Scotch: Why It Tastes So Damn Good

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Scotch is a type of whisky that is made in Scotland and uniquely stands out from other types of whisky. There are currently two different kinds of Scotch whisky available:

• Malt Whisky
• Grain Whisky

Malt Whisky

This type of whisky is made using the Pot Still Process. The process can occur in four distinct stages:

1. Malting.
2. Mashing.

• Fermentation then:

1. Distillation.
2. Malting.

Malting 

• During this stage the barley is screened to remove any foreign matter.
• Soak for 2 or 3 days in steeps. Steeps are special water tanks.
• Spread it out on a malting floor and allow germinating. The process of Germination can take from 8 to 12 days. Turn out the barley regularly at intervals to control temperature and germination rate. The barley secretes the enzyme diastase during germination that makes the starch soluble in preparation for conversion into sugar.
• Stop germination by drying the malted barley or green malt in the malt kiln.

Mashing

• This stage involves grinding of the dried malt in a mill.
• The ground malt produces grist then mixed with hot water.
• The soluble starch is then converted into a sugary liquid known as wort. The wort is then removed from the mash tun. The remaining solids are removed for use as cattle food.

Fermentation Process

• This process begins with cooling of wort and passage into large vessels of liquid for fermentation by the addition of yeast.
• The sugar in the wort is attacked by live yeast and it is converted into crude alcohol.
• This whole stage of fermentation takes about 48 hours to produce a liquid known as wash. Wash contains;
  • Alcohol of low strength.
  • Some unfermented matter.
  • Certain by-products of fermentation.

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Distillation

Distillation of Malt Whisky is done twice in large copper Pot Stills.

• The liquid wash is heated to a boiling point for the alcohol to change to vapor.
• The vapor rises in the still and is passed into the cooling plant. In the cooling plant, it is condensed into a liquid.
• The purpose of first distillation is the separation of the alcohol from the fermented liquid and elimination of the residue from the yeast together with the unfermented liquids.
• The distillate produced is known as low wines. The low wines then pass into another still where it is distilled a second time. In this second distillation first and the last runnings are not collected. In spirit bottles. Only middle runnings are collected.

Pot Still distillation is a batch process.

Image credit: “Glenmorangie Distillery Stills” by Jack Shainsky

Grain Whisky

This whisky is made by a process known as the Patent Still process. The process is continuous in operation and differs from the Malt Whisky Pot Still process in four other ways:

1. The mash in this process consists of a proportion of both malted barley together with cereals that are unmalted.
2. Unmalted cereals used in this process are cooked under steam pressure for three and a half hours while the mixture of grain and water is being agitated by stirrers located inside the cooker.
3. The grain starch cells burst and upon transfer of this liquid to the mash tun together with the malted barley, the diastase present converts the starch into sugar.
4. Unlike Pot Still process, the wort collection is done at a lower specific gravity.
5. Distillation occurs in a Patent or Coffey Still and the spirit collection are done at a much higher rate.

Maturation

The maturation of both types of whisky occurs after distillation is completed. Casks of oak wood that are permeable are filled with the new spirit. They allow air to pass and evaporation to take place. The process allows removal of harsh constituents and in due course becomes Mellow Whisky. Malt Whisky takes a longer time, up to 15 years, to mature because it contains more flavory constituents compared to Grain Whisky.

Other factors that affect both Malt and Grain Whisky maturation include:

• The size of used casks.
• The temperature and humidity of the warehouse.
• The strength of storage of the spirit.

Blending

The different whiskies are blended together after maturation. The addition of soft water creates a reduction of the blend to the required strength. The color of the whiskies at this stage, before blending, depends upon the casks used in the previous stage.

Packaging

This marks the final stage in the process of production of Scotch whisky before dispatch. Scotch Whiskey for exportation is packaged in glass tanks lined with stainless steel or casks of varying size. The packaging, in this case, depends on the size of the market. Bottling is then done overseas by the agents or distributors.

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Scotch Basics

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In a 2012 report, Scotch whisky is considered as the cornerstone of the Scottish economy. The annual gross revenue would total of £4 billion and 86% of that comprises the bulk export. The Scotch whisky industry required 10,000 Scottish workers and is supporting a total of 35,000 jobs. Producers in Scotland procures over £1 billion of local supplies and over £200 million was spent on cereals alone.

Legal Definition

Scotch Whisky is simply defined as a whisky that is produced in Scotland. It is a drink that is distilled in a distillery located in Scotland. The key raw materials are water and malted barley. It must also be distilled to an alcohol strength of a minimum of 94.8% allowing it to have an aroma and taste from the raw materials used in the process. Scotch Whisky is strictly matured in a maximum of a 700-liter capacity oak casts in Scotland for a minimum of 3 years.

History

For centuries, whisky distillation has been performed throughout Scotland. The Exchequer Rolls from 1494 is where the first written record of Scotch production was found. Ferintosh of Culloden in 1690, is the earliest recorded distillery but it was clear that there were already commercial enterprises running long before then.

In the 18^th century, illegal Scotch production flourished despite the effort to legislate the trade. In 1823, the approval of the Excise Act meant that all small scaled stills were made illegal and were charged taxes by the gallon. Also, for larger scale production, license fees were collected. Eventually, this did the trick and now legitimate distilleries are in operation.

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Types

There are two kinds of Scotch Whisky. It can be either a Grain Whisky or a Malt Whisky. Malt Whiskies are made using the Pot Still process. As raw materials, only malted barley is used. Grain Whisky on the other hand, incorporates the Continuous Still process using malted barley with unmalted barley and other cereals like corn and wheat. It can still further categorized into 5 more types.

Single Malt Scotch Whisky. This type of whisky is distilled in one or more batches in a pot still at a single distillery. They are made from water and malted barley but this time other cereal are not added into the mixture. This is also considered as the gold standard of Scotch.

Single Grain Scotch Whisky. Also is distilled in a single distillery, raw materials also includes malted barley and water. Whole malted and unmalted grains or cereals may also be incorporated. Even without the addition of other cereals or grains, it does not pass as a single malt whisky.

Blended Malt Scotch Whisky. It is a mixture of more than one Single Malt Scotch Whiskies that is distilled in more than one distillery.

Blended Grain Scotch Whisky. It is a mixture of more than one Single Grain Scotch Whiskies that is distilled in more than one distillery.

Blended Scotch Whisky. This type of whisky is a mixture of one or more Single Grain Scotch Whiskies with one or more Single Malt Scotch Whiskies.

Scotch producing regions

Traditionally, Scotland is divided into four parts, The Lowlands, Highlands, Cambeltown and Islay. Speyside, which was once considered as part of Highlands, comprises 50% of the total number of distilleries that is approximately 105 in 2013. Consequently, it was recognized as an official region.

The Lowland has only three distilleries in operation with one, Daftmill, currently pending its first release. Speyside houses the largest number of distilleries, which includes Aberlour and Balbenie. Some of Highland’s distilleries include Aberfeldy and Old Pulteney. Cambeltown used to have 30 operating distilleries but currently has only 3: Glen Scotia, Glengyle, and Springbank. Islay has 8 functional distilleries includingArdbeg and Laphroaig.

Image credit: “Scotch regions” by Drawn by User:Briangotts as Image:Scotch regions.png and converted to SVG by w:User:Interiot. – Erskine, Kevin. 

Labeling

The labeling of a Scotch whisky is composed of several elements, which indicates aspects of its production like age, bottling and ownership.  Scotch Whisky Regulationsregulate some of these elements. In terms of spelling (whisky or whiskey), it is debated by consumers and journalists. The Australian, Scottish and the Canadians use “whisky” while the Irish use “whiskey” instead.

The brand name that is placed on the label is usually the distillery name. Indeed, the Scotch Whisky Regulations prohibit the company from using a distillery name when the whisky was not made there. It is also necessary for Scotch whiskies to be distilled and labeled only in Scotland. Labels must also indicate the region where the whisky is distilled. Other information can be found in The Scotch Whisky Regulations 2009.

The Scotch Whisky Regulations 2009 is a guide that would help the producers on label designs, packaging and advertising inquiries.

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The Process of Making Scotch

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Scotch is a type of whisky that is made in Scotland and uniquely stands out from other types of whisky. There are currently two different kinds of Scotch whisky available:

Malt Whisky
Grain Whisky
adult beverages photo

Malt Whisky

This type of whisky is made using the Pot Still process. The process can occur in four distinct stages;

Malting
Mashing
Fermentation and
Distillation.
Malting
During this stage, the following are the steps followed;

Screen the barley to remove any foreign matter
Soak for either 2 or 3 days in steeps. Steeps are special water tanks.
Spread it out on a malting floor and allow germinating. The process of Germination can take from 8 to 12 days. Turn out the barley regularly at intervals to control temperature and germination rate. The barley secretes the enzyme diastase during germination that makes the starch soluble in preparation for conversion into sugar.
Stop germination by drying the malted barley or green malt in the malt kiln.

Mashing

This stage involves grinding off the dried malt in a mill.
The ground malt produces grist then mixed with hot water.
The soluble starch is then converted into a sugary liquid known as wort. The wort is then removed from the mash tun. The remaining solids are removed for use as cattle food.
Fermentation Process
This process begins with cooling of wort and passage into large vessels of liquid for fermentation by the addition of yeast.
The sugar in the wort is attacked by live yeast and it is converted into crude alcohol.
This whole stage of fermentation takes about 48 hours to produce a liquid known as wash. Wash contains;
Alcohol of low strength
some unfermentable matter and
Certain by-products of fermentation.

Distillation

Distillation of Malt Whisky is done twice in large copper Pot Stills.

The liquid wash is heated to a boiling point for the alcohol to change to vapour.
The vapour rises the still and is passed into the cooling plant. In the cooling plant, it is condensed into a liquid
The purpose of first distillation is the separation of the alcohol from the fermented liquid and elimination of the residue of the yeast together with the unfermentable
The distillate produced is known as low wines. The low wines then pass into another still where it is distilled a second time. In this second distillation first and the last runnings are not collected. In spirit bottles. Only middle runnings are collected.
Pot Still distillation is a batch process.

Grain Whisky

This whisky is made by a process known as the Patent Still process. The process is continuous in operation and differs from the Malt Whisky Pot Still process in four other ways;

The mash in this process consists of a proportion of both malted barley together with cereals that are unmalted.
Unmalted cereals used in this process are cooked under steam pressure for three and a half hours while the mixture of grain and water is being agitated by stirrers located inside the cooker.
The grain starch cells burst and upon transfer of this liquid to the mash tun together with the malted barley, the diastase present converts the starch into sugar.
Unlike Pot Still process, the wort collection is done at specific gravity that is lower.
Distillation occurs in a Patent or Coffey Still and the spirit collection done at a much higher


Maturation

The maturation of both types of whisky occurs after distillation is completed. Casks of oak wood that are permeable are filled with the new spirit. They allow air to pass and evaporation to take place. The process allows removal of harsh constituents and in due course becomes Mellow Whisky. Malt Whisky takes long, up to 15 years, to mature because it contains more flavoury constituents compared to Grain Whisky.

Other factors that affect both Malt and Grain Whisky maturation include;

The size of used casks.
The temperature and humidity of the warehouse
The strength of storage of the spirit.

Blending

The different whiskies are blended together after maturation. The addition of soft water does a reduction of the blend to the required strength. The colour of the whiskies at this stage before blending depends with the casks used in the previous stage.

Packaging

This marks the final stage in the process of production of Scotch whisky before dispatch. Scotch Whiskey for exportation is packaged in glass tanks lined with stainless steel or casks of varying size. The packaging, in this case, depends on the size of the market. Bottling is then done overseas by the agents or distributors.

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