A to Z of whisky

Every ardent alcohol connoisseur will appreciate the taste of whisky or whiskey, a distilled alcoholic beverage made from fermented grain mash. There are various types of whisky, which differ with the use of different grains such as barley, rye, wheat and corn. Despite the vast variety, the different classes and types of whiskey have certain features in common such as the fermentation of grains, distillation and aging in wood.


Whiskey or whisky?

Whiskey or whisky is an English form of Irish and Scottish origin respectively and literally means 'water of life'. Both the Irish and Scotts claim that they produced whiskey first. Written evidence has been discovered dating back to the 15^th century of whisky production by both sides. There is much discussion with regard to the spelling of whiskey/whisky. In general, whisky is used in Canada, Japan, Scotland and Wales while whiskey is more commonly used in Ireland and United States.


Irish or Scottish?

There are four general processes when making whisky - malting, mashing, fermentation and distillation. Despite the confusion of who made it first, both the Scottish and Irish make whisky the same way, except for the malting and distillation process. In Ireland the malted barley is dried in closed ovens and is never exposed to smoke (unpeated) whereas in Scotland, the malted parley is roasted over open peat fires to dry, resulting in the grain picking up the peat flavour (peated). The process of mashing and fermentation is the same for both countries. In the distillation process, the Irish mostly distil whisky thrice, resulting in a very pure distillate and a smooth alcohol. The Scottish on the other hand distils their whiskies twice, resulting in more flavour.


Malt or grain?

There are several types of whisky products which differ in base product, alcoholic content and quality. Malt whisky is made from malted forms of barley whereas grain whisky is made from any type of grain product. Malts and grains can be combined in various ways to produce different types of whiskies. Vatted malt refers to whisky that is blended from malted whiskies from different distilleries. Single malt whisky is malt that comes from one distillery. Blended whiskies are made from a mixture of malt and grain whiskies and usually come from various distilleries. Sometimes vatted malt is referred to as blended malt and a mixture of grain whiskies is known as blended grain. Most whiskies are sold at or near an alcoholic strength of 40%.