Poteen has been produced in Ireland according to legend, from the time when the first potato was harvested. The term 'Irish moonshine whiskey' has been in use from around 1660.A levy was then introduced on the legal distillation of spirits carried out privately and unless the operator was licenced by the State, it would be deemed an illegal act and therefore a criminal offence.Not surprisingly a substantial element of the Irish population were elevated to the 'criminal classes' overnight!Award-winning Knockeen Hills Poteen,produced in County Waterford,is a triple-distilled grain spirit with a strong, smooth delicate flavour. Drunk neat, in moderation, or with mixers, the pleasant aftertaste lingers on. Butler's Irish Book published in 1660 claimed that 'it enlighteneth ye heart, casts off melancholy, keeps back old age and breaketh ye wind'. Irish folklore maintains those properties still exist today!