Irish Distillery Teeling’s Profits Plummeted by 90% in 2025
While there is some dispute about the reasons, it’s clear that the American whiskey industry is facing some hard time. Big names like Jim Beam shut down production for all of 2026 at one of its distilleries, for one, and drinks giant Diageo has put a pause on two of its American operations. It seems that some of the major players in Irish whiskey are facing some trouble as well: Teeling just revealed a 90 percent reduction in profit in 2025 compared to the previous year, a staggering turn of events for this Dublin distillery.
Teeling was founded in 2012, making it the first distillery to operate in Dublin in about a century. Bacardi now owns a majority stake, controlling Teeling along with its eponymous rum brand, Angel’s Envy, Patron, and Dewar’s. According to The Irish Times, Teeling’s pre-tax profits dropped from €3.4 million in 2024 to just €295,428 in the year ending last March—and that was prior to the Trump administration imposing tariffs on exports of Irish whiskey to the U.S. Teeling’s turnover, or annual sales revenue, also took a hit and dropped about 14 percent, driven by a 15 percent reduction in whiskey sales across Ireland and outside of Europe. One bright spot was that the brand’s sales in Europe grew from about €6 million to €8.5 million. According to the Times, Teeling planned to double production capacity by acquiring a site next door in 2023, but it remains to be seen if that will actually happen.
It’s not all bad news for Irish whiskey, however. Last month, the Irish Whiskey Association published its Irish Whiskey Global Trade Report, which showed that overall sales reached a record of 16.15 million cases sold in 2024, with the top markets for exports being the U.S., Poland, Germany, India, and the U.K. The U.S. represented the largest market, claiming one out of every three bottles sold. (Of course, this was before the 15 percent tariff went into effect, so that may have changed over the past year.) Japan and India also proved to be lucrative markets, with sales in those countries increasing by more than 100 percent.
“Our sector, like many others, has weathered a turbulent trading period this year, but we hope that calmer waters are on the horizon,” said Irish Whiskey Association director, Eoin Ó Catháin, in a statement. “The numbers from 2024 are promising for our sector with the biggest sales volume ever, and our market position in new and emerging markets is getting stronger. . . . Key to ensuring the category’s continued success and growth trajectory is an urgent focus on trade relations with the U.S. and the opening up of new markets through the removal of tariff and non-tariff barriers.”
We reached out to Teeling for comment, but have not heard back yet. We will update this story if and when we do.
