Since owning the Slane Castle Estate, the Conyngham family have strived to launch new business ideas to help support the running of the estate. In the 18th Century William Burton Conyngham helped finance the building of the mill in Slane which at the time of its construction was one of the largest mills of its type in Europe. In more recent times, Henry, the Eight Marquess Conyngham launched the Slane Concerts in 1981 which has brought 80,000 people to Slane Castle to see some of world’s greatest recording artists perform in the natural amphitheatre in front of the castle. Slane Castle Whiskey was awarded 94/100 and a finalist position at the 2011 Ultimate Spirits Competition held in New York. This competition was judged by industry experts and was a blind tasting of spirits across the spectrum. With a score of 94/100, Slane Castle Whiskey was rated as ‘Excellent and highly recommended’ Alex Mount Charles commented ‘It is a great endorsement to achieve such a high rating in a blind tasting by a highly regarded judging panel and against a high level of competition. We are delighted that the Ultimate Spirits Challenge have given us this award.’ July 2011 August 2011 - 'Sprits Business Magazine, GOLD MEDAL WINNER - Slane Castle Whiskey, from Ireland’s home of rock n’ roll, has won a Gold Medal at the 2011 Irish Whiskey Masters in London. This builds on the whiskey’s recent success in the USA where it was awarded 94/100 in the 2011 Ultimate Spirits Challenge in New York. Lord Alex Mount Charles, Managing Director, stated “We worked hard to ensure that the quality of Slane Castle Whiskey can compete with the mainstream Irish whiskey brands. Winning this Gold Medal confirms that Slane Castle Whiskey punches well above its weight in the blended Irish whiskey category”.