In the first article, we learned a little about the history of one of
the world's most famous drinks. If you missed the article and would like
to read it, click here. In this article, we will learn about how scotch is made.
First off, what is scotch? Scotch is a type of whisky. Merriam Webster tells us that whisky is defined as, "a liquor distilled from fermented wort (as that obtained from rye, corn, or barley mash)." By the way, you may notice that some people refer to scotch and other items as whisky, while others are referred to as whiskeys. The spelling variation between whisky and whiskey is based on where it was distilled. If it is distilled in Ireland or the United States, it's spelled whiskey. If it's distilled in Scotland, Wales, Canada, Japan and most other countries, it's spelled whisky. So, that tells us that scotch is basically just whiskey distilled in Scotland. While that is absolutely true, there's so much more to it. Now, onto how it's made.
Scotch whisky is mainly made up from essentially two components, barley and water. Scotland is a great place to grow barley because of its cool rainy summers. Most distilleries buy barley from farmers instead of growing their own. As weird as it sounds, all they care about is good barley with a high sugar content. That will come into play later.
Water, on the other hand, is much more important. Most distillers only use water from whatever region they distill in. Water may be the most important ingredient when it comes to the taste of scotch. Different areas have different soil content, plant life, and animal life that produce vast differences in how the water tastes. This allows a greater variety of scotch for our tasting pleasure.
Scotch, like most whiskey has a very specific process that it undergoes to become the drink we love. Interestingly, like with most classic alcoholic beverages, technology has barely changed how it's done.
It begins when barley grains spread evenly throughout the floor of a specific place in the distillery, sometimes called a malting house. They are then steeped in hot water until they sprout. This process, also known as mashing, takes place anywhere from one to three weeks. The barley is turned and stirred around, so overheating doesn't occur.
After the germination process is complete, the barley goes into a large kiln for drying. This stops the germination of the barley. Peat is sometimes added to the fire, which will give the finished scotch a smoky taste.
The barley is then ground into a course flour and put into a mash tun. Water is then added, and stirred in. This converts the starches in the barley into sugar. The sugary mixture is called wort.
The wort is cooled, and then pumped into another container where yeast is added. Yeast eats the sugar and produces alcohol as well as some other things that help with the taste. This process takes around two days and the end product is a very rough alcoholic "wash" with an alcoholic content of around six to eight percent.
Next, the wash is pumped into a still. Basically, a still brings the wash to a temperature just below water's boiling point. The alcohol and other things in the wash are evaporated and go into a long pipe with cool water running on the outside of it. This cools the evaporated wash back into liquid form. For most scotch, this is done twice. The second time, they use a smaller still, and the beginning and end of the mixture is cut out, because if they didn't, it would turn the finished product sour.
Once distilled, the wash is transferred into casks for maturation. The type of barrel used, as well as what it may have been used with before, add flavor and complexity to the drink. Scotch is rarely matured in new barrels. In fact, most of the time, they buy barrels from other whiskey distilleries, or wine barrels of some sort.
For the whisky to be truly considered scotch, it must mature for at least 3 years in Scotland. Most scotch is matured for at least 5-8 years. Single malts are usually done around 12, although, scotch can be matured for as much as 25 to 50 years before being sold. By the way, once bottled, scotch will not age any further. So, if you get a bottle, drink it!
The next article will talk about the different kinds of scotch.
First off, what is scotch? Scotch is a type of whisky. Merriam Webster tells us that whisky is defined as, "a liquor distilled from fermented wort (as that obtained from rye, corn, or barley mash)." By the way, you may notice that some people refer to scotch and other items as whisky, while others are referred to as whiskeys. The spelling variation between whisky and whiskey is based on where it was distilled. If it is distilled in Ireland or the United States, it's spelled whiskey. If it's distilled in Scotland, Wales, Canada, Japan and most other countries, it's spelled whisky. So, that tells us that scotch is basically just whiskey distilled in Scotland. While that is absolutely true, there's so much more to it. Now, onto how it's made.
 |
| Scotch Stills at Glenfiddich |
Scotch whisky is mainly made up from essentially two components, barley and water. Scotland is a great place to grow barley because of its cool rainy summers. Most distilleries buy barley from farmers instead of growing their own. As weird as it sounds, all they care about is good barley with a high sugar content. That will come into play later.
Water, on the other hand, is much more important. Most distillers only use water from whatever region they distill in. Water may be the most important ingredient when it comes to the taste of scotch. Different areas have different soil content, plant life, and animal life that produce vast differences in how the water tastes. This allows a greater variety of scotch for our tasting pleasure.
Scotch, like most whiskey has a very specific process that it undergoes to become the drink we love. Interestingly, like with most classic alcoholic beverages, technology has barely changed how it's done.
It begins when barley grains spread evenly throughout the floor of a specific place in the distillery, sometimes called a malting house. They are then steeped in hot water until they sprout. This process, also known as mashing, takes place anywhere from one to three weeks. The barley is turned and stirred around, so overheating doesn't occur.
After the germination process is complete, the barley goes into a large kiln for drying. This stops the germination of the barley. Peat is sometimes added to the fire, which will give the finished scotch a smoky taste.
The barley is then ground into a course flour and put into a mash tun. Water is then added, and stirred in. This converts the starches in the barley into sugar. The sugary mixture is called wort.
The wort is cooled, and then pumped into another container where yeast is added. Yeast eats the sugar and produces alcohol as well as some other things that help with the taste. This process takes around two days and the end product is a very rough alcoholic "wash" with an alcoholic content of around six to eight percent.
Next, the wash is pumped into a still. Basically, a still brings the wash to a temperature just below water's boiling point. The alcohol and other things in the wash are evaporated and go into a long pipe with cool water running on the outside of it. This cools the evaporated wash back into liquid form. For most scotch, this is done twice. The second time, they use a smaller still, and the beginning and end of the mixture is cut out, because if they didn't, it would turn the finished product sour.
Once distilled, the wash is transferred into casks for maturation. The type of barrel used, as well as what it may have been used with before, add flavor and complexity to the drink. Scotch is rarely matured in new barrels. In fact, most of the time, they buy barrels from other whiskey distilleries, or wine barrels of some sort.
For the whisky to be truly considered scotch, it must mature for at least 3 years in Scotland. Most scotch is matured for at least 5-8 years. Single malts are usually done around 12, although, scotch can be matured for as much as 25 to 50 years before being sold. By the way, once bottled, scotch will not age any further. So, if you get a bottle, drink it!
The next article will talk about the different kinds of scotch.