Types of Whiskey

Whiskey actually means 'Water of Life' according to the Gaelic word usquebaugh, which was phonetically shortened to usky, until the English finally called it whisky. Its origin is somewhat disputed, that should not be surprising, considering the fact that everyone wants to be part of this popular alcoholic beverage's history.

Distillation was an old process used in Asia to distill perfumes. The Chinese have been distilling liquor from rice since ages. The Irish missionaries carried the distillation technique to Ireland and other parts of the world from the Mediterranean, for medicinal purposes. It was in Britain that barley was first used to make whiskey. And like they say, the rest is history...

How is Whiskey Made?

Traditionally, the whiskey making process involves malting, mashing, fermentation, distillation and maturation. The process and its fermented grain ingredient is what makes each whiskey different from each other. Grain is germinated, this process is called malting. Malting is done to convert soluble sugars from starch in the grain into alcohol. Peat is used to stop and dry the germinated grain, the peat smoke can influence the flavor of the final product. The grain is then milled. Hot clean water is added to dissolve the sugars in the malt, the process is carried out a couple of times with more heated water. This liquid is called 'wort', and collected for further processing. The cooled wort is poured in large tanks and yeast is added to start the fermentation process. The yeast turns the sugars that are present into alcohol and in a couple of days, you're close to having a beer at hand. Distillation process and the number of times the liquid is distilled mainly depends upon the distiller, and even the country of whiskey origin. Once the distillation is over, the spirit is put into oak casks and stored for maturation. The oak cask is what adds a 'typical character' to the whiskey's flavor (spirit). As wood is porous, it adds the 'environmental characteristics' to the spirit's flavor. Each year about 2% of the spirit is lost through natural evaporation, so older the whiskey, lesser the spirit and more the expense.

Various Types of Whiskey

Whiskey is made from water, yeast and fermented grain and aged in wood. And it is the quality of these three ingredients along with the treatment it has received that gives each whiskey its own distinct taste and flavor. Following are the various types of this drink available.

Popular Whiskey
Malt Whiskey: This whiskey is made completely of malted barley and distilled in an onion-shaped pot still.
Grain Whiskey: Made from a mix of malted and un-malted barley along with other grains, usually in a column still.
Single Malt Whiskey: This whiskey is made from a single distillery, and could be or could not be a blend of whiskeys from different casks, but all are made from the same distillery.
Vatted Malt Whiskey: Made from blends of malt whiskeys from different distilleries.
Pure Pot Still Whiskey: Exclusive to Ireland, this spirit is distilled in a pot still from a mash of both; malted and un-malted barley.
Blended Whiskeys: This whiskey is made from a blend of malt and grain whiskeys.
Cask Strength Whiskeys: Rare, expensive and the very best, cask whiskeys are usually bottled from the cask undiluted directly.

American Whiskey
American whiskeys usually combine straight whiskey with new (un-aged) whiskey, grain neutral spirits, flavorings and colorings. They are made from mash which consist of the grain.

Rye Whiskey: This beverage is made from a mixture of hot water and crushed grain, minimum 51% rye.
Bourbon Whiskey: This whiskey is made of mash that consist of at least 51% corn. Even Corn whiskeys are made with a similar consistency.
Straight Whiskey: This whiskey is made up of any grain (at least 51%) and aged in charred new oak containers for two or more years.
Tennessee Whiskey: This whiskey is filtered through a thick layer of maple charcoal before it is put into casks for aging.

Scotch Whiskey
Unless whiskey is not made in Scotland, they cannot be labeled as 'Scotch'. Some of the best scotch whiskeys' are quite a favorite world over.

Single Malt Whiskey: Made from 100% malted barley whiskey from one distillery.
Single Grain Whiskey: Distilled at a single distillery from water and malted barley, and may or may not contain grains of other cereals.
Blended Grain Whiskey: This whiskey is made by mixing grain whiskeys from more than one distillery.
Blended Scotch Whiskey : A mix of single malt whiskey and grain whiskey which has been distilled at more than one distillery is known as blended scotch whiskey.

Other Types

Besides the grains used that give each whiskey its distinct flavor, each country too offers different types of this drink for those who like a range in their toast. These whiskeys differ from each other in the grains, cask and distillation process and the number of times it has been distilled. Climatic conditions too have an impact on the taste of the whiskey.

German Whiskey
Irish Whiskey
Japanese Whiskey
Indian Whiskey
Finnish Whiskey
Canadian Whiskey

The age of whiskey should only be counted until it stays in the wooden cask, and not its bottling age. So what we have here is a vast number of whiskey for one to indulge in, with each type bringing with it a flavor unique to place and time.