Whisky
by Gourmet Tree
Malt Whisky
Malt whisky is the original; the stuff of myth. Discover some of the secrets of whisky distilling and explore the range of malts available.
Blended Whisky
Since the first commercial blend was made in 1853, Scotch has become one of the most popular spirits in the world. We investigate it's history and feature selected blends.
Liqueur Whisky
A spirit based on whisky which may be flavoured with herbs, flowers, fruit, seeds or roots. There are a number of liqueurs now available on the market.
Grain Whisky
Unusually is made from unmalted wheat or maize and is fermented together with green barley as with malt whisky but generally lower in alcohol.
Unchilfiltered Whisky
The process of making blended whisky involves chilfiltering, to avoid the whisky becoming cloudy when cold - unchillfiltering retains the 'solids' such as proteins and vitamins.
What is Scotch Whisky
It is a toast to civilization. It brings exhiiration and conviviality, stimulation and comfort. In short, it is the finest alcoholic drink ever created by man.
The History of Whisky
There are few products so closely related to the land of their birth than Scotch whisky. It is the lifeblood of scotland: historically, socially and economically.
Blended Whisky
The Early Blenders
For as long as they have existed in Scotland, whisky was sold by taverns and hotels, wine and spirits merchants, grocers and provision merchants.The whiskies were sold under the merchants' or invented names, not branded by the distiller, although by the early 19th century Glenlivet had made such a reputation for itself that a huge number of malts - many of them remote from Glenlivet itself were using the name.
It is safe to suppose that some of these merchants mixed their whiskies - even diluted and adulterated them. Until legislation permitted weaker washes and smaller stills, illicit malt whisky was much superior to the legal variety; as we have seen, in the Lowlands pot-still grain distilleries were common.Young whiskies were mixed with old; grain with malt - all in the interests of profit.
This early 'blending' was a crude affair.There was little quality control, and little concern for consistent, repeatable, products.
Famous Blends
Ballantines
Black Bottle
Bell's
Catto's
Cutty Sark
Famous Grouse
Green Plaid
Hankey-Bannister
Johnnie Walker
J & B Rare
Macarthurs
Pinwinnie
Teacher's
Whyte & Mackay
Isle of Skye
Old Vatted Glenlivet
The first commercial blend - in the sense that it was offered for sale to a wider market, and thus had to be consistent - was made by Andrew Usher in 1853. Usher was the Edinburgh agent for Glenlivet, and he named his creation Old Vatted Glenlivet. By 1860 it was being advertised in London, and in 1864 he was selling it overseas, especially in India.
Others followed, spurred on by the fact that increases in tax (in 1853 and 1855) caused a slackening of demand for whisky in England, and also because there was such an over-production of grain whisky in the Lowlands that the six largest distillers agreed to divide their market to avoid a price war (1857). But these early blends were invariably relabelled for the retailer Mighty encouragement to producing large volumes of blend came with Gladstone's Spirit Act of 1860, which allowed blending in bonded warehouses before duty had to be paid.
Blended Whisky
The Blenders Goal
The whisky blenders task is to combine a number of malt and grain whiskies in such a way that the resulting drink is more than the sum of its parts
Its parts are many. The Master Blender selects from between fifteen and fifty different malt whiskies and three or four grain whiskies.
Each is at a different age (by law, they must be at least three years old; some may be twenty-five in even a standard blend), and is chosen from an individual cask.
Famous Blends
Ballantines
Black Bottle
Bell's
Catto's
Cutty Sark
Famous Grouse
Green Plaid
Hankey-Bannister
Johnnie Walker
J & B Rare
Macarthurs
Pinwinnie
Teacher's
Whyte & Mackay
Isle of Skye
The Age Statement
If the blend bears an age statement, all the whiskies - the grains as well - must have been matured for at least that length of time before they are blended
He then mixes measured amounts of each of these whiskies - some, the whiskies of Islay, for example, or 'top dressing' Speysides, have the capacity to cover a lot of others, and can dominate unless he's careful. Usually he vats the malts and the grains separately, then blends the two together and leaves them for several months to marry. He must do this for every batch bottled. Consistency of flavour is crucial to the success of blended whisky: if your favourite brand tastes different next time you buy a bottle, you will be disappointed - and may even move to another brand.
Cellos, Violas, Violins & Pianos
Some blenders compare their work to conducting an orchestra. The malts of Islay are heavy and sombre as cellos. Highland malts are violas; Lowlands the discursive violin and grains are like pianos - sometimes fortissimo, sometimes pianissimo.
The Formulae for Blends
The formulae for some blends are a hundred years old, but they are not sacrosanct. Distilleries close and their product is no longer available. Sometimes they choose to withdraw from the blending market and bottle their output as a single (Glenmorangie did this in the early 1980s). From time to time whisky companies alter the composition to suit changing taste. This was recently done, very successfully, by Bell's (a bold step for the U.K. market leader) and the new 8 Years Old is richer and smoother than the previous blend.
"To appreciate the difficulties of blending, the layman should experiment on his own account He may take half a dozen of the finest highland malts, those from the classic distilleries, mix them together and add any proportion he chooses of grain whisky. The result will almost certainly be a blend that is totally unacceptable, one in which all the subtle and distinctive qualities of the different malts hove been entirely lost, The truth is that a good blend requires whiskies of less pronounced character just as much as it needs the classic malts."
Blended Whisky
The Blenders Boom
The Spirit Act of 1860 made it possible to produce large volumes of blended whisky, and many spirits merchants and grocers began to specialise in producing blends with a very broad appeal. Drinks which had a lighter character than malt whisky, but were more substantial than grain whisky.
The economic advantages of creating a flavoursome drink out of grain whisky were not missed by the many wine & spirits merchants who took up blending, and since they were now able to achieve greater consistency of flavour, it also became possible - and desirable - to brand their creations and promote them.
Famous Blends
· Ballantines
· Black Bottle
· Bell's
· Catto's
· Cutty Sark
· Famous Grouse
· Green Plaid
· Hankey-Bannister
· Johnnie Walker
· J & B Rare
· Macarthurs
· Pinwinnie
· Teacher's
· Whyte & Mackay
· Isle of Skye
Remarkable Victorian
The Victorian era produced many remarkable people, not least in the whisky industry. Between the late 1870s and the turn of the century a handful of astonishingly able and vigorous Scots promoted their new blended whiskies, first in London and then around the world. Many of them became immensely wealthy as a result, and several were elevated to the peerage - James Buchanan (The Buchanan Blend and Black & White) became Lord Woolavington; Tommy Dewar (Dewar's White Label) was made Baron Dewar of Homestall and his brother John, Lord Forteviot; Peter Mackie (of White Horse) was made a baronet and Alexander Walker (Johnnie Walker) was knighted.
They were assisted by a number of factors. First was the appeal of the product. Second, the growing fashion for things Scottish, led by Queen Vicloria herself. Third, the by now well established rail and sea routes, which made transportation far easier than previously. Fourth, by the existence of the British Empire, the biggest free market in the world.
The Vastetrix bug
Fifth, and most significantly was a bug, Vastetrix, which devastated the vineyards of France between the mid- 1860s and the late 1880s. The significance of the latter was immense. During the 1880s the vineyards of Grande Champagne were ruined and the production of Cognac virtually ceased. Brandy became almost unavailable. And brandy (with soda) was the drink of the English middle classes. Blended whisky (and soda) was there to replace it.
