A Guide to Styles of Whisky

 

Whisky has been dominating the alcohol beverage market industry with rise in disposable incomes and changes in the overall consumer base in the world. While there are other significant contributors to the vast market, let us get to know about the most popular whisky styles across borders that make it so special and worthwhile. A wide market of whisky has ensured that there’s one style or brand for everyone out there. All over the globe, there are various whiskies that go through distinct procedures resulting in varied flavours and characteristics. Some of the most popular whisky styles include Bourbon, Scotch, Irish and Japanese.

‘Single Malt’, which is a specific type of production that uses the blends and malted grain (particularly barley) of only one distillery. Single malts are extremely popular, priced and are produced in multiple countries including Ireland, Canada, US, India, Scotland etc. Not only that, their exquisite flavour and high-end pricing pushes people to save it for special occasions and consume it as neat. Scotch, being one of the most popular styles, has been present since the 15th century. It is made not only by malted barley but also through wheat and corn. Its specialties vary and present themselves in its characteristics that make it one of the most prized single malt scotch whisky while having a diverse category of blended malts, blended whisky and single-grain whisky. The classic dram is usually sipped neat and sometimes a little diluted.

An invention of Scotland, ‘Blended Whisky’ is also one of the most known styles of whiskies. It is a result of blending two or more different styles of single malt and grain whiskies to provide a unique experience. When we talk about blended scotch, Some of the most special blended scotch whiskies are Johnnie Walker, Chivas Regal and Douglas Laing among many others. On the other hand, a staple of America, Bourbon Whiskey, made from at least 51% corn, is distilled, aged in charred oak barrels and requires no minimum aging period for its production. It is a product of settlers who made efforts to produce it and be the first ones to store it in charred oak casks, giving the dram a legendary brownish colour with a flavourful taste. Another kind of Bourbon is the Tennessee whiskey ; to produce whiskey in Tennessee, the state law requires and makes sure to use the step prior to aging the whiskey — Lincoln County Process.

Another American whiskey, corn whiskey is made principally from corn with a mash of at least 80% corn. The procedure applied here is the traditional mash process which in addition, does not require aging. It is a symbol of representing authentic ways of producing whiskey, when earlier, farmers used the cheapest raw material to make whiskey. It is enjoyed mostly with mixers, cola, water, as neat, or on the rocks to achieve a more palatable experience and at last as the base for the iconic cocktails – Manhattan and Old Fashioned.

Rye whiskey, an initial product of the Americans, is made with a mash of at least 51% rye that needs to be aged for a minimum of two years. It is also notably one of the most classic bases for cocktails, with a spicy touch to it.

Even though Irish whiskey and its momentum grew later on, it took birth in the 1400s when Irish monks had moved from southern Europe and started whisky-making there. On a yearly basis, the whisky is making headlines with its sales as it grows to be known for its classic and typical quality, light flavour and notes of cereal. This traditional whiskey is fancied either neat or with water or ice.  On the other hand, Japanese whisky, being relatively new, has been on a streak of producing premium, high-quality whiskies. Its history starts in the 1920s when the founders Shinjiro Torii and Masataka Taketsuru gave birth to Japan’s first whisky distillery. Coming from an exquisite location, Japanese whisky is also known to have a very flavourful, smooth character with floral notes. It resonates with all the latest, high-end whiskies and is widely produced in various styles – blended, single malt and even blended malt whiskies.

Today, flavoured whiskies have proven to be a phenomenal base liquor. Day by day, infused and distilled spirits are gaining momentum, venturing into tricky ingredients that are now becoming a part of whiskies and giving rise to an endless number of possibilities for the whisky makers to indulge in. Another important aspect of a whisky that determines the flavour is the kind of cask used that are wooden vessels that are used to store and age the whisky that further depends on the quality of the wood, shape, size, ageing period and how it was treated and seasoned.

Each cask has a different flavour profile and contributes to the whisky’s character, for instance – European oaks are used to give a spicy character to the whisky. The complexity of flavours depends on the kind of casks that range from bourbon whiskey cask, sherry cask, port whiskey, rum whiskey, wine whiskey etc with various sizes that need to be chosen wisely like barrels, hogshead, madeira drum, port pipe and others. Determining and choosing the casks and sizes is essential for whisky styles and for looking at an outlook for each one of them as to what suits and goes well.

 

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