Whisky production: from grain to glass

 

Ever wonder how Scotch whisky is made? You've come to the right place.

With help from Ervin Trykowski, bartender extraordinaire and Scotch whisky guru, we’ve done the hard work for you. Learn all about Scotland's distilleries and the secrets to what makes Scotch...unmistakably Scotch whisky.

Scotch has been made in Scotland pretty much the same way for 500 years.

It starts its life as beer, made with cereals distilled twice in copper stills. It is then matured for a minimum of three years and one day in oak. That last bit may have changed a little, but the rest still stands.

What's the difference? Gone are the days of hiding away stills in Highland glens and gorges and hoping for the best. Today, many techniques have been developed. Ultimately, it is an understanding of what happens at most stages of the process to produce world-class whiskies.  

That's not all. Many distillers are upping their sustainability stakes by committing to achieving Net-Zero emissions by 2040.

But why Scotch?

Why does this tiny country on the edge of Europe with a population of 5.5 million produce more than all other whiskies combined? Well, there is always a touch of good fortune in any success story. Still, alongside this, scotch had some great visionaries from the distilleries all the way to the blenders. From Helen Cummings to the Walkers who had the foresight to export their national treasure to the four corners of the world. 

Malting

Malting is a process that barley is put through. Essentially the cereal is tricked into thinking that it is spring so that it starts to grow. This is done by wetting and then drying the barley. The drying can be done using peat or hot air. The peat gives a distinctive smoky flavour that scotch is famous for having. This barley is used to produce single malt, and a small amount goes into grain whiskies to help kickstart fermentation. It's important stuff.

 

Milling

Milling is the stage where the barley grist is broken down. This is done in a mill (hence the name). Many of these mills have been at distilleries for over 100 years.

Mashing

Mashing is when different water temperatures are added to the grist. This helps get the sugars inside that are needed at the next stage. This happens in the mash tun. At the end of the process you have a sweet liquid, known in Scotland as wort. 

 

Fermentation

This is where the magic happens. You take your wort and add yeast. The yeast then goes to work eating the sugar to make beer. 

Fermentation takes between 47 hours – 150 hours and sometimes even longer, resulting in a hugely affected flavour.  

If fermentation is short (47 hours), a nutty beer is produced. When fermentation is long (75 hours), fruity beer is made. Anything longer will result in the beer turning sour, leaving you with delicious citrus notes and funk. 

Distillation

The distiller has many factors that can all affect the flavour of the final new spirit. The size, height, the shape of the still, and the temperature it's heated to. During distillation, the still is heated. Alcohol vapour rises to the top, hits a cold pipe, and turns it back into liquid. In Scotland, this is done twice, concentrating the beer first into low wines (20%-25% ABV) and then into new-make spirit (70% ABV).   

The most important factor in single malt production is that you are true to your distillery style. This is because great single malt is a product of place.  

Maturation

Scotch must be matured in oak barrels in Scotland for a minimum of three years and one day. However, it is often aged for far longer. The oak barrels are sourced from all over the world. They have often been used before in the American Whiskey, wine, sherry, rum and even tequila industries.  

 

Marrying

Here, single malt whiskies are a union of casks from a single distillery. The number on the bottle reflects the youngest whisky in the partnership. For example, a 12-year-old whisky has been in a barrel for at least 12 years and not a day less.

 

Blending

Blenders are wizards. Not only are they responsible for all the single malts mentioned above, but they also produce EVERY bottle of Johnnie Walker. They also produce other amazing blended Scotch whiskies.  

Blends are a combination of single malt and single grain whiskies blended from the four corners of Scotland. They can often have up to forty or more distilleries included in the blend. These are blended by a team of 12 blenders. They are responsible for ensuring that every bottle of Johnnie Walker or Talisker is the same. This is no mean feat, because every single cask of whisky is entirely different.  It’s like painting the same picture with an ever-changing colour palate. 

Bottling

Single malt whisky must be bottled in Scotland. Blends can be bottled in other countries as they often are.