Whisky: Beyond The Still

Whisky BEYOND THE STILL Evan King

Whisky

Beyond The Still

Contents

1

History of Whisky pg. 4

4

Malting, Grinding & Brewing pg. 36

5

Fermentation pg. 42

7 8

Maturation pg. 66

Bottling pg. 72

2 3

Ingredients pg. 16

Casks pg. 22

6

Distillation pg. 52

9 10

Top Distillers pg. 78

References pg. 84

Chapter 1

History of Whisky

How Whisky Found Its Way Into Our Homes Already the ancient Egyptians knew the principle of distillation. However, they distilled perfume, not drinkable alcohol. Did one or the other priest know something? We don’t know today.

With the rise and downfall of the Greek and Roman Empire, the knowledge of distillation was lost. The dominating alcoholic beverage of that time was wine, which almost produced itself.

It matured well under the Mediterranean sun, and the fermentation also needed little attention.

North of the Alps in the cold it wasn’t so easy. The Romans brought the art of wine-making to us, but the alcohol content was limited because the lack of sunshine led to a low sugar content.

Instead, the acid content was very high, and many medieval knights and noblemen suffered from various ‘body stones’ resulting from the high wine consume. These stones, which can be up to fist-sized, are still found in medieval graves today.

The ancient knowledge fell into obscurity in the Middle Ages, and only in the monasteries were the achievements of the Egyptians, Greek and Romans preserved. The Roman expansion led to the displacement of the Celts. Originally also native to Bavaria, they had to yield to the superpower and retreat more and more to the northwest. Thus it’s hardly surprising that it was Celtic monks who brought the art of distillation on their long way to Ireland in the 11th century.

Almost no wine grew on this rainy, stormy island. People had to be content with beer made from fermented barley.

Barley is the only grain that contains sufficing amounts of the enzyme that splits starch into sugar, which is then fermented by yeast. With the indigenous oat this was not possible.

“Whisky” and “Whiskey” are actually two different types of spirits. The spelling is determined by where in the world the spirit was made. For example, for it to be spelled “Whisky” the spirit is required to be distilled in, and only in, Scotland. Scottish Whisky is the only type of whisky that is spelled without the “e”. Any other type of whiskey produced outside of Scotland is spelled “whiskey”.

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It is possible that distillation was practiced by the Babylonians in Mesopotamia in the 2nd millennium BC, with perfumes and aromatics being distilled but this is subject to uncertain and disputed interpretation of evidence. The earliest certain chemical distillations were by Greeks in Alexandria in the 1st century AD, but these were not distillations of alcohol. The medieval Arabs adopted the distillation technique of the Alexandrian Greeks, and written records in Arabic begin in the 9th century, but again these were not distillations of alcohol. Distilling technology passed from the medieval Arabs to the medieval Latins, with the earliest records in Latin in the early 12th century. The earliest records of the distillation of alcohol are in Italy in the 13th century, where alcohol was distilled from wine.

An early description of the technique was given by Ramon Llull (1232 – 1315). Its use spread through medieval monasteries, largely for medicinal purposes, such as the treatment of colic and smallpox.

The art of distillation spread to Ireland and Scotland no later than the 15th century, as did the common European practice of distilling “aqua vitae” or spirit alcohol primarily for medicinal purposes.

The practice of medicinal distillation eventually passed from a monastic setting to the secular via professional medical practitioners of the time, The Guild of Barber Surgeons. The earliest Irish mention of whisky comes from the seventeenth-century Annals of Clonmacnoise, which attributes the death of a chieftain in 1405 to “taking a surfeit of aqua vitae” at Christmas. In Scotland, the first evidence of whisky production comes from an entry in the Exchequer Rolls for 1494 where malt is sent “To

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Friar John Cor, by order of the king, to make aquavitae”, enough to make about 500 bottles.

James IV of Scotland (r. 1488–1513) reportedly had a great liking for Scotch whisky, and in 1506 the town of Dundee purchased a large amount of whisky from the Guild of Barber Surgeons, which held the monopoly on production at the time. Between 1536 and 1541, King Henry VIII of England dissolved the monasteries, sending their monks out into the general public. Whisky production moved out of a monastic setting and into personal homes and farms as newly independent monks needed to find a way to earn money for themselves.

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The distillation process was still in its infancy; whisky itself was not allowed to age, and as a result tasted very raw and brutal compared to today’s versions.

Renaissance-era whisky was also very potent and not diluted. Over time whisky evolved into a much smoother drink.

With a license to distill Irish whiskey from 1608, the Old Bushmills Distillery in Northern Ireland is the oldest licensed whiskey distillery in the world. In 1707, the Acts of Union merged England and Scotland, and thereafter taxes on it rose dramatically.

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After the English Malt Tax of 1725, most of Scotland’s distillation was either shut down or forced underground. Scotch whisky was hidden under altars, in coffins, and in any available space to avoid the governmental excise-men or revenuers.

Scottish distillers, operating out of homemade stills, took to distilling whisky at night when the darkness hid the smoke from the stills. For this reason, the drink became known as moonshine. At one point, it was estimated that over half of Scotland’s whisky output was illegal.

when an additional excise tax was levied against it in 1791, the Whiskey Rebellion erupted.

The drinking of Scotch whisky was introduced to India in the nineteenth century. The first distillery in India was built by Edward Dyer at Kasauli in the late 1820s. The operation was soon shifted to nearby Solan (close to the British summer capital Shimla), as there was an abundant supply of fresh spring water there.

In America, whisky was used as currency during the American Revolution; George Washington operated a large distillery at Mount Vernon. Given the distances and primitive transportation network of colonial America, farmers often found it easier and more profitable to convert corn to whisky and transport it to market in that form. It also was a highly coveted sundry and

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First Whisky But after a few hundred years of cultivation the barley yielded well, and in 1494 whisky was first mentioned in a document in Scotland.

Bushmills was the first documented distillery in Ireland in 1608.

On the continent, however, wine was distilled, the leading producers being the French in the Cognac region. All royal houses, also in Scotland and Ireland, bought cognac from France.

The vine pest was introduced to France at the end of the 18th century.

The pest multiplied endlessly in a few years and destroyed more than 50% of the wine harvest in the Cognac region. As is well-known, blood is thicker than water, and thus the Scots were cut off the cognac supply in the following years. But one imaginative Scotsman had a brilliant idea. Why not store whisky in used sherry casks, as is done with cognac? After the sherry casks had been emptied, they were available anyway. In the best case, the sherry aroma in the whisky would lead to a taste similar to cognac.

The success was overwhelming, and with the progressing industrialization and the mechanical production of the glass bottle, whisky could start its global success story. We owe the whisky bottle in our living room to the ancient Egyptians, Celtic monks and an unknown resourceful Scotsman.

Bushmills most common whiskey is their popular 5 year old whiskey.

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Scotch Whisky Scotland has more distilleries than any country, with close to 100 of them peppered throughout the land. The most distinctive Scotch whiskies are the single malts. In addition to being distilled and matured in Scotland for a minimum of three years in oak barrels (a requirement for all Scotch whisky), single malt scotch is produced at one distillery (“single”), using only malted barley as the grain (“malt”), and distilled in copper pot stills. It is an expensive process but produces a richly flavored whisky and, because it’s not blended with whiskies from other distilleries, very individualistic. This is why single malt scotch is generally more expensive than blended scotch and coveted by aficionados. It’s also the reason why single malts are so much fun to drink and explore.

Single malts are diverse in flavor, ranging from the gentle and subtly complex whiskies of the Scottish Lowlands, to the firmer, sometimes spicy whiskies in the Highlands, to the briny and often smoky whiskies from the Scottish coastlines and islands. The heart of Scottish distilling is an area known as Speyside, where nearly half of Scotland’s distilleries are situated on—or near—the Spey River. Some Speyside whiskies, like Balvenie and Macallan, are full-bodied and rich. Others, like the Glenlivet 12 year old, are very elegant.

Landscape of the Scotland Highlands.

Even with all these great single malts, blended scotch still outsells them by a wide margin. Single malt enthusiasm is a relatively recent phenomenon, gaining popularity over the past two decades.

Blended scotches, like Johnnie Walker, Dewar’s, Chivas, and Cutty Shark, are marriages of several, if not dozens of different single malts. The advantage of blending is that it smooths out the rough edges and fills in the missing gaps of a whisky’s flavor profile.

Probably the least known fact about blended scotch is that the majority of the blend is not single malt scotch at all, but rather grain whisky. Grain whisky is made from various cereal grains and distilled in continuous column stills, similar to the way vodka is made. It produces a less expensive, lighter flavored whisky. Some blends are incredible products, but are generally lighter in flavor and less expensive than single malts.

Many people think all Scotch whiskies are smoky, but only a handful of them really are. The smoke flavor comes from using malted barley that is dried over a peat fire. Peat was, at one time, the only practical fuel source for many distilleries. These days it’s an optional flavor enhancement that, by the way, is very much in vogue right now.

Chapter 2

Ingredients

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So What Is Whisky?

Whisky is made from grain. This is what distinguishes it from other distilled beverages like brandy, which is made from grapes, and calvados, which is made from apples.

Simply speaking, whisky is nothing more than distilled beer. Like beer, malted barley and other grains are the source of the sugars necessary for fermentation.

The sugars in the grain are released by steeping it in hot water. This sweet liquid, known as “wort,” is cooled down. Yeast is added and converts the sugars to alcohol, creating beer.

The major difference between the “beer” that whisky-makers produce (often called “wash”) and the beer that brewers create is that the brewers also add hops to their beer. Hops, the flowering cones of a climbing plant, are bitter and help balance a beer’s sweetness. They also act as a preservative to stabilize the beer’s flavor. Distiller’s beer doesn’t need hops. Oak aging balances the whisky’s flavors, and distilling increases the alcohol level, which preserves the whisky.

To make whisky from beer, it must be distilled. Distilling captures and concentrates the beer’s more volatile components, which include alcohol. The distillers use either continuously-operating column stills (as with most bourbons) or copper pot stills (as with single malt scotch), one batch at a time. This spirit is then aged in oak barrels, where it matures and becomes whisky. The types of grain used, the distillation method, and the casks chosen for aging are what make each whisky taste different.

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Water

Barley

Water is another of the most important ingredients in the making process of whisky. The quality of the whisky depends on the quality and purity of the water. Water in Scotland is famous for its great purity. The difference in taste between the whisky coming from various distilleries is partly due to the quality of water used.

The barley is at the base of all the process. The quality of the barley has a great influence on the quality of the end product. The barley being used for the production of whisky is carefully selected. It is after all the basic ingredient which will determine the quality of the whisky which will be sold years later. This selection was traditionally the job of the manager of the distillery.

Water in the Highlands is often peaty, which gives it a brownish color. Substances, deriving from peat, are carried by the rivers which water is used to make whisky, and contribute often to the original taste of scotch whisky.

Most of the distilleries nowadays buy their malt in a malting plant (for economic reasons), this selection is done less and less by the distillery managers, but well by the persons in charge at the malting plant. However, the maltings must respect precise requirements from the distilleries, in order to let them produce their whisky properly, and on the same way year after year.

But water is certainly not the only determining factor in the taste of a malt whisky. The manufacturing process is of course very important in the final taste of whisky. Water is used in several steps during the distillation process. First of all, it is mixed to the ground malt in order to produce the wort. It is also used for cooling the alcohol leaving the still. Last but not least, water is used to reduce the alcohol at bottling.

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Yeast Yeast (brewer’s yeast, often mixed with culture yeast) will start the fermentation process. The role of yeast is capital. The choice of the yeast is part of manufacturing secret of the distilleries.

The final appearance of the yeast ingredient.

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Chapter 3

Casks

Barrels are a particular size and shape of wooden cask. There are numerous other types of cask and the term ‘barrel’ is often wrongly used as a catch-all alternative generic for cask.

Usually made of white oak, casks have been used since Roman times as a means of storing and transporting goods — everything from nails to whiskey.

The development of cardboard boxes, shipping containers, steel/plastic drums and palletisation have rendered the cask obsolete as a shipping container but the ability for an oak cask to improve the flavor of wine, beer and spirits is more recognized and used today than ever before.

Casks are hollow cylindrical containers, traditionally constructed from wooden staves bound by wooden or galvanized iron hoops. Bulging at the middle, their shape allows them to be easily rolled and turned by one person, even when fully filled. The rounded construction, both widthwise and lengthwise, also makes casks incredibly strong allowing them to be stacked.

As every schoolboy knows, castles have rounded rather than square edges to their walls because a rounded construction is stronger.

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Over some 2,000 years, white oak has become the timber of choice in which to mature wine, spirits and even beer. White oak contributes luscious flavors yet is relatively neutral compared to pine and other woods. When quarter sawn, white oak becomes water liquid tight — unlike red oak and many other woods. White also has a cell structure ideally suited be worked to make a cask.

The oak used to make the casks is split and sawn into blanks that are stacked and left to weather, exposed to the elements for at least six months and in many cases three years, depending on the wine maker or distiller’s specifications. The weathering bleaches and washes out bitter tannins in the oak and allows the development of vanillin.

Steam and toasting over gentle flames helps shape the staves and also converts some of the starches in the wood into sugars. Charring or burning of the inside of the barrel caramelizes these sugars and forms a layer of charred and cracked oak which helps impart flavor and color to any spirit stored in the cask. Distillers can choose the degree of charring from one (light char) to four (deep char) depending on how they want the cask to affect their spirit.

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Casks Types & Sizes As I mentioned above, most people tend to call wooden casks barrels but a ‘barrel’ is actually a particular size and shape of cask. A barrel is a cask but not all casks are barrels. The American whiskey industry’s use of the 180 to 200 liter barrel has made this the prevalent shape and size of cask in use today.

The dominance of the US standard barrel is helped by rules regarding the production of bourbon whiskey which only permit the use of new charred white oak barrels. Consequently whisky and rum makers the world over use second-hand casks sourced from America’s bourbon producers. However, there are numerous other types of cask. Due to being hand-made, the size of each cask varies slightly and the following list of cask types indicates their average capacity.

Different types and sizes of casks.

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English Tun

Gorda

982 liters / 259 US gallons / 216 imp gallons

700 liters / 185 US gallons / 154 imp gallons

The English tun is a standard imperial measure equal to 216 imperial gallons. A tun is twice the size of a butt and equal to six brewery barrels.

These huge casks made from American oak are traditional to the American whiskey industry but are not often used for maturation in the Scotch whisky industry as their capacity is too close to the maximum permitted cask size of 700 liters. However, the large capacity of Gorda casks make them useful for marrying of different whiskies to produce vatted whisky.

Madeira Drum 650 liters / 172 US gallons / 143 imp gallons Made from very thick staves of European oak, as the name suggests, these short, fat, dumpy casks are used in the Madeira wine industry. Madeira seasoned drums are sometimes used to age spirits, particularly for finishing some whiskies.

Machine Puncheon

Port Pipe 650 liters / 172 US gallons / 143 imp gallons Made from thick staves of European oak, the name is both descriptive of these casks being used in the port wine industry and their long narrow shape. Port seasoned pipes are often used for finishing Scotch whisky.

500 liters / 132 US gallons / 110 imp gallons There are two styles of puncheon cask and this short fat cask made from thick American oak staves chiefly used in the rum industry is the most common. Ex-rum puncheons are sometimes used to finish sherry.

Sherry Shape Puncheon 500 liters / 132 US gallons / 110 imp gallons Shorter and squat-shaped, this second type of puncheon is made with thinner staves of Spanish oak and is used in the sherry industry. Sherry seasoned puncheon casks are used in the whisky industry.

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Sherry Butt

Barrique (Cognac type)

500 liters / 132 US gallons / 110 imp gallons

300 liters / 79 US gallons / 66 imp gallons

These long slender casks made from thick European oak staves are the most common type of sherry cask.

Sherry butts are widely used in the whisky industry, to the extent that an industry has grown in Spain to make these casks and season them with sherry style wine according to the specification of Scotch whisky distillers — usually oloroso sherry for 3 years. The wine held in such new oak is not suitable for sherry making so the wine used to season these casks is usually distilled into Spanish brandy.

Commonly used throughout the wine and cognac industries, and consequently also as second-hand casks by the Scotch whisky industry. They are best described as butt-shaped hogsheads.

Hogshead 250 liters / 66 US gallons / 54 imp gallons

Commonly used throughout the wine industry, this is the size favored by producers in Bordeaux. They are best described as butt-shaped hogsheads.

It is common practice in the Scotch whisky industry for five ex-bourbon standard barrels to be broken down into staves and then reassembled with new ends to make four larger 250 liter casks known as hogsheads (or affectionately ‘hoggies’). Scotch whisky distillers favor hogshead casks over standard barrels as the larger casks enable more whisky to be stored in the same warehouse space. Many also say that whisky matures better in the slightly larger casks.

British Brewery Barrel

American Standard Barrel

164 liters / 43 US gallons / 36 imperial gallons

200 liters/ 53 US gallons / 44 imp gallons

A standard British brewing industry measure and barrel size. One Brewer’s Barrel equals 288 pints.

Made of American white oak (and very occasionally European oak) the American Standard Barrel is the most common type and size of cask in use today. Many consider American Standard Barrels to be the optimum size for maturing whiskey delivering the perfect liquid to cask surface area ratio.

Barrique (Bordeaux type) 225 liters / 59 US gallon / 49 imp gallons

Sample of a Hogshead cask.

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Quarter Cask

Blood Tub

50 liters/ 13 US gallons / 11 imp gallons

40 liters / 11 US gallons / 9 imp gallons

Made to a quarter of the size of an American Standard Barrel but to the same proportions. The smaller size provides a much greater surface to liquid ratio, meaning that spirits aged in such casks mature more quickly.

However, great things come to those that wait and spirits aged in larger casks tend to be better.

These small casks traditionally have an elongated oval shape, originally to enable them to be carried on horseback.

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Firkin

Pin

41 liters / 11 US gallons / 9 imp gallons

20.5 liters / 5 US gallons / 4.5 imp gallons

A firkin is quarter the size of a British Brewery Barrel and the name originates from the Middle Dutch vierdekijn meaning ‘fourth’. This size of cask holds 72 pints and is popular in the British brewing industry where it is widely used for cask ale. Scottish apprentice coppers traditionally make a firkin sized cask at the end of their apprenticeship as proof that they have honed their cask making skills.

A British pin is equal to half a firkin. This size has become popular with home brewers who use plastic bag-in-box containers of this size known as polypins.

A pin holds 36 pints.

Minipin 10.25 liters / 2.5 US gallons / 2.25 imp gallons Minipins tend to be plastic bag-in-box containers used to serve traditional British ale in people’s homes. These are filled by decanting from a firkin or other larger cask and hold 18 pints.

HDPE Drum 250 liters / 65 US gallons / 55 imp gallons HDPE (high density polyethylene) a material designated “food safe” and is what cutting boards for food preparation are made from. HDPE is also used to make the large blue drums which have replaced wooden casks for many uses in the drinks industry.

Several types of casks.

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A Long & Costly Process If you thought waiting for whiskey to mature was a long term investment then compare it to the economics of growing trees to make casks. A small acorn may grow into a big tree but to reach the maturity required for a cooper to make it into a cask requires some 75 years, and very few acorns survive to grow into trees.

Oak trees don’t start dropping acorns until they reach the age of 20. Then many of the acorns that fall from the parent tree will be eaten by squirrels, or succumb to frost, soil erosion, or other perils and predators. Seedlings that sprout from acorns that have dropped and remained directly under the parent tree will wither from a lack of sunlight and

nutrients. Of the few trees that do survive into maturity, many will be unsuitable for coppering into casks due to broken limbs, branches that shoot off low down the trunk, knots, insect infestation, or simply not being straight enough. Spread out or broken tree bark is a sign of an unhealthy oak and if such a tree is made into casks then those casks are likely to leek due to microscopic holes.

In the 1950s, foresters tended to fell 90 to 95 year old oak trees for cask making (coopering) but studies have shown that at such an advanced age, oak trees no longer impart as much flavor as those that are 20 years younger. Older trees have passed their photosynthetic prime, and like old men, lack the energy and charisma of their younger brethren.

Even then, after 75 years, tall mature healthy oaks maybe felled to be made into furniture rather than casks. When the housing crash hit the States in the late 2000s, the coopering industry was one of the few to benefit as the market for quality furniture dropped, so did the demand and price of oak.

Cask Construction The tree trunk must be cut into planks in such a way that the wood’s grain, medullary rays which transport nutrition between the trunk’s core and the outer parts of the tree, run perpendicular to the plank so when made into staves the wood acts as a semi-permeable seal. If the medullary rays ran from the inside to the outside of the cask it would leak.

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Cask-maker creating a cask barrel.

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Chapter 4

Malting, Grinding & Brewing

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Maltings Malt is the result of the malting process. The barley is made wet and spread on the malting floor to allow the germination process to start.

A succession of chemical reactions change the starch contained in the barley in sugar. Later sugar will change into spirit.

The malting art consist of finding the right moment to stop the germination process: not too late but not too early.

According to the season, malting takes between 8 and 21 days. Constant attention has to be given to the process. Barley has to be turned over regularly to ensure a constant moisture and temperature and to control the germination of the barley grains.

The end of the germination is triggered by drying the germinating barley over a fire (kiln). This oven is often heated by peat. The smoke of the peat fire in the kiln is determining is the taste of many a whisky.

Germination is stopped by drying the grains above an oven (kiln). A kiln was often fed with peat. It is the smoke of the peat fire which gives some whiskies their particular flavor.

The art of some distilleries is in the correct proportioning of peat used to dry the malt. Springbank for instance produces 3 different malts: Springbank, Longrow and Hazelburn (which will be available from 2006). One of the main differences between those 3 products is the proportion of peat used for drying the malt.

There are also some other differences in the distillation process in the case of Springbank. Bruichladdich also produces 3 different whiskies with different peat levels: Bruichladdich, Port Charlotte and Octomore (the two latter’s are recent productions, and will not be marketed before several years).

Economic reasons obliged most of the distilleries to abandon their malting floors during the 1960’s Malting happens mainly at specialized plants, called maltings. This maltings produce malt according to the requirements of their clients. The same malting company produces thus several kinds of malt.

There are however notable exceptions to that rule: Balvenie, Laphroaig, Highland Park, Bowmore are some of the distilleries which produce parts of their own malts.

According to some sources, these distillery would produce about 30% of their needs. Springbank produces 100% of their malt.

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Grinding When the malt is dry, it is ground to make a kind of coarse flour which will be used in the next operations. This flour is called grist. Malt grinding is done with a malt mill in the distillery itself.

Nearly all the distilleries use the same kind of mill, traditionally made in England, in Leeds, which is sometimes hard to accept for a real Scot.

Brewing The grist will be mixed with hot water in the mash tun. Generally one volume of grist is mixed up with 4 volumes of water. In this operation, 3 successive waters are used, at a temperature between 63 and 95%.

A mash tun can contain up to 25000 liters and has a double bottom with thin perforations to let the wort (sugared liquid resulting of the brewing operation) flow out, retaining bigger parts which will be sold as cattle food. In order to facilitate the process, mash tun have rotating blades. The waste is called draff.

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The first operation, taking about 1 hour, will change the starch in fermenting sugars. The mix of water and grist looks like a kind of traditional porridge.

This sugared juice is called wort. The remainders will be brewed 3 to 4 times, in order to get a maximum of wort. The quality of the wort is controlled by the excise men, because it determines the amount of spirit which will finally be produced. This is the base of the taxation of the distillery.

Malt being ground up into a kind of coarse flour.

Heated water being added into the process called brewing.

Preparing to mix in the heated water

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Chapter 5

Fermentation

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The Wash Back In order to start the fermentation of the wort, yeast is added. The action of the yeast on the sugar of the wort will produce alcohol and carbon dioxide. The wort starts bubbling, which will sometimes result in strong vibrations of the wash back, despite its impressive size. Traditional wash backs are made of Oregon pine-wood or Scottish larch. However, more and more stainless steel wash backs are used nowadays, because they are easier to maintain.

The result of the fermentation is the same in both kinds of wash backs. However, lots of distilleries pretend Oregon wood is much better, and even hi-tech distilleries like Caol Ila do not believe in stainless steel wash backs.

The Wash As result of the fermentation of the wort, a kind of beer with a percentage of approximately 8%. Till now, there are no substantial differences in the process of making whisky, and the making of beer. From now the difference between the process will become obvious. Beer will be perfumed with hops, while whisky will be distilled without alterations.

Yeast being added to start off the fermentation process.

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The optimum temperature for the standard cultured distiller’s yeast used by most Scotch whisky distillers to convert the ferment-able sugars in the wort into alcohol is 34°C and this is known as the ‘peak temperature’. It is crucial not to exceed this as the yeast will be killed by temperatures above 35°C, hence the wort from the mashings is cooled to is 34°C in a heat exchanger before being mixed with liquid yeast and pumped into a fermenting vat known as a ‘wash-back’.

The early mixing of yeast with the wort helps prevent infection from bacteria and other micro-organisms. Fermentation begins almost immediately as the yeast converts the sugary wort into crude alcohol, producing a liquid similar in aroma and taste to sour beer. The fermentation process typically lasts 48-60 hours and the beer produced, which has a strength of 7% to 8% alc./vol., is known as ‘wash’. It used to be common for distillery workers to filter the yeast out of this liquid to make a beer-drink they called ‘Joe’.

Traditionally wash-backs were made of European larch wood, Douglas fir or American Oregon pine due to the wood having a tight grain, being knot-free and available in long planks. Today, most new washbacks are made of stainless steel and there is much debate over the advantages of traditional wooden wash-backs over stainless steel.

During fermentation, yeast converts the ferment-able sugars in the wort into alcohol to produce a beer-like liquid called wash. Fermentation is the stage during the whisky making process when alcohol is produced. (The distillation process which follows merely concentrates that alcohol.) The speed at which the fermentation takes place greatly affects the flavor of the wash and so the finished whisky.

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Whisky being fermented in the wash.

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A Stainless Steel wash-back.

A Wooden wash-back.

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Wood advocates claim an insulating affect and when first filled, even after a period when the distillery has been closed, wood presents a warm surface unlike cold stainless steel. More importantly, pores in wood harbor micro fauna and microbes which can add to the fermentation. Unlike yeast, bacteria survive the heat of fermentation to contribute subtle flavors to the wash. Advocates of wood say it even produces a sweeter wash.

Stainless steel is quicker to clean and requires less maintenance so is more efficient. Supporters say that steel can also harbor microbes - just don’t clean it as thoroughly. At the end of the day no one can deny that wood looks better.

Much of a whisky’s flavor is created during fermentation and the amount of yeast used, length of time, temperature and the gravity greatly impacts the wash. ‘Gravity’ refers to the amount of malt added in the first place. A low gravity has more water and less grain, while a high gravity has a higher ratio of grain to water. Using half the volume of yeast will mean the fermentation takes twice as long.

A high gravity means a more concentrated wash with less liquid to distill, less to heat up so reducing energy consumption. However, alcohol yield per tonne of malt will be reduced with high gravity fermentations as the wort becomes too strong for the yeast to break all the sugars down.

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A fermentation lasting 50 hours is considered short and a 60 to 75 hour fermentation average, while 75 to 120 hours is a long fermentation. After 48 to 50 hours the yeast will have made alcohol and when distilled the resulting spirit will tend to have a cereal taste. Fermentations lasting longer than 60 hours take advantage of the yeasts dormant resting period when it produces new flavors resulting in a more complex spirit.

Longer fermentations (over 55 to 60 hours with standard distiller’s yeast) produce little or no more alcohol, but the longer the fermentation the more flavor that is likely to be generated. Longer fermentations also tend to produce a wash that’s easier to distill as they have less of a tendency to foam (see distillation).

At its height the amount of carbon dioxide generated by fermentation produces a significant amount of foam and most distilleries have ‘switcher blades’ spinning around the top of their wash-backs which repeatedly knock the top of the foam and prevent the fermenting wort from coming over the side of the wash-back. Emergency anti-foamer is usually also sighted nearby for adding in emergencies.

From 1952 until 2003, all Scottish whisky distillers were obliged by the Scotch Whisky Association to use the same yeast strain (DCL M-strain), a yeast originally hybridized from Saccharomyces cerevisiae and Saccharomyces diastaticus during 1930s-50s by what we know today as Diageo for its ability to break down maltose sugars, for being good at making alcohol and producing the flavors associated with Scotch whisky.

Distiller’s M-strain yeast is still favored by many Scotch whisky distillers, although other newer strains such Mx, Mauri and Anchor/Bfp are also widely used. Distiller’s yeast is available in liquid ‘cream’, pressed semi-dry and dried forms. Liquid yeast is cheaper and easier to handle but dies after only a few weeks, while dried yeast can be stored for years.

Most distillers prefer to use liquid yeast but keep stocks of dried yeast as a backup. Few, if any, Scotch whisky distillers propagate their own cultures.

Yeast cells move around within the wash-back during fermentation due to secreting carbon dioxide as the yeast makes alcohol in such a way that the ejected gas acts like a jet propulsion system to keep the cells on the move. The yeast used by distillers is similar if not the same as brewer’s ale yeast, known as top flocculating yeast due to its floating to the surface when spent rather than sinking to the bottom of the fermentation vessel. Second-hand beer brewer’s yeast although very messy to handle is used by a few distillers due to its low cost and high acidity which increases beneficial copper reaction during distillation.

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Bull Run’s finished product

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Chapter 6

Distillation

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It’s the heart that is collected and aged to become whisky.

Scotch malt whisky is usually distilled twice, and occasionally three times, using batch distillation in copper pot stills. During the last distillation compounds with the lowest boiling points, called foreshots (or heads), boil first. Then comes the heart (middle cut), then the feints (tails) leaving liquid called spent lees in the still.

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Closeup of the distillation process.

The distillation is the process used to separate alcohol from water and other substances contained in the wash. This is a classical operation, and it is the base of each spirit round the world. It is used in perfumery too. Distillation is made in stills.

The principle is very easy: water evaporates at 100% while alcohol does from 80%. Alcohol will thus be transformed in vapor and raises into the still before water itself begins evaporating.

Pot stills are used in Scotland. The size of the stills is fixed by the law. This is due to historical reasons, related to excise rights. Edradour has the smallest legal stills of Scotland. If the stills were a bit smaller, the distillery would lose its license.

Stills are in copper, because this material has a great influence on the physical process of separation of the waters and the spirits. The quality of the dram we will enjoy a few years later depends partially on the copper surface being in contact with the liquids during the distillation process. Other things are important, like the shape, the height, the length of the lyne arm are also very important in the making of the taste of the future whisky. If a distillery has to add or replace a still, it will always try to get a still with the same capacity and the same shape, in order to guarantee a constant quality to the whisky. Because of the extreme diversity of the stills used throughout Scotland, it is not possible to display some pictures on this page. I created a special page with pictures of various stills from several Scottish distilleries. To get there, just click on the still icon on the left. By the way, this is a still of Glenfarclas distillery.

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Traditionally, the stills were heated with coal or peat, depending on the areas and possibilities. Currently, nearly all of them are heated with vapor, because this method gives more control on the process.

The huge quantity of heat produced by distilleries is sometimes recycled. For instance, the municipal swimming pool of Bowmore is warmed with recuperation heat from the distillery. Scotch whisky is double distilled, with some exceptions to this rule, like Auchentoshan which is distilled three times, just like Irish whiskey. The distillation process occurs in two stages in two still with different capacity and shape.

The first distillation occurs in the wash still whose capacity can be between 25 and 30 liters and transforms the wash in “low wine”, at about 21 % of alcohol. If the stills were originally heated with a naked fire, generally from coal or gas, the current stills are heated by a serpentine within the still, where the vapor is circulating.

output is better. Waste of the first distillation is called “pot ale” or “burnt ale”, and is transformed to feed cattle too. The low wines resulting from this first distillation are kept in the “low wine receiver and will be used as ground for the second distillation.

The second distillation occurs in a spirit still which is generally smaller than the wash still, as there is less liquid to process. During the second distillation, only the “distillation heart”, the part which has between 63 and 72% of alcohol will be casked. The heads and tails, also called feints, will go to the feint receiver, and reused mixed with the low wines of the next distillation. To separate the feints from the distillation heart, a spirit safe is used. This spirit safe (was) used for the determination of the quantity of alcohol produced, to calculate the taxes due by the distillery.

The alcohol vapors are cooled outside the still by condensers. The traditional condensers were serpentines immersed in a great open wooden back, containing cold water. Currently, most of the distilleries use vertical tubular condensers, because the

The stills used during the distilling step.

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First Distillation The first distillation takes place in a ‘wash’ still where the alcohol in the wash is separated by heating — because alcohol boils at a lower temperature than water (78.37°C/165°F versus 100°C/212°F) so the spirit vaporises before the water and rises up the neck of the still until the spirit vapor reaches the top and is directed through the swan neck, along the lyne-arm to the condenser.

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The wash still in the Glenmorangie Distillery.

Originally all whisky stills were heated by what is termed ‘direct fire’, literally referring to the wood, then coal and finally gas fueled flames directly under the still. Today, most distilleries heat their stills using steam produced by a remote boiler and piped through steam heated pans or coils in the base of the still. (Wash stills tend to be heated by a ‘pan’ heat due to them being easier to clean than wort burnt onto the underside of a steam coil. Conversely spirit stills tend to be coil headed.)

However, a few (including Glenfarclas, Glenfiddich, Macallan and Springbank) continue to use the gas fueled direct fire method. This direct form of heating can cause hot spots that burn the wash. This promotes mallard reactions that produce furfural and sulfur compounds, especially thiophenes and polysulphides, which can add complexity and attractive roasted notes to the spirit.

From the swan neck the vapor is directed through the lyne arm to a condenser where continuously running cold water is used to condense the vapor back into a liquid.

It is usual for wash stills to have a pair of small glass windows or ‘sight glasses’ in the neck allowing the distiller to watch for what is known as ‘boil-over’ or ‘carry-over’. If a wash still is charged with a wash produced by a short fermentation, then it is likely to be more prone to froth and boil-over as it is more lively.

Like heating a pan of milk, the wash is prone to frothing as it boils and the rising foam contains solids which are detrimental to the distillate if allowed to enter the condenser.

Even a small amount of boil-over will give a nutty character to the distillate. Hence, as with heating milk, the distiller can reduce the heat by lowering steam pressure so controlling the boil and holding the head between the two sight glasses, thus ensuring the solids are retained in the still. As distillation progresses the risk of boil-over reduces when the still ‘breaks’ and frothing subsides, allowing the steam pressure and so the heat to be turned up.

This first distillation, lasting four to six hours, strips alcohol from the solids in the wash and some of its water to produce a liquid known as ‘low wines’, with an increased alcohol content of about 21% to 30% alc./vol. (from the original 7% to 8% alc./vol wash). However, these low wines contain unwanted compounds so require distilling again in a second still, which some distillers call a ‘low-wines still’ and others a ‘spirit still’.

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Second Distillation

Cut Points & The Flavor Affect

During second distillation the same principles apply as in the first distillation but with more of the water being left behind as the alcohol vaporises up the still, but as there are no solids in the still to start as these have already been removed by the first distillation, frothing is not an issue, so spirit stills don’t have sight glasses in their necks.

The distiller assesses the ‘run’ of distillate from the condenser by taking samples from a spirit safe — a glass and metal box that allows the flowing distillate to be viewed, as well as hydrometer and temperature gauge which measure the emerging distillate. (Some modern distilleries use computerized digital monitoring devices.

In the second distillation, and sometimes also a third distillation (in the case of Auchentoshan and Hazelburn), the distiller exercises considerable control over the character of the final distillate. The distiller’s art is knowing when to ‘make the cut’. Different flavoring agents evaporate at different temperatures, and the distiller has to find the right balance.

Spirit stills typically run for about six hours with the batch of distillate produced by second distillation generally having a strength of around 70% alc./vol..

In the rare case a third distillation is used then the new make spirit produced can be over 80% alc./vol.

The most volatile compounds with the lowest boiling points (such as methanol, acetaldehyde, some ethyl esters and volatile sulfur compounds) vaporise first to emerge via the condenser in the spirit safe as what’s known as foreshots (or heads). This first flow of liquid through the lyne-arm and condenser will also pick up deposits remaining from the previous distillation. These foreshots are not desirable as they either have an unpleasant flavor, are dangerous to health, or both, so are directed to a holding tank known as a Feints Receiver.

The still safe at the Macallan Distillery.

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After the heads, the desirable ethanol alcohol ‘spirit run’ (also known as ‘hearts’, ‘new make’ or ‘cleric’) starts to flow. Valves in the spirit safe allow the distiller to direct the spirit run to another tank, known as an Intermediate Spirit Receiver (I.S.R.).

Lastly, the heavy, oily least volatile compounds emerge as what’s known as feints (or tails). Like the foreshots, to a lesser or greater degree, these are not desirable so valves in the spirit safe are used to direct these to the Feints Receiver to be stored along with heads.

The wash is composed of numerous different compounds, each with a different boiling point. The most volatile, those with a low boiling point will form part of the composition of the foreshots, while those with a high boiling point will emerge as part of the feints.

While it is true to say that the aim of the distiller is to separate the ethanol alcohol (heart) from the foreshots and feints, a small proportion of some of the compounds in the foreshots and feints can contribute desirable flavors to the finished whisky. These are known as congeners and the distiller’s art is to make cuts in the run of distillate at points that will allow these desirable congeners from the foreshots and feints to flow into I.S.R. with the heart, rather than being discarded.

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Congeners in the foreshots are light in character, contributing green apple, pineapple, banana and acetone (reminiscent of nail varnish remover) notes.

Follows grassy and cereal notes with fruit tones turning towards citrus, melon, peach and dried fruits.

Lastly, with the feints come heavy oily and smoky notes. When the distiller decides to ‘cut’ the distillate obviously affects which congeners and their accompanying flavor profiles.

The art of the distiller lies in the speed he/she runs the still at and most crucially when he/she cuts the run from foreshots to hearts and from hearts to feints.

Consequently, if the distiller wants to make a light whisky, then the cuts will be made earlier and conversely a weightier whisky will have later cut points allowing the heart to run a little longer towards the feints. This is particularly the case for peaty whiskies as feints are usually rich in the phenols that carry smoky aromas. Foreshots typically start to come over at 74-75% alc./vol. with the cut made to hearts typically at 71 to 72% and the cut made to feints at 65 to 62% alc./vol. but this varies greatly between distillers.

Traditional distilleries use thermometers and hydrometers, while more modern distilleries have a host of electronic monitoring devices to help them know when to make cuts. However, experienced distillers tend to rely most on their nose and experience. It’s worth noting that in the rare case a third distillation is used in whisky production, then more of the congeners will be removed and the spirit will be lighter in style.

The foreshots and feints are returned for re-distillation with the next batch of low wines. I.e. the low wines and feints are returned to the start of the next second distillation. Distillation is not just process of separation, heat, copper contact and the interaction between compounds during distillation alters some of these flavor compounds and promotes the production of others.

Some new make spirits have a desirable waxiness which seems to be amplified, if not created in the I.S.R. Hence, in distilleries where this waxiness is key to the character of the single malt whisky produced these holding tanks tend not to be either fully emptied or cleaned to save the risk of losing distinctive waxy notes from future distillations.

Typically, the still is run until the feints are 1% alc./ vol. at which point it is uneconomical to continue distillation. The alcoholic liquid left in the still is termed ‘pot ale’ and this is discarded, often being sprayed over local fields.

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Balance Of A Distillery Scotch malt whisky distilleries are typically built with pairs of wash and spirit stills, usually designed so the capacity of the spirit still is in proportion to the output of the wash still. This is often as simple as the output of one wash still perfectly filling one spirit still, but it could equally be one large wash still filling two small spirit stills, or the output of two wash stills charging one spirit still.

All the above combinations are termed ‘balanced’.

In contrast, unbalanced wash and spirit stills can mean weeks of distilling before a balanced cycle is achieved.

I.e. the output of a number of wash distillations perfectly fill a number of spirit distillations. Incidentally, in most Scotch whisky distilleries the wash stills are easily distinguished by their fittings being painted red while those on the spirits stills are painted blue.

Wash and Spirit stills in the Dewars Distillery.

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The Effect Of Copper

The Effect Of Still Shapes

Copper is used to make whisky pot stills partly due to it being easy to work but mostly due its reacting beneficially with the vapors produced during distillation. Alcohol produced by fermenting malted barley contains natural sulfur compounds that if allowed in the final whisky in too large a concentration will impair flavor. Copper reacts with the sulfur in the alcohol vapor produced during distillation to form harmless copper sulphate which can easily be removed by filtration (this is the green substance often seen forming in spirit safes).

Pot stills have three typical shapes: plain neck, boil ball and lamp-glass. Boil balls are most commonly used on wash stills and tend to add a pine note to the spirit.

Lamp-glass necks resemble the shape of hurricane lamps. The nip at their waist increases reflux, a term used when rising spirit vapors hit the nipped cooler sides of the neck, condense and run down the copper back into the kettle to vaporise again. This increases copper contact but more importantly reflux increases the rectifying effect of the still, so producing a lighter spirit. The more the reflux, the lighter the spirit will be.

Copper also absorbs cyanides, carbonates and acids, and the more acidic the wash then the more reactive the copper will be, so allowing it to absorb more sulfur.

Venting stills by leaving them to stand open between distillations allows oxygen in the air to rejuvenate the copper so improving its ability to clean the next distillation. (Oxygen turns this into SO2 and a little SO4.)

The height of the still will also dramatically affect the character of the spirit produced. Tall stills have a larger copper surface area and also make it harder for the vapor to rise so promoting reflux. Tall stills tend to produce light spirits, and conversely, shorter stills typically produce heavier and richer spirits.

The more contact the alcohol vapor has with copper so the lighter the spirit will be. Hence, the size, shape and design of the pot still will have a considerable effect on the character of the spirit produced.

As will the type of condenser used to cool the vapor to spirit.

The lyne-arm can be intersected with a purifier, a device, either cooled or uncooled, which condenses some of the heavier vapors from the lyne arm and returns them back to the still (reflux) via a pipe. Cooled purifiers are chilled by continuously flowing water to increase levels of condensation and so reflux. Uncooled purifiers are in operation at Ardbeg, Glenlossie, Glen Spey, Stathmill, Talisker and Tormore, while Glen Grant is the only distillery to use purifiers on both it’s wash and spirit stills.

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Chapter 7

Maturation

The distillation process is unique for each distillery using pot stills. Distilleries using Lomond stills—there are very few of them left now—can produce several types of whisky. This means that all the whiskies produced by a certain distillery are treated on the same way, with the same malt, the same stills on the same way by the same people. So, why can they be so different from each other?

The answer to this question is in the aging process, the casks used, the nature of the warehouse and even the taste of the air. It seems that a whisky aged in casks stored in warehouses close to the sea have a different taste from a whisky aged on some other place. Glenmorangie Cellar 13 is a good example of that phenomenon.

Jameson’s aging process for showcase in the Dublin Distillery.

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If the surrounding air has a (little) influence on the taste of whisky, one must realize that many distilleries bring their casks to some central place near Edinburgh for their aging. It it not clear to me if the whiskies aged that way are marketed as single malt or if they will be used in blends.

In other words, the influence of the air on the taste of whisky; myth or reality? There is one thing for sure however, and that is that the role of quality of the barley, the making process, and the nature and quality of the casks where it was aged is very important. According to some specialists, this could be good for 95% of the final quality of a malt whisky.

Different types of barrel casks that Glenmorangie uses to help age their whisky.

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The Finishes To have the right to bear the name of whisky, a grain spirit (malted or not) must be aged at least for 3 years in a oak cask. Unlike Cognac which is stored in new casks, the Scottish always use second hand casks.

Often whisky is aged for a while in bourbon casks, and finishes his aging period in some kind of other cask, in order to give is some new fragrances, before bottling.

Generally it stays for 6 to 12 months in another kind of cask. This explains the “wood finish” mention on some bottling’s. For instance, the 18 yo Glenmorangie finishes its maturation in next casks, which is rather uncommon in Scotland. A whisky cask is always a second hand cask. It generally contained bourbon. Sherry is also very popular in the whisky industry. Other casks are used too, like Port, Madeira and more rarely Claret (French red wine) or rum, etc. Glenmorangie is specialized in “wood finishes” and some of them are very expensive, probably because of the rarity of the casks.

However, there is a question about this wood finishes.

If the aim is to give some new and pleasant fragrances to the whisky, everybody knows (at least in the whisky industry circles) that this method is used sometimes to hide some distillation errors. Often, the casks are warmed up before transferring the whisky, in order to accelerate the fragrance transfer. Such practices are not acceptable, because the consumer has no way to know about this.

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One of the processes to give the whisky a certain type of flavor.

Cask Industries A quick mental calculation ca make you feel dizzy.

There are about 100 active distilleries all over Scotland.

The average production of each of them is between 1.200.000 and 2.000.000 liters a year. To deserve the “Scotch label”, whisky must stay at least 3 years on the Scottish territory in oak casks. Assuming that the annual production is about 150.000.000 liters, the absolute minimum of whisky stored in Scotland is 450.000.000 liters This only to guarantee the legal right to be called Scotch whisky. This is without taking in account the huge quantity of whiskies which are aging for 10 to 30 years.

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On the other hand, the casks used for storing whisky are never new casks. It is thus very important to maintain the casks in good state. Some distilleries have their own cooperages (like Balvenie or Bruichladdich for instance), but most of them prefer outsourcing this to specialized companies. There are lots of cooperages in Scotland, and the most famous of them because it is a first class tourist attraction) is the Speyside Cooperage, situated half way between the Glenfiddich distillery and the center of Dufftown. This cooperage has about 300.000 casks in stock. All of them need reconditioning.

There are about 20.000.000 cask all over Scotland.

A cask can be (re)used for a maximum of about 60 years.

The Angels Share The advantage of oak for maturing alcohol is that it is not airtight. It lets surrounding air enter the cask (which explains the salted taste of a whisky aging near the sea), but is also lets evaporate the whisky it contains. It is generally admitted that between 1 and 2% a year evaporates this way. Evaporation can affect water contained in the cask, but also the alcohol itself, resulting in a diminution of the alcohol percentage. That is called “the angels share”. However, this percentage is theoretical, because this could result in a strange situation, as old whiskies (30 years and more) would lose their right to be called whisky.

Indeed, assuming a whisky has about 70% of alcohol when it leaves the spirit still, and loses about 1% of alcohol a year a 30-year-old whisky would just have a percentage of 40%, which is the lowest limit for a whisky. The angels share is indeed the part of alcohol which escapes to excise rights. Excise rights are calculated on the amount of alcohol coming out of the still (and not on the amount of water). As this amount is diminishing over the years, it would not be fair to tax the marketed whisky based on the alcohol percentage it had when it was distilled.

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Chapter 8

Bottling

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Bottling is the last step before putting the whisky on the market. Unlike wine, whisky does not mature anymore in the bottle. So a 12 years old whisky stays a 12 years old even 12 years later, and does not become a 24 years old one.

When bottling, some residues are left in the whisky. The effect of this is that whisky looks “cloudy”, and this is not always appreciated by the consumer. That’s why distilleries found out the “chill filtering”, which removes all this residues. The problem with chill filtering is that it also removes parts of the fragrances and of the taste.

With the current revival of single malt, more and more bottlers (in dependent or official) bottle their whiskies without chill filtering. And this makes single malt lovers very happy. During bottling, the alcohol percentage is reduced. This is the other operation where the quality of water has a great influence on the taste of whisky. The minimum percentage of alcohol for whisky is 40%. Most of the bottles are marketed at this percentage, because the excise rights are calculated on the alcohol proportion in the bottle. The excise rights are particularly high in Great Britain, but in other countries they are lower. That’s why on the international market, whiskies are frequently bottled at 43%.

The bottling process at Glenfiddich Distillery.

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For some technical reasons, the ideal percentage for bottling without chill filtering seems to be 46%. Most of the non chill filtered whiskies are marketed at 46%.

Often whisky is not diluted when bottled. That’s called cask strength bottling.

Generally, the casks are mixed before bottling, to get a more standardized product, just like great wines. When the whisky comes from just one cask, it is called “single cask”. Most of the distilleries do not bottle their own whiskies, but let this happen at specialized plants. Exceptions among others are Glenfiddich, Springbank, Bruichladdich and Loch Lomond. Even if they do not bottle themselves, the responsibility of the bottling stays from the distillery. This is called “official bottling”. This operation happens often in the suburbs of Edinburgh where several bottling plants are installed, belonging to distilleries (like Glenmorangie in Broxburn) or to independent bottlers, like Ian McLeod in the same town.

Finished product after bottling and packaging for Littlemill Whisky.

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Independent Bottlers A very interesting phenomenon in whisky world is the work done by independent bottlers. Unlike bottling plants who work on behalf of distilleries, the independent bottlers buy casks at one or more distilleries, choose the type of cask, and let it mature in own warehouses or in the distillery warehouse. The independent bottler decides when the whisky will be ready for selling. These bottlings are marketed under the name of the bottler, and in rare cases the name of the distillery does not even appear on the bottle. Some of these companies are Signatory, Ian MacLeod, Douglas Laing (Provenance and Old Malt Cask), Cadenhead, etc.

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Chapter 9

Top Distillers

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The Macallan The Macallan distillery is a single malt Scotch whisky distillery in Craigellachie, Moray. The Macallan Distillers Ltd, is a wholly owned subsidiary of the Edrington Group which purchased the brand from Highland Distillers in 1999.

volume behind Glenlivet”. In 2011, Edrington Group reported that prior-year sales of The Macallan were up 8% to over 700,000 cases and the BBC also reported that an office was being opened in New York to continue growth in the American market.

In 2009, The Herald reported that Macallan was “the world’s third largest-selling single malt (behind Glenfiddich and Glenlivet) with over 500,000 cases a year, and second largest by value”. The Scotsman published a quote from Ken Grier on 16 August 2009, stating: “We have now overcome Glenfiddich to move into the second biggest selling single malt by

Originally, The Macallan was matured only in oak sherry casks brought to the distillery from Jerez, Spain. Beginning in 2004, The Macallan introduced a new main product, the Fine Oak series, with the whisky mellowed in bourbon oak casks as well as sherry ones.

A variety of Macallan’s whiskies for sale.

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Macallan Bottlings The distillery produces a number of expressions in its core Sherry Oak series, the most generally available being the 12-year-old, although the 18-year-old is widely distributed, alongside a 10-year-old cask strength expression at 58% ABV. Expensive 25 and 30-year-old versions can also be found.

More recently, starting in 2004, The Macallan for the first time started to offer single malt expressions vatted with whisky matured in used casks other than ex–sherry casks as part of the Fine Oak range. Macallan also markets special scotches in dutyfree shops at airports such as the 1824 Collection.

Many rare, special releases and other small production run bottlings also exist.

Glasses with the Macallan brand etched in.

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The badge for the 50 year old whisky made by Glenfiddich.

Glenfiddich Glenfiddich is a Speyside single malt Scotch whisky owned and produced by William Grant & Sons in Dufftown, Scotland. Glenfiddich means ‘Valley of the Deer’ in Scottish Gaelic, hence the presence of a stag symbol on Glenfiddich bottles.

Glenfiddich is the world’s best-selling single-malt whisky and also the most awarded at the International Spirits Challenge.

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Glenfiddich The Glenfiddich Distillery was founded in 1886 by William Grant in Dufftown, Scotland, in the glen of the River Fiddich. The Glenfiddich single malt whisky first ran from the stills on Christmas Day, 1887.

In the 1920s, with prohibition in force in the USA, Glenfiddich was one of a very small number of distilleries to increase production. This put them in a strong position to meet the sudden rise in demand for fine aged whiskies that came with the repeal of prohibition.

In the 1950s, the Grant family built up an on site infrastructure that included coppersmiths to maintain the copper stills, and a dedicated cooperage that is now one of the very few remaining in distilleries. In 1956 the Grant’s brand launched the now-iconic triangular bottle, designed by Hans Schleger.

Following difficult times in the 1960s and ‘70s, many small, independent distillers were bought up or went out of business.

In order to survive, W. Grant & Sons expanded their production of the drink, and introduced advertising campaigns and a visitors’ center. In this period they also took the decision to begin marketing single malt as a premium brand in its own right, effectively creating the modern single malt whisky category.

Later, W. Grant & Sons was one of the first distilleries to package its bottles in tubes and gift tins, as well as recognizing the importance of the duty-free market for spirits. This marketing strategy was successful, and Glenfiddich has now become the world’s best-selling single malt. It is sold in 180 countries, and accounts for about 35% of single malt sales.

In September 2014, William Grant & Sons agreed to acquire Drambuie for an undisclosed price rumored to be in the region of £100 million.

Glenfiddich is currently managed by the fifth generation of William Grant’s descendants.

Glenfiddich’s 26 year old whisky.

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References

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Whisky www . whisky . com

Difford's Guide https://www.diffordsguide.com Whisky-Distilleries www . whisky - distilleries . info

Jameson Whiskey https :// www . jamesonwhiskey . com / us

Laphroaig http :// www . laphroaig . com

Glenmorangie https://www.glenmorangie.com/us Bushmills http :// www . bushmills . com

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There are various type of whisky in the world. What most people don’t know about whisky is that all whisky — American Bourbon, Irish Whiskey, Scottish Whisky and others — all have specific unique qualities that happen throughout the distillation process that classify them as a certain type of whisky.

Whisky: Beyond The Still is all about Scottish Whisky and where it comes from. The book describes the types of ingredients used and goes into detail on the various steps it takes to distill whisky.