The Styles of Whisky
"Single malt", "blended", "bourbon", "single pot still" — each is a legal category with rules about grain, stills, wood and place. Knowing them tells you a lot before you've pulled the cork.
The five categories of Scotch
| Category | What's in it |
|---|---|
| Single Malt | 100% malted barley, distilled in pot stills at one distillery |
| Single Grain | Made at one distillery, usually in column stills, with other cereals (wheat, maize) as well as malted barley |
| Blended Malt | Single malts from more than one distillery — no grain whisky (once called "vatted" or "pure" malt) |
| Blended Grain | Single grains from more than one distillery |
| Blended Scotch | Malt and grain whiskies married together — most Scotch sold around the world |
"Single" means one distillery, not one cask. A single malt is usually a vatting of many casks from the same place. If a bottle comes from one cask alone it will say single cask.
American whiskey
- Bourbon — at least 51% corn, distilled to no more than 80% ABV, entered into the barrel at no more than 62.5%, aged in new charred oak containers and bottled at 40% or more. It can be made anywhere in the United States, though most comes from Kentucky. "Straight bourbon" has at least two years in wood.
- Rye — the same rules with at least 51% rye; spicier and drier.
- Tennessee whiskey — meets the bourbon rules, is made in Tennessee and (with one exception) is filtered through sugar-maple charcoal before ageing: the Lincoln County Process.
- American single malt — 100% malted barley from one distillery; a fast-growing craft style.
Irish whiskey
Irish whiskey must be distilled and matured on the island of Ireland for at least three years. Triple distillation is common but not required. Its own style is single pot still: a mash of malted and unmalted barley distilled in pot stills, giving a creamy, spicy texture you won't find anywhere else.
Japanese whisky
Japan learned from Scotland and still makes largely Scotch-style malts and blends. Since 2021 an industry standard has defined "Japanese whisky" as fermented, distilled and matured (for at least three years) in Japan and bottled there — closing a loophole that let imported whisky wear a Japanese label.
Canadian whisky
Canadian whisky must be aged at least three years in small wood. Most is a blend of separately distilled grains, and it is often called "rye" whatever the grain bill. Canada allows a small proportion of other spirits or wine to be added for flavour.
Next: the regions of Scotland.