Tasting history, Locke's Distillery, Kilbeggan, Ireland. First licensed back in 1757, Locke's ("believed to be the oldest licensed distillery in the world") operated for almost 200 years before its closure in 1957. Three decades later the distillery was partially restored by the community and re-opened as a museum. Today it is the last remaining example of a small pot still distillery in Ireland.

While no longer operational, about 90 percent of the original machinery is still present, and the guided tour takes visitors through the entire process of whiskey production. Whiskeys from a neighboring producer (Cooley's) are still stored and matured in the Locke's warehouses, and restoration of the historic factory continues.

The tour concludes with a whiskey tasting. Here glasses wait for those eager to sample what Irish grain, water, heat and time create.