Scotch

Wine connoisseurs pride themselves on knowing their wines, the vintages, the grapes, the regions around the world where it is produced and more. Scotch has many of the same characteristics. Each "nose" is different and it's my goal to help you understand those differences, helping you narrow down your choices to choose a great Dram from many of my... favorites. All Scotch whisky was originally made from malted barley. Commercial distilleries began introducing whisky made from wheat and rye in the late 18th century. There are two kinds of Scotch Whisky: Malt Whisky which is made by the Pot Still process and Grain Whisky which is made by the Patent Still (or Coffey Still) process. Malt Whisky is made from malted barley only, while Grain Whisky is made from malted barley together with unmalted barley and other cereals. A single malt is made with malted barley in pot stills at a single distillery. The goal is to achieve very distinctive flavors and nuances that exemplify a single distillery's style. A blended scotch whisky is made by combining several single malts with wheat and/or corn whiskies in column stills. Whisky can be called 'Scotch' only if it is distilled and matured in Scotland. Single malt whiskey is whiskey that has been made from barley (almost always), water and yeast. To be a single malt scotch the whisky must have been distilled at a single distillery using a pot still distillation process and made from a mash of malted grain. In Scotland, the only grain allowed to be used in a single malt whisky is barley. As with any Scotch whisky, a single malt Scotch must be distilled in Scotland and matured in oak casks in Scotland for at least three years and one day. (Most single malts are matured longer.) In single malt whiskey only one grain is used, therefore word single can be used to describe the malt whiskey. The barley (or other grain) is malted, which is a process of starting the barley seed to sprout by soaking it in water and then interrupting the process via heat. Unmalted barley (think of it as ...Read More