Toast St. Pat’s with a bit o’ the Irish whiskey at Moriarty’s

Around this time of year, Moriarty’s Irish Pub not only has St. Patrick’s Day to look forward to, but also its anniversary.

The pub opened a year ago on March 12, 2016, in the Vista along Lincoln Street, past Longhorn Steakhouse and next to World of Beer.

What distinguishes Moriarty’s from other Irish bars, pubs and gastropubs is something they have in quantity and quality: Irish whiskey.

Bar owner James Pickle said Moriarty’s started off with a decent whiskey selection, but as the business grew, so did this collection.

With 37 Irish whiskeys to date, Pickle claims to have one of the largest selections among U.S. bars and restaurants.

“We’re pushing 40 now and expect to add another five or 10 pretty soon, so maybe we’ll get to claim we have the most in the country,” Pickle said.

All together, the bar carries between 100 and 120 whiskeys. Running close to the Irish is its American collection, with Canadian, Scotch and a “secret stash” of rare items bringing up the rear.

“Just having all these Irish whiskeys is interesting because people who are familiar with Irish whiskeys see stuff on my shelf that they haven’t seen before,” said Pickle. “People gravitate to the tough-to-get stuff. Jameson 12-year-old is super tough to get. People like that.”

Several whiskey flights are available, including the Irishman whiskey flight and three choices of masters of Ireland flights.

“I go through about a case of Jameson a week, and that’s just Jameson,” said Pickle. “We go through cases of whiskey every week.”

The bar also carries a lot of beer, touting 44 draft beer lines and an additional 60-70 bottled and canned beers. River Rat and Conquest have permanent taps. Moriarty’s also has a well-cultivated wine list, a menu of mules and a rotating craft cocktail list that currently includes a drink named Irene Adler, after the fictional character in the Sherlock Holmes stories.

In short, it’s the perfect place to solve your whiskey problems – or whatever else “ales” you.

This story was originally published March 15, 2017 at 3:15 PM with the headline "Toast St. Pat’s with a bit o’ the Irish whiskey at Moriarty’s."