Scotch is a whiskey made in Scotland from barley and distilled twice. Most Scotch is blended from up to 50 single malt whiskeys. 95% of Scotch sold is blended, but some single malts are also highly regarded.
Scotch is the proper name for whiskey made in Scotland, although other countries make similar grain-based spirits. In Ireland, the base product itself may be called Irish whiskey, while American whiskey is often called bourbon. Most Scotch whiskey is considered blended, meaning that the final product is a carefully blended combination of up to 50 separate single malt whiskeys created specifically for blending. Some single malt Scotch whiskeys are sold direct to the public, but most are used as separate ingredients in an expert blender’s palette.
Scotch whiskey is usually made from cereal grains, mainly barley. To make a malt Scotch whisky, the barley grains are first cleaned and soaked in vats for several days. This soaking causes the barley seeds to germinate and an enzyme called diatase turns the barley germ into a soluble starch. A mechanical drying and turning process removes the starchy pulp from the unusable peels. The barley grain is now considered malt.
This malted dry grain is then mixed with hot water to form a sugary liquid called the wort. This wort is the essential ingredient of a malted Scotch whisky. The mash is carefully drawn from the purification tank, called a mash tun in Scotland. Once the wort has cooled sufficiently, it is stored in another tank for fermentation. Live yeast is added to the sugary wort, which causes the sugar to convert into a basic alcohol. After a few days of fermentation, the result is a rather pungent combination of raw alcohol and solids called a wash. This would be the equivalent of corn mash in American bourbon production.
Scotch whiskeys are actually distilled twice. The wash is heated until the alcohol turns to steam. The vapor is led through a series of coiled tubes into a cooling tank, where it becomes a liquid again. This liquid is distilled a second time and the results are collected in oak barrels for long-term storage. A true Scotch whiskey must be able to age for at least three years from the time of distillation. Some Scotch whiskeys age for 15 years or more, which could explain their sweet flavors and significant price points.
Once single malt or grain whiskeys have been properly aged, a skilled whiskey blender uses his native understanding of each single malt Scotch whiskey to create a blended scotch. This process can involve up to 50 separate whiskies, as individual whiskey sources may or may not complement each other.
95% of all Scotch whiskeys sold worldwide are blended, although some say some single malt Scotch whiskeys are just as worthy of consideration as their blended counterparts.
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