Whisky

Whisky or whiskey? The spirit made of malted barley or grain in Scotland is spelled Whisky. Whiskey is for the product made of malted barley, or other cereals, in Ireland and in the USA. Scotch whisky is whisky produced exclusively in Scotland and it is considered as the most complex whisky in the world.

The origins of the whisky The term whisky derives from the gaelic name "Uisge Beatha" meaning "water of life", a direct translation form the Latin "aqua vitae". Whisky came originally form Ireland or Scotland, but no one can definitely say which country was first. The first scottish mention of whisky dates from 1494.

How whisky is made? To do a whisky you need 3 different ingredients Barley Water Yeast

The barley 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. 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. There is no legal obligation to use Scottish barley to produce Scotch whisky. Even if some producers would like to go back to the tradition, like Bruichladdich does, most of the distilleries are not concerned by the origin of their barley. The most important thing is the highest sugar content and the lowest price. The combination of those two elements is often the only criteria in the choice of a variety of barley. A great deal of the barley used to produce Scotch whisky is coming from England or South Africa. It is not excluded that GMO are used, but it is difficult to get evidences of that. Anyway, this would perfectly conform with the productivity logic. If genetically modified barley gives better harvests with a better sugar content...

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

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.

categories of whiskey There are 3 categories of whiskey: SINGLE MALTS PURE MALTS BLENDED.

SINGLE MALT SCOTCH The SINGLE MALT SCOTCH is a sort of AOC Who must meet 3 requirements: to be the proceeds of the single distillery, be prepared exclusively from barley malt and Scottish provenance.

PURE MALT The PURE MALT, a term used to describe a blend of malt whiskey, but only from one or more distilleries. There are sometimes SINGLES MALTS labeled "PURE MALT"

BLENDED SCOTCH The BLENDED SCOTCH comes from whiskey malt and grain (non-malted barley, wheat and maize) A blended whiskey usually contains 40% of malt and the best 60%. The Blended are mostly lighter.

The Scottish distillery

My favourite Edradour

Edradour Distillery General Information Current OwnersSignatory Location Highlands Water source A Spring on Ben Vrackie. Stills 1 x wash still and 1 x spirit still Capacity per year 90,000 Litres Status Active/Producing

Edradour Distillery History 1825 Founded by a cooperative of farmers from Edradour 1837 Existing distillery supposedly founded 1841 Cooperative became "John McGlashan and Company".  1886 William Whiteley & Co Ltd (J.G Turney & Sons, USA) 1947 Electricity installed 1986 Bottled as a single malt for first time 2002 purchased by Signatory

Edradour Distillery Bottlings Edradour Distillery Bottlings Edradour Aged 10 Years

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