
Single MaltScotch Whisky
Malt whisky is the ‘original’ whisky of Scotland. Although other grains were used, barley was grown specifically for making beer and whisky. However, with the success of blended whisky in the late 19th century, little was drunk as single malt outside the Highlands until the 1980s, when ‘the vintages of the North’ were rediscovered by an enthusiastic public and began to be made available by distillery owners.
Single malt whisky must be made with 100% barley
Currently there are around 90 operating malt whisky distilleries in Scotland – it is difficult to be precise, since sometimes distilleries go out of production for periods, in order to balance stock levels. Single malts from a further 30-odd now closed distilleries may still be found.
Although made from very simple materials – malted barley, water and yeast – the make of each distillery has an individual character, owing to a variety of factors, such as the length of fermentation time, the style and size of the stills, and how they are operated, the type of condensers used and amount of spirit saved (called ‘the cut’).
By law, Scotch (both malt and grain whiskies) must be matured in oak casks in Scotland, and the casks themselves can make a huge contribution to the flavour of the finished product, according to a) how long the whisky has been left to mature, b) how often the individual cask has been used to mature Scotch and c) whether the cask is made from European oak or American oak. This makes it difficult to identify the mature products of individual distilleries.
Since at least the 1880s, blenders have identified different styles of whisky coming from different parts of Scotland. The original division, dating from the 1780s, was between ‘Lowland’ whisky and ‘Highland’ whisky. Then the whiskies made in Campbeltown and Islay were discerned to be different, and the whiskies of Speyside were added to the list.
With the dramatic growth of interest in single malt whiskies since the 1980s, the ‘Highland’ region has been sub-divided into Northern, Western, Eastern, Southern and Islands.
In truth, regional differences in the style and flavour of malt whiskies has more to do with tradition (how a malt is made in one place or another) than terroir, and although it is not possible to make a malt with identical character to another in a different distillery, it is possible to imitate a regional style out-with the region in question.
Did you know?
- more than one billion bottles of Scotch are exported every year, with France the biggest market
- the first reference to Scotch whisky was in 1495
- the first single malt to be marketed outside Scotland was by Glenfiddich in 1963
Typical Character and Style of Single Malt
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Malt
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Vanilla
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Oak
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Nutmeg
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Dried Fruit
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Smoke
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Lagavulin 200812 Year Old Special Releases 2021
£128
(£182.86 per litre)
Bunnahabhain 12 Year Old Cask Strength2021 Release
£84.95
(£121.36 per litre)
Bowmore Vault Edition First Release 'Atlantic Sea Salt'
£89.95
(£128.50 per litre)
Lagavulin 1999 Distillers EditionBot.2015
£299
(£427.14 per litre)
Port Askaig 16 Year OldBot.2015
£135
(£192.86 per litre)
Ardbeg DrumArdbeg Day 2019
£225
(£321.43 per litre)
Lagavulin 12 Year OldSpecial Releases 2017 17th Release
£225
(£321.43 per litre)
Lagavulin 1995 Distillers EditionBot.2011
£399
(£570 per litre)
Lagavulin 1991 Distillers EditionBot.2007
£550
(£785.71 per litre)
Bunnahabhain 2002Madeira Cask Feis Ile 2020
£350
(£500 per litre)
Laphroaig 10 Year OldCask Strength Batch 012 Bot.2020
£125
(£178.57 per litre)
Laphroaig 199820 Year Old Peaty Artist #9 SIG for LMDW
£850
(£1,214.29 per litre)
Laphroaig 199821 Year Old The Whisky Exchange
£1,250
(£1,785.71 per litre)
Lp8 - Elements of IslayMadeira Cask
£299
(£598 per litre)
Bruichladdich 200213 Year Old TWE Exclusive
£299
(£427.14 per litre)
Oc3 - Elements of Islay
£150
(£300 per litre)
Caol Ila 200015 Year Old Unpeated Special Releases 2016
£150
(£214.29 per litre)
Bunnahabhain 16 Year Old for Salt Bar
£125
(£178.57 per litre)
Ardbeg KildaltonBot.2014
£425
(£607.14 per litre)
Lagavulin 16 Year OldBot.1980s
£600
(£800 per litre)
Br5 - Elements of Islay
£99.95
(£199.90 per litre)
Octomore 5 Year OldEdition 4.2 Comus
£750
(£1,071.43 per litre)
Ardbeg SupernovaBot.2010
£600
(£857.14 per litre)
Bruichladdich 198423 Year Old Golder Still
£1,100
(£1,571.43 per litre)