Actor Jean-Claude Van Damme Launches Old Oak Irish Whiskey

Hollywood actor Jean-Claude Van Damme is in Belfast this week for the launch of his Irish whiskey brand, Old Oak.

The actor has revealed that he was initially hoping to release a Bourbon, but a friend persuaded him to put his name to an Irish whiskey instead.

“I was looking for my own brand of whiskey, possibly an American Bourbon and then one of my close friends and business associates asked ‘why an American whiskey when you can go back to the roots of whiskey and find an Irish whiskey?’,” the actor said.

“He then introduced me to the Old Oak whiskey label, which had yet to be launched, and had been put together by some whiskey aficionados in Ireland.”

Old Oak co-founder Kevin Carson and co-director and shareholder Ian Rowlands said:

We are proud to partner with world-renowned actor Jean-Claude Van Damme whose interest in premium whiskey led him to discover Old Oak. What he found we believe was not just a brand but an emotional connection that goes beyond the taste and aroma.

His relentless pursuit of perfection and attention to detail make him the quintessential representation of our brand.

Described by the brand as “a craft premium whiskey”, Old Oak is named after the hometown of co-founder Carson, the Oak Leaf County region of Derry in Northern Ireland.

Two expressions of Old Oak are currently available, a three-year-old finished in ex-bourbon and virgin American oak (£34.95) and a five-year-old (£39.95) finished in a Rum barrel.

More details can be found on the Old Oak website here.