Andrew Healy doesn’t consider himself a wine guy, though he knows and enjoys wine. Living in Napa, home to some of the most famous vineyards in the world, wine was what originally brought Andrew to California. He had worked under industry bigwigs in London, but now his focus is on Irish whiskey.
In 2022, Andrew started his business, Irish Whiskey LAD, to offer tasting, training, and educational events in Northern California. He travels around Napa, Sonoma, and the Bay Area, and even offers virtual classes and sessions. He also collaborates with local businesses, such as the famous Dandelion Chocolate in San Francisco, for special pairings.
The Dublin native’s latest offering is an Irish coffee experience for those seeking wine-free activities in Napa. “I’ve been hearing more and more that our visitors want to do something besides wine when they’re here,” Andrew told IrishStar.com.
“Say they come for a four-day conference. On Monday they do a tasting, on Tuesday they do a pairing. By Thursday, they’re done with wine. The idea is to do something different.
“So, I host groups at bars in downtown Napa, or I set up in a hotel or conference room, and we make some Irish coffees and have a bit of fun. The reaction has been really positive.
“We live in a bit of an Irish coffee bubble in the Bay Area with the Buena Vista, which popularized it, but everyone really has a soft spot for Ireland here. It’s astounding.”
Andrew moved to the U.S. on a Morrison Visa in 1994. Back then, wine was his first love, and Ireland’s lack of vineyards prompted a change of scenery. The journey was a bit bumpy.
“Like much of my generation, I graduated in 1990 and off we went. I headed to London and did an internship at Harrods in the food halls. My last hall was the wine department, and that started a decades-long love affair with wine,” he said.
“In 1994 I got the Morrison Visa and did a harvest in Southern California. Then I did a harvest in New Zealand and came back to California.
“After I settled, I kind of morphed into digital marketing. Nobody was doing social media at the time, so I had my own business with about 15 or 16 clients. A lot of them were A-listers here in Napa, but to be honest, I got kind of burned out.
“I started to ramp it down, and then when the pandemic hit, it all went away. Then began my journey into whiskey.”
Andrew recalls the moment he fell in love with Irish whiskey during a visit to Costco in 2016, when he picked up a bottle of Redbreast 12 for the first time.
“I saw the bottle and grabbed it, and all of a sudden it became our house whiskey,” he said. “When I was growing up, there were distilleries in Ireland, but there wasn’t really a distillery culture, so to speak.
“I have vivid memories of Irish whiskey at that time being the preserve of ‘old men,’ and the choice was paltry by today’s standards. There were pretty much only four whiskeys you’d see in every Irish pub: Bushmills, Jameson, Paddy, and Powers. That was it. Redbreast was my gateway to the new generation of Irish whiskey.”
Andrew was hooked, and after the pandemic halted his digital marketing business, he reflected on his next steps.
“In about 2021, I asked myself what I wanted to do when I grew up,” the 53-year-old said with a laugh.
“I thought, I live in this incredible place; we do events and experiences at an insane level here. How do I take Irish whiskey and mesh the two together? I registered the website in 2022 and set myself up as an Irish whiskey educator.”
Andrew took exams, completed countless tastings, and bought “way too many bottles” of the good stuff. He built a bar in the back of his house, began hosting virtual events, and eventually started paying the bills with his newfound passion.
Then came the sold-out chocolate pairing experiences and a new series of cheese events. A few months ago, he connected with whiskey expert Derek King, who runs Irish coffee events in Ireland. Derek gave him some advice, and a new experience in Napa was born.
Andrew said: “I want everyone to sit down and feel like they’re in a special place. Each person has their own setting where they make their coffee.
“A lot of people are intimidated by an Irish coffee, but we make it really easy. We talk through the history, tell stories, maybe sing an Irish song or two. I also take people through the ingredients and do a tasting of the whiskey.
“My hope with this whole thing is to elevate Irish whiskey. I want to move away from shots of Jameson and encourage people to learn about the renaissance of an industry in which the Irish are world leaders.”