Roe & Co making its way to Illinois next year

Diageo, one of the world's largest beverage alcohol distributor, plans to introduce Roe & Co Blended Irish Whiskey, in Illinois in 2021.

Made from the finest hand-selected stocks of Irish malt and grain whiskies and aged in bourbon casks, the Irish Whiskey is a contemporary blend, non-chill filtered and bottled at an ABV of 45 percent (90 proof). According to Diageo, "It has the signature smoothness of Irish Whiskey with remarkable depth of flavor – a luxuriously smooth blend, with a perfect harmony between the intense fruitiness of the malt and the mellow creaminess of the grain whiskies."

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Last year, Roe & Co converted the Guinness Power Station into a new urban distillery in the heart of Dublin's whiskey district adjacent to where the old George Roe and Co distillery was originally located. The company has teamed up with Guinness in a new advertising campaign highlighting the importance of being good neighbors.

Named after George Roe, regarded as a pioneer in the distillery and export business during the golden era of Irish whiskey in the 19th century, his distillery was located on Thomas Street in Dublin and was a neighbor to the well-known Guinness brewery. Now a historic landmark, Roe's operation covered nearly 17 acres of ground.

Currently, Roe & Co is available in Massachusetts, Connecticut, Rhode Island, New Jersey, New York, Maryland and Washington, D.C. and one of several major brands, including Johnnie Walker, Crown Royal, Bulleit and Buchanan's whiskies, Smirnoff, Cîroc and Ketel One vodkas, Captain Morgan, Baileys, Don Julio, Tanqueray and Guinness, distributed by Diageo.

The distillery is located at 92 James's Street in Dublin, Ireland where tours and tasting events are held Thursday through Saturday from 3p-8p.

Free technology training program offered by UIUC Research Park

The University of Illinois Research Park and American Family Insurance have partnered together to create a free part-time technology training program for people looking to expand their knowlegde or migrate to a more technology based career.

ILLINOIS REBOOT is a coding pre-academy that will introduce students to fundamental skills needed in programming and database management. Participants will gain a strong foundation in data science literacy while being introduced to UNIX, SQL, Python, GitHub, and Agile project management principles.

The training, which starts in February, will be taught in two-hour blocks. There are eight required classes and four elective courses incorporated in the program which runs through March 9.

Upon successful completion of curriculum and program requirements, participants will be awarded a University of Illinois Research Park Tech Badge certificate.

No previous programming experience is necessary. Participant must have access to an Internet-capable computer with a major operating system and reliable WiFi. For those without access to reliable connection, EnterpriseWorks incubator will also be an option for onsite use for participants who need dedicated service. Tablets, phones and other mobile or smart devices are not usable for completing assignments.

Participant in the program must also have the ability to download and install software on the workstation. While programming skills are not required, a technical aptitude or experience working with digital or computer technology is recommended.

For more information prospective student can email Rebecca Motley at motley1@illinois.edu. To apply for the program, complete the online application located here no later than January 13, 2021.