What is Scotch: A Primer to Scotland's Whisky

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A wise homo once said, "I love scotch. Scotchy, scotch, scotch. Here it goes downwards. Down into my belly. Mm mm mm."

Okay Ron Burgundy might not take been wise, but he definitely knew a thing or 2 about scotch.

So what is scotch?

On its most basic level, scotch is a specific type of whisky that comes from Scotland and has extremely deep roots in the country. Every bit evidence of this, Scotland has more whisky distilleries than any other country in the globe. Considering the relative size of Scotland, that'south pretty impressive. The word whisky even comes from the Scot's Gaelic discussion "usquebaugh" meaning "water of life".

And so allow's swoop in and learn everything yous demand to know about scotch whisky: the water of life.

The Ultimate Guide to Scotch

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First, a quick annotation on spelling: Scottish, Canadian and Japanese producers spell whisky without an "e" (WHISKY) while American and Irish producers spell whiskey with an "east" (WHISKEY).

So since we're talking well-nigh scotch, which comes from Scotland, it's spelled whisky. Side by side, this is a pretty long and in-depth article that will teach you everything you lot the ins and outs of scotch.

What is Scotch?

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Like I said in a higher place, scotch is basically a whisky that comes from Scotland.

Now, while all scotch is whisky, not all whisky is scotch. While there is a long list of unlike requirements to be called a scotch, the main deviation between scotch and other whiskies is that scotch comes from Scotland. Only like tequila tin can merely come from United mexican states and Port can merely come from Portugal, scotch can only come from Scotland.

Now, this is true from both a legal perspective and a practical 1.

Commencement, legally speaking and according to the Scotch Whisky Regulations of 2009, to be called a scotch the whisky must:

Exist mashed, fermented, distilled, and matured in Scotland
Be matured in oak casks for at least 3 years
Be in function made from malted barley
Be fermented with yeast
Be at to the lowest degree 40% alcohol by book

Now from a practical perspective, scotch only coming from Scotland is also truthful. As you'll see in the adjacent department, the state's geography has such a huge impact on the whisky's season that information technology would be very hard to make a scotch manner whisky outside of Scotland.

What is Scotch Made of and How is it Made?

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To empathise what scotch is fabricated of, it'south helpful to accept a basic understanding of what whisky is made of. Whisky is basically alcohol that's made from grain. This ways that whisky is more or less only a distilled version of beer.

What makes scotch unlike from other whiskies is the mode it's fabricated and the ingredients that are used to get in.

Ingredients of Scotch

Scotch has three basic ingredients: water, malted barley and yeast.

By legal definition, scotch must be made partially from malted barley. Other cereal grains, such as corn, tin be added, but they must be whole (meaning non malted).

Making Scotch

There are 5 stages of making a scotch whisky: malting, mashing, fermentation, distillation and maturation.

Malting

During the malting process, barley is soaked in tanks of water, known as steeps, for two to three days. After it's been soaked, the barley is spread out over a concrete floor, known as the malting flooring, and immune to germinate for viii to 12 days.

To finish germination, the barley is dried in a malt kiln for roughly 30 hours. It's during this drying process that many scotches receive their feature smoky flavor. The smoky flavor is a result of the barley is dried over a peat fire. Peat is soil like cloth that is common in boggy landscapes similar Scotland.

The level of a scotch's smokiness depends on how long it was smoked over a peat fire. Some scotches are stale over a peat burn down for eighteen of the 30 total hours, whereas some aren't dried over a peat burn at all. As you would gauge, the longer a scotch has been stale past a peat fire, the smokier it is.

While the mutual definition of scotch is that information technology is smoky, not all scotches acquit this quality. In fact, some scotches are fifty-fifty fruity or floral.

via: Unsplash / Lutz Wernitz

Malting Floor

Mashing

Next, the now malted barley is sent to a malt manufactory where information technology is basis into a mixture known as grist. Hot water is added to the grist and is stirred for a catamenia of time. Adjacent, the leftover solids are tuckered out to produce a sugary liquid, known as wort.

During the mashing process, starch in the malted barley is converted into sugar. This is hugely important as information technology's this saccharide that will be converted into alcohol in the side by side pace.

Fermentation

Fermentation is a process where a bacteria or yeast converts sugars into acids, gasses and/or alcohols. This means that it is during fermentation that distilleries create an actual booze.

The wort that was created in the mashing step is cooled and is sent to large vats. Yeast is and so added to the mix and the process of fermentation begins. The added yeast attacks and eats the saccharide that was in the wort and coverts it to a crude alcohol.

The unabridged fermentation process takes virtually 48 hours. The end product is a liquid with a depression booze forcefulness known as the wash.

Distillation

Side by side, the fermented launder is poured into copper pot stills. The launder is heated until the alcohol in the wash becomes a vapor and rises. This vapor is nerveless and condensed into a liquid state.

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Scotch is usually distilled twice, once in a big launder notwithstanding and one time in a smaller spirit nevertheless.

Scotch stills (used for distillation)

Maturation

The distilled spirit is added to oak casks and is matured for a minimum of three years. The oak casks that are used are rarely new. Scotch is often matured in casks that were originally used to mature bourbon or sherry.

Sometimes, scotches are fifty-fifty transferred from one cask to another. For instance, a scotch might start by maturing in a bourbon cask for 9 years and finish by maturing in a brandy cask for another 3 years.

For every yr that the scotch is left to mature, roughly 1-2% is lost to evaporation. This loss to evaporation is known as the angel's share.

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The angel's share is function of why older bottles of scotch are and so expensive.

Scotch beingness matured in oak casks

Types of Scotch: Blended vs Unmarried Malt

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Broadly speaking, in that location are 2 types of scotch: composite scotches and single malt scotches

Single Malt Scotch

Single Malts, fabricated by scotch brands similar Glenlivet and Macallan, have recently exploded in popularity.

There is a lot of confusion around what a single malt scotch is and most of information technology stems from the use of the discussion "single" in its title.

A single malt scotch is essentially a scotch that comes from one distillery. So information technology's not even a scotch that comes from a single batch or a single barrel of whisky. It'southward just from a unmarried distillery.

This ways that a single malt scotch is actually a blend of unlike scotches. A distillery might end upwardly mixing x different single malt scotches to produce one unmarried malt for auction.

Legally speaking, nonetheless, to be a single malt, at that place are three criteria:

Comes from a single distillery
Is made from only malted barley (no other cereals, like corn, are added)
Is distilled in pot stills

Unmarried barrel scotches practise be, but every bit flavors tin vary then greatly from butt to barrel, they're not very common.

Composite Scotch Whiskies

Approximately 93% of all scotch whiskies are blended whiskies. These are the more usually known scotches like Johnny Walker, Dewars, J&B, and Chivas.

A blended scotch is a whisky that'south made from two or more single malt scotches that came from two or more distilleries. The number of scotches that are blended together varies, but upwards of 10 unlike single malts can be mixed to create one composite scotch.

If a blended scotch has an historic period on information technology, like 10, that ways the youngest scotch in that blend is at least 10 years old.

Brands of Scotch

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There are countless brands of scotch. Below, you lot'll see some of the more than well known brands side by side to one of their more highly rated and semi-reasonably priced (under $200) bottles of scotch.

Scotch Brand	Highly Rated Bottle
Johnnie Walker	Johnnie Walker Double Black
Dalmore	Dalmore 12 Year Sometime Whisky
Glenlivet	Glenlivet 18 Yr Onetime
Macallan	Macallan 10 Year One-time Sherry Oak
Dewar	Dewar's 12 Twelvemonth Quondam Special Reserve
Chivas Regal	Chivas Regal 18 Yr Old
Laphroaig	Laphroaig 10 Year Former Cask Forcefulness
Bells	Bells 5 Year Onetime
The Famous Grouse	The Black Grouse
Monkey Shoulder	Monkey Shoulder Blended Malt
Highland Park	Highland Park 12 Year Quondam Saint Magnus
Glenmorangie	Glenmorangie Artein 15 Year Old Private Edition
J&B	J&B Rare

Best Scotch for Beginners

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There is no 1 best scotch for beginners. But like you adopt a specific style of beer, similar stake ale or a stout, you lot'll notice that your tastes volition favor a specific blazon of scotch.

That said...

here are some reasonably priced (all effectually $50) scotches for beginners to try:

Scotch Brand/Bottle	Bottle Price
Johnnie Walker Double Black	$45
Ad Rattray Cask Islay	$sixty
Black Bull 12 Year Onetime	$55
The Dimple Pinch	$45
Sheep Dip	$40

Those v scotches are all blended scotches. If you want to leap in and endeavor a unmarried malt, attempt the Lagavulin xvi Year Old. It'southward a little pricier (around $fourscore), but the extra cost is definitely worth it.

Proficient Cheap Scotches

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Cheap is a relative term when it comes to scotch.

Like with many things, you become what you pay for with scotch. Thankfully, you tin discover some skillful cheap scotches in the $20-$40 range:

Scotch Brand/Canteen	Approximate Bottle Toll
Glenlivet 12 Year Former Single Malt	$thirty
The Black Grouse	$30
Trader Joe'southward 10 Twelvemonth Highland Unmarried Malt	$20
Island of Skye 8 Twelvemonth	$30
Johnnie Walker Black	$35

Unless you're making a mixed scotch drink, I recommend avoiding the lower end bottles like Johnnie Walker Red or Dewars White.

Nearly Expensive Scotches Ever Sold

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The demand for scotch has been steadily increasing in recent years. This increased need has lead distillers to release some exclusive whiskies at unbelievably high prices.

How unbelievable? Try a 750 ml bottle of scotch that was sold for over $500,000!

Here are the 5 about expensive scotch whiskies ever sold:

Scotch Brand/Bottle	Bottle Price
Macallan "Chiliad" (1940)	$631,850
Macallan'south Lalique Cire Perdue (1946)	$460,000
Dalmore 64 Trinitas (1946)	$160,000
Glenfiddich Janet Sheed Roberts Reserve	$94,000
The Macallan 1926	$75,000

Each of the above bottles has a very interesting story behind them that y'all can bank check out in this article.

In Decision

So then, what is scotch?

You could requite the brusque respond "Scotch is a type of whisky that comes from Scotland" but as y'all now know, this answer is pretty incomplete. Scotch is a whisky steeped in history that yous can taste with each sip.

Another wise man (Mark Twain this time) once said, "Too much of anything is bad, but too much good whiskey is barely enough." Listen to the man, become a nice canteen of scotch and explore this "water of life".

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Source: https://www.mantelligence.com/ultimate-guide-scotch/