be shared from my cabinet of scotch and irish offerings.
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Hi received a bottle of this caramel colored liquid from one of my husband’s friends. He knows I love Irish whisky, I drink it neat.
As a lady I am offended by the comments that ladies prefer it sweeter. I have Bushmills or Jamenson while I make dinner or before I go to bed. I have my whisky that we both drink during our weekly cigar time. I LOVE the Connamarra cask strength, I like Middleton on a rainy afternoon and a Powers just whenever.
That said, The Knott is straight out awful!! So sweet, vamilla and cinnamon tasting its like a dessert liquor. I can’t beleive anyone drinks it straight. The only thing I can think to drink it with is egg nog & I am not even sure about that.
I am off to buy a bottle of Paddy’s hopefully to burn this taste out of mouth.
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Thanks for the comment! Happy to see that we’re on the same page re: The Knot. It’s positively dreadful. Just so you know, when we refer to “the ladies”, we’re talking about our respective wives, not ladies in general. In case you haven’t noticed from our posts, we know many a whisky loving woman that would definitely turn their nose up at The Knot.
As far as the Connemara Cask Strength, that stuff is delicious! It might be by next whisky purchase.
Cheers!
G-LO
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As G-LO had indicated, our reference to the ladies refers to our spouses (and my Mother who it seems is a bit of a boozehound and unbeknownst to most of us has been skimming from Pappy’s bottles for quite some time). No offense was intended. It is just that our wives are usually only looking for only one beverage and tend to seek something on the sweeter side as a liquid dessert.
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Thanks G-Lo I kinda guessed you were all friends.
As for the Connemara, my husband poured me a glass trying to make amends for his friends dreadful gift. My hackles are down now so if I sounded short I am sorry. A bad “whisky” can turn a nice girl into a crazed venom spitting snake in no time.
Enjoy a good glass of whisky and I look forward to reading more reviews.
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I’ve been down that road as well. I stopped asking for whisky from non-whisky drinkers as a gift (ie family) after being disappointed too many times. I’ll buy my own from here on out!
There are several whisky reviews in the queue, so stay tuned for more. Look forward to your comments!
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Sadly, I had no one to blame for the Knot but myself. The pretty packaging and the shiny bottle were too much of lure for me. And, the tiny little print that said liqueur was too small for me to even take note. I only wish I had a Connemara to wash out the taste.
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If I had internet on my phone, I could have seen the reviews in the liquor store where I grabbed a jar of this swill. I would have skipped it, but it was marked down to $20/fifth, so I gave it a try. I didn’t even notice the 100 proof–it was just shelved with the actual Irish whiskeys, so I thought it was one.
Folks–this stuff is, as noted, Celtic Southern Comfort:
If you younger than 16 and in your parent’s celler or behind the barn–this is your drink of choice! No-one else need apply.
And five years after the first review. I am so ashamed!
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Well said. Dreadful stuff!
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I made the exact same mistake as limpd. Loved the packaging, etc, thought it was whisky. Awful stuff. Ironically, the only way I found it to be” tolerable” is by mixing it with Jäger (someone left after a party) and macerated black cherries. Gordian Cherry Bomb? One of my (non-whisky drinking) female friends did like it, though.
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Pretty packaging has always been my downfall. Glad you found a use for the Knot. And, kudos on the name!
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Not completely horrible, unless you drink it straight. I am going to try it in an Irish coffee to see if it works.
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Whatever kills the taste of The Knot works for me!
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After much research the domain name is owned by an Asian company there is no record of “The Knot Irish Spirits” it is a ghost company. So beware it is Knot Irish.
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It is made by William Grant & Sons it must be a dicontined line ,NO Facebook NO website Nothing. The Label is the best thing about this Liqeur Knot Irish Whiskey.
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Discontinued? Yay!
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Did some internet digging.
Found a site that might shed some light on The Knot.
http://www.terra.ie/private-label-irish-cream-liqueurs
Haven’t come across The Knot in Ireland before.
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Thanks fom for the intel!
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Looks like we might need to send an investigative team to my great-grandfather’s hometown. Let’s skip the boozemobile and take the boozejet.
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You don’t have to ask me twice! What time is our flight? To county Cavan we go!
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Would you recommend this to someone who likes Irish Mist and Drambuie?
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Never had Irish Mist. Drambuie is decent though, and not too sweet. The Knot isn’t as good from what I remember.
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Here in Boston, where there is a crazy “Cordials” liq license, this fills in a naked spot in the inventory. This product was designed for this type of situation. The law requires 2.5% sugar content in any spirit. (Loosely)
So please review it as the product that it is, not what you expect it to be.
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Fair enough. Here goes…
The Knot is a high proof Irish liqueur that may or may not contain some whisky. It’s overly sweet and gives you a hefty burning sensation as you drink it down. We didn’t like it, but you might, so if you have $20 burning a hole in your pocket, feel free to buy yourself a bottle. It will surely get you drunk, so I guess it has that going for it.
Happy?
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The Knot was a liquor. I wish i had kept the label of the first bottle I ever bought. It was in 2018 at a Binny’s in Illinois. It was sold out when I returned for another bottle, so I asked the manager to look in the computer and told him it was a liquor and only 37% alcohol, and he said authoritatively, “no, it’s a whiskey.” Then it came up in the computer as a liquor and he said “oh, it is a liquor.” I looked around to find it and found it at another store, but it was 50% proof and much harsher than the 37% alcohol liquor. The Knot should have stayed a liquor with low alcohol as it was originally intended to be an originally made. And yes, all the ladies love it! I wish I had a few bottles for the Kentucky Derby.
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