Scotch Whiskey 101

“I am far from a know all and everything on Scotch Whiskey but I do know a little bit (I think. Anyone who sees mistakes, please correct me).
Scotch Whiskey comes from Scotland and only Scotland. There are two types: Single Malts and Blends. Barley is malted and Peat (natural fuel from the moors over there) is used in the drying process. The peat smoke adds to its distinct flavor. This malted barley is then used to make wort then wash. They have different stills that they use to distill the malt in. They actually distill it twice. After the second round you then have what they call the malt "new". It isn't whiskey until it has aged for at least 3 yrs. Most of this malt whiskey is used for making the different blends of scotch but some is bottled, hence your single malt scotches.
The blends are made from malted and grain whiskeys. The grain whiskeys are made from wheat and maize. They age them in different types of casks for different characteristics and colors. (used sherry, used bourbon and oak casks). Most are between 5-25 years aged, some even older. They use anywhere from 15 to 50 different whiskeys of different ages for the blends. All determined by the master blender and his secret recipes. They blend them in large vats then put it back in casks to allow for the "marriage" of the whiskeys. If you see an age on a bottle it is the age of the youngest whiskey in the blend.”

“single malt rules.”

“The best I've ever had is The Balvene 18 year old single barrel. About $40 a bottle in NH State stores. A real treat when I've got the cash.”

“yes grasshopper, but when you can describe the subtle (sometimes not so subtle....can anyone say Laphroaig?) differences between a Highland and Lowland scotch...or an Islay from a Campbeltown then you will have found the true path to scotch whisky enlightenment.

Lagavulin rules!”

“Glen Morainge(sp?).
Mmmmmmmmm.”

“To complete the quote, Buddur,
"Drink Scotch Whiskey all night long,
And die beind the wheel".”

“The question of single-malt vs. blended is a lot like the question of varietal wine vs. blends. California wineries, and American drinkers, have a fetish for single varietal wines (100% of a grape, like Chardonnay, or Merlot, or Cabernet), and tend to forget that many of the great wines of world like Bordeaux and Burgundy are known by regions because they are blends. In the same way, Americans tend to gravitate toward single-malts for their distinctive individualities, dismissing the truly subtle art of the master whiskey blender.

That said, I prefer California varietals and love family vinyards and single-vineyard bottlings (though I refuse to blow money on cult wines). For scotch it's almost always Glenmorangie 18 year old. Liquid gold.

Once in a while, though, it's nice to go over to the "over side."”

“I too prefer a varietal wine over blended appellation wines but I have a slightly different understanding of the two. Varietal must only be 80%(I think that is the percentage) total of one type grape to be considered a varietal and many do have a small amount of blend. Cabernet Sauvignon, for instance, often have Merlot blended with them and still go by the designation Cabernet Sauvignon because of the amount of that grape that is in it. Also appellation wines can be all of one type grape and still go by the appellation name (Bordeaux for example). I do think the reason for my preferences are, as Explorer stated, because of the individual characteristics that certain grapes have and I don't like for them to be covered by others. I must say though, there are some awfully good blended Bordeauxs I have tried. I guess it depends on my mood. Is there a Wine 101 thread out there anywhere? One should use care never to dismiss the talent of a good winemaster or master blender.”

“Whiskey tastes like kerosine and it is worse for you.”

“Is that what the rest of the line is Mr.Dunadan!?! I've heard that song forever, and never could figure it our...for some reason.

Saw Steeley Dan last summer...those ole'farts can still jam!”

“the cuervo gold
the fine columbian
make tonight a wonderful thing










ok, wrong booze and different song, but it still rocks.”

“Cockroach, I love Lagavulin too. Did you see the Islay discussion on the Opinion thread?”

“I go for regional wines, but then I live in Quebec. My family comes from Speyside in Morayshire (MacBeth's region) and so I stick with Seyside malts, Gelnfiddich being my favourite. I'll drink a Laphroaig (laffROAGH) or an Islay (I lah) when I'm being pissy and I want someone to taste; they are an acquired taste to say the least.

By the way, there are many blended single malts, most in fact, I believe, they merely have no grain whisky in the blend. A true single malt can be hard to find. In my not so humble an opinion, after 8 years there is not enough difference in taste to justify the price. Glenfiddich is sold at 8 years in Canada and 12 years in the U.S. If you can tell the difference you're good - really good.

Bacpac: Moderation in all things. As Mark Twain wrote, 'Too much of anything is bad; too much whisky is just enough.' I very seldom drink the hard stuff, but beer (earned by exercise out of doors, hiking, rugby, or training etc.) and red wine with dinner help keep me civilised (no I can't supply testimony). Happy trails.”

“I am Scotch dunce and I never liked Scotch until last fall when I attended a friend's wedding at Skibo Castle just outside of Dornoch, Scotland. Some of the Castle staff took me to the Glenn Morangie Distillery where I got to taste a bunch of different varieties. Wow, what a difference from the cheap Scotches that I tasted in the past. I really wasn't sure about the different types, so I bought 4 bottles (I figured if they went to all that trouble, I better buy something. One of the bottles is an 18 year old single malt, they said that this was one wasn't exported). I paid something like $25 a bottle which I thought was expensive, but I found out later that Glenn Morangie and Glenn Livet were two of the better brands and I got a good deal.”

“Iffin it ain't from TN,KY or the backwoods of NC it ain't worth drinkin!Bourbon and Sourmash rules!”

“BaSO4 - $25 a bottle! That's incredible!

Gremlin - I'm not a big or experienced scotch drinker but I can definitely taste the difference between a 12 year and an 18 year. The extra years add several more "o"s the word smooooth. And recently I got to taste a 25 year old MacCallan and all I can say is Oh My Heaven!

bacpac, do you prefer the single-malt or the blended kerosene?

rad, I'll bring the cuervo gold and the glenmorangie 18, you bring the fine colombian.

baume, you're right about varietals but that doesn't change American's preference for them or the fact that many California wineries pride themselves of making 100% varietal wines. California wineries are rediscovering the art of blending wine, though, especially reds, and I have developed a taste for some of the blended red table wines -- they might be equal parts Cab Sauv, Cab Franc, and Merlot, or more complicated concoctions -- and what you lose in varietal characteristic you gain in harmoniousness, while they can still be quite distinct and individual, especially when they come from small wineries where there might only be a single vineyard providing each grape variety in the blend. Similarly, I understand there are small-batch blended whiskeys which is an area I'd definitely like to explore.”

“Ok, I've got all this Scotch, but other than taste (which is personal preference) what's the difference between a good Scotch and a great Scotch. The folks in Scotland assured me than Glen Morangie is one of the best, but how do you tell? Is it just a taste thing?”

“Whoops, that should have been 25 pounds a bottle or roughly $37.50 and not $25 a bottle”

“This has been an informative and interesting thread. Helps me identify a little more with my Scottish roots. I might even try to drink some scotch whiskey.”

“tehipite, I just checked out that thread. I too, enjoy the Islay whiskies.

I stayed at a nice B&B in Inverness (just above Loch Ness) about 5 yrs. ago and the proprietor was kind enough to share his substantial collection of single malts with his guests. I found that I kept gravitating back to the Islay single malts.

I just recently bought a bottle of Macallan after finishing a bottle of Lagavulin 'cause everybody talks about how great Macallan is....it's okay but I prefer Lagavulin...I like the smokiness of the Islay's.”

“Ifin I were to stole into a bar that had a sign inside that said "all the scotch you can drink for a dollar" I would walk up to the bartender and ask for 2 dollars worth!”

“Thanks for the info guys! I'll have to treat myself this weekend.”

“As my dad would say...
Scotch tastes like water that's been sitting too long in an old tire.”

“Mel, that's not Scotch--that's Starbucks! ;-)”

“Not only that, they're expensive!”

“Okay, I needed a cup of coffee so I stopped at Starbucks and was in line behind two ladies complaining about the cost of gas. Then they ordered their grande, non-fat, no-whip, light foam, extra chocolate mochas and a scone. The total was like $6 each. It was amusing, $6 for a cup of coffee and a biscuit, but $1.75 gas is too expensive!”

“Woo Hoo! Go homegrown!

http://www.news4jax.com/food/4223509/detail.html”

“This isn't what you think. It's mostly a chance to WVa to allow the smaller distillers to sell direct instead of having to sell to the state.

viz.,

The legislation would benefit Rodney Facemire, who has been producing Southern Moon Corn Liquor at his federally licensed distillery in Nicholas County since 2002.

So moonshining will still be illegal, even in WVa.
last edited: 2/23/05 1:29:34 PM”

“It's a start. ;)”

“I hate to be a wet blanket, but no, it ain't...sorry....”

“I know I know... I've done quite a bit of reading on whiskey production and the history of our nation. Fascinating stuff.”

“Oh yah, it is. Federal liquor regs are a joke and an embarrassing reminder of the biggest constitutional error in our country's history.

The Whisky Rebellion was over this sort of thing.”

“Ever read any of James Earl Dabney's books on the subject? Book 2, especially, with all of it's step by step "for educational purposes only" still and whiskeymaking lessons, is particularly interesting. "Moonshine" and "More Moonshine" are the books' names. Downright inspiring, if you know what I mean.”

“Never have...but moonshining is in my blood...my Great-granddaddy Baxter was an East Tennessee moonshiner and bootlegger before he got religion.”

“You should talk to HPM about his history too! Lol! Especially down his daddy's side of the family!”

“I'll have to do that sometime.

I do enjoy making my own beer but it's been 10 years since I made a batch. My grandmother (moonshiner's daughter) just had to chuckle when she found out I was making my own homebrew.”

“Have you peeps ever tasted Moonshine?
It's not good.

I used to find old stills in the woods all the time when I was a kid.”

“You gotta pick a good week, Stovey!”

“I've heard about places in east Tennesse where you'll see a jar of cherries on the bar. Ask for one, never two.

After doing a couple of Whiskey Distillery tours in Ireland and the states, I'd kinda like to try my hand at it, eh!”

“There's no e in scotch whisky.

Whiskey is whiskey

Whisky is scotch.

Scotch is goooooooooood.”

“So does good scotch burn and taste like straight alcohol? Every talks about how good it is but I’m not a straight liquor drinker. It would be nice to carry a small flask as opposed to beer on the trail though.”

“You either acquire a taste for scotch or you don't, and your taste eventually evolves to good scotch or you drink whatever.”

“I told my neighbor I’d bring him over a bottle of Chimay Ale and he said he’d teach me to drink scotch. He said he had some 12 year old Glenlevits(SP?) he’d break out.”

“Geo hit the nail on the head. Of course there are lots of different single-malt scotches. If you're not brave enough to try a single malt right off the bat, try a blend, like White Label, which is one of my fave blends. The Glenlivet is an excellent single malt, it's what got me started on them. Not too peaty, which is what turns a lot of people off. The Macallan is what I drink when I can afford it. Very little peat, very malty, aged in sherry barrels that give it an interesting taste.”

“Ok now I am dripping at the mouth for something to drink!!!!!!!


8)”

“I agree with geo, I rarely drink, my father started me on the stuff. He rarely drank, but at the end of a good week or at that time when he just wanted to talk. He would bring out a bottle of Chivas. From the first time I tried it, I liked it and I don't like much else to be honest. we would drink a short pour over ice, If I carry alcohol, that's what it will be. Almost everyone I know hates the stuff.”