Whiskey & Malt

[spirosja]

Could someone please explain to me what is the difference between scotch whiskey and malt?

[El D]

scotch whiskey is made from different distilleries batches, its a blend. a single malt is exclusively from one distillery and normally has a much more distinctive taste.

[Famous5]

Scotch whisky doesn't have a letter e, Irish whiskey does. Scotch single malt is what it says, made from one sort of malt (roasted barley - there are different sorts of barley just like there are different sorts of, say, potatoes or tomatoes) rather than one distillery. Blended Scotch again is made from a mix of different sorts of malt. Scotch is distilled twice, Irish three times

[Pinotage]

Scotch Whisky (no 'e') is usually made of a blend of whiskys made from both malt and grain. The grain whisky is pretty tasteless but inexpensive, the flavour comes from malt which is more expensive.

Scotch malt whisky is made from just malt. It has more flavour, as it is not diluted with grain whisky, and is more expensive.

Until recently malt whisky was usually single malt, i.e. made at one distillery, but in recent years some brands  have been blending malts from different distilleries.

Whisky lovers agree that a single malt is best as it gives the expression of the area where it was made. There are tremendous flavour differences in malts and anyone who has drunk a range of malts soon finds they can identify malts from different regions. 

The issue of blending malts blew up recently when the owners of the popular Cardhu Distillery changed it from  being a single malt and started blending in malts from other distilleries. The Scotch Whisky Association has just now ruled that when a distillery name is used, the contents must come solely from that distllery. It has also outlawed terms such as "vatted malt", "vintage malt" and "pure malt" that were used when it was a blended malt and ruled the phrase "blended malt" must be used in those circumstances.

Next time you're in a bar, ask for a single malt and try as many different ones that you can. You'll find some you love, and some you loathe.

But if you want to add coke or other mixer, order a an ordinary Scotch whisky; its not worth paying extra.

My favourite Malt? The Inchgower, which is one of the three malts that go into the standard Bells Whisky. Bells is my favourite blend, and I found out which malts went into it, trie dthem all and found The Inchgower had the quintissential  Bells flavour

[El D]

Personally it was the glenfiddich single malt which got me started. Very mellow and a good one for beginners i reckon.

[Pinotage]

I agree with El D that Glenfiddich is a good one to start with (light bodied, hint of peat, hint sweetness) , and widely available. The Glenlivet is rightly very popular and approachable,   Glenmorangie is another; most bars with have one or more of these.

I do recommend trying several different malts by the glass before you invest in buying a bottle. The taste of malt whisky varies considerably. I love Laphroig, but it is - as they say - an acquired taste, peat,smoke and iodine.

Enjoy