reading

Contents

Introduction

Origin and History:
A Murky Past

What Is Whiskey? (There’s No Such Thing as a Stupid Question)

You Say Whiskey, I Say Bourbon: What’s the Difference?

Sniff and Sip:
How to Drink Whiskey

Let’s Party:
How to Host a Whiskey Tasting

The Proof Is in the Pudding:
Cooking and pairing food
with Whiskey

Recipes

metric conversions
and equivalents

Whiskey: It’s not just your Dad’s drink. Women and men of all ages are exploring and imbibing whiskey. State-of-the-art distilleries, whiskey bars, whiskey tastings, and food pairings are increasingly common, and with them come a growing curiosity and interest in learning more about this spirit made from distilled malted grains.

Whiskey’s flavors and blends are numerous and nuanced, with hints of spice, caramel, coffee, vanilla, and smoke. These characteristics not only add complexity to each snifter sip, they lend depth and flavor to food—either as an accompaniment or a recipe ingredient.

The word “whiskey” derives from the Irish or Gaelic words uisce beatha or uisge-beatha, which are translations of the Latin term aqua vitae or “water of life,” meant to describe spirits.

The origin of whiskey is somewhat murky. It’s agreed that whiskey originated in the British Isles, yet, depending on which side of the Irish sea you sit, there are differing opinions (best discussed over a dram) as to whether the precise origin was in Ireland or Scotland.

For the record, whiskey distillation can be traced as far back as the fifteenth century. The Irish monks are often credited with introducing the technique of distillation from their travels in the Middle East during

the Middle Ages, where they witnessed grape distillation; and the barber surgeons, who worked in the Irish monasteries, distilled spirit alcohol for medicinal purposes. The Irish will tell you that following the dissolution of their monasteries in the sixteenth century, the newly independent monks introduced whiskey-making to the Scottish Highlands and shared their distilling craft. Meanwhile, the Scots, with their own faithful take on the origin, might argue that whiskey distillation naturally evolved on their home turf from their abundance of barley grain.

As for the first distilleries, the Old Bushmills Distillery, in what is now Northern Ireland, began manufacturing whiskey in 1608, and Ireland’s Kilbeggan Distillery was established in 1757 as the first licensed distillery in the British Isles. From that point on, distilleries were born on both sides of the Irish Sea.

Whiskey is a distilled alcoholic beverage made from fermented grain mash, which is essentially a weak beer. Different grains can be used to make whiskey, including barley, corn, rye, and wheat, and the amounts and choice of grains reflect and define the provenance and type of whiskey. For instance, Scotch whisky is predominantly made of malted (germinated) barley, while corn is the dominant grain in bourbon, and rye is the dominant grain (surprise) in American rye.

Malting

Whiskey begins as a grain, often barley, that contains starch that needs to be turned into soluble sugars to make alcohol. Malting is the process of soaking the grain for two to three days and then allowing the moist grain to slightly germinate, which converts the starch to sugar. Once the grain shoots, the process is stopped by drying it in a kiln. The grain is now “malt,” which is ground down.

Mashing

The ground-down grain (or grist) is added to water to extract the soluble sugars before fermentation. The combination of malt and water is called “mash.” The mash is agitated in a large tank to dissolve and extract the sugars, which are drained off, and this liquid is called the “wort.”

Note that the source of the water will influence the flavor of the final spirit, with varying minerals and pH levels, so location plays a distinguishing key in whiskey character. For instance, Kentucky bourbon whiskey is made with limestone-filtered spring water, which is naturally purified and mineral-rich, with elevated pH levels. Scotch whisky sources its water from lochs, rivers, and springs, with varying mineral and pH levels, and the source’s proximity to the sea can add brininess to the flavor.

Fermentation

The wort is passed into a tank, where yeast strains are introduced to begin fermentation, which is the conversion of sugars to alcohol. The process takes about forty-eight hours, resulting in a low-alcohol liquid similar to beer, aptly called “distiller’s beer,” which is then distilled.

Distillation

Distillation is the process of heating a liquid and creating a vapor, which is captured and condensed into another liquid. This method is done with pot or column stills. Pot stills are usually made of copper and, as the name implies, shaped like a spherical pot, and they operate on a batch-by-batch basis, which is best suited for smaller production. Pot stills are the earliest design, having evolved from the ancient alembic, which was used for alcoholic distillation as far back as the ninth century. Column stills, also known as Coffey stills, were developed later in the nineteenth century. They are sleek and industrial, and can be made of copper, stainless steel, or a combination of the two. Column stills operate continuously, so they are better suited for larger-scale production.