Learn To Love Scotch...

Learn To Love Scotch
Written By: James Blackmore
Published with permission from Ploomy (www.ploomy.com)

Single malt scotch is without question the manliest alcoholic beverage of them all. While once a linchpin of every man’s collection, occupying prime real estate in liquor cabinets across America, the popularity of scotch declined during the ‘80s and ‘90s as men got in touch with their sensitive sides. Thankfully, those days are over; men are rediscovering their manly sides and the popularity of scotch is on the rise once again. Considering the innate manliness of scotch, please read the following primer carefully. Not only will it help you achieve your full man potential, but it will also keep you from looking like an idiot when all your buddies go through their inevitable “scotch phase.”

The Basics: What is Scotch, Exactly?
In its most basic form, scotch is whisky that is made in Scotland. However, this tells only about 1% of the story. When most knowledgeable people speak of scotch, they typically are speaking about a specific kind of scotch known as single malt. Single malt scotches have to adhere to special rules in order to be able to call themselves that. And these rules aren’t just some flimsy industry guidelines or best practices – these rules are actual laws that were brought into being by legislative acts of British Parliament, i.e. the Scotch Whisky Act of 1988.

To name but a few:
• Single malt scotch must be made from only water and malted barley. It may not include any other grains, outside of yeast for the purpose of fermenting.
• The mash must be processed in Scotland, distilled in Scotland and matured in a warehouse in Scotland.
• Single Malt Scotch must be matured in oak casks, which cannot exceed 700 litres of capacity, for at least 3 years.
• The maturation process must ensure that scotch retains the color, aroma and taste derived from the raw materials.
• Scotch whisky must be bottled at a minimum strength of 40% alcohol by volume.

Also common is “blended” scotch whisky, which is typically a combination of single malt and grain whiskey from different distilleries. While often looked down upon by snobby single malt drinkers, many blended whiskeys are very good, and blended whiskey has also done a lot to generate revenue for the single malt industry. As much as 90% of single malts produced are used for the more accessible blended scotch market, rather than bottled as pure single malt.

How to Drink and Enjoy Single Malt Scotch
There are some definite do’s and don’ts when it comes to tasting single malt. Not wanting to risk leading you astray, we took the bull by the horns and interviewed scotch expert Kevin Erskine. Kevin is the author of The Instant Expert’s Guide to Single Malt Scotch and the man behind the popular whisky industry blog The Scotch Blog (thescotchblog.com).

We asked Erskine to share his whiskey wisdom in an effort to help us beginners get the most from our $60 bottle of 15-year-old Glenfiddich (for those you who read this word as glen-fid-ich, you are wrong. The correct pronunciation is glen-fid-ick). Erskine’s attitude is that it’s your scotch and you’re free to drink it however you like. However, if you are interested in developing your whiskey palate and gaining a true appreciation for the Uisge Beatha (pronounced Ooshki Baah, which means water of life in Gaelic) there are some key guidelines to follow.

First and foremost, Erskine preaches that the first step to “tasting” single malt scotch is to drink it from the right glass. “Drink it out of something that has a wide a base as possible and as narrow a tip as possible,” Erskine says. “Ideally, a whiskey glass, like a glencairn, or if you don’t have that, a brandy snifter, a sherry copita or even a champagne flute will do.” The reason for that is because a narrow tip helps catch the aroma that rises from the whiskey, and the aroma is a big part of the tasting process, which leads us to his second tip: follow your nose.

“Take a good whiff of it first,” Erskine says. “We can sense hundreds of different smells, but only five tastes. As strange as it may sound, a whisky is tasted primarily with the nose. The aroma indicates the character and strength, and even an untrained nose should be able to identify some very specific scents.”
“Don’t immediately put a mixer in it,” either, he adds. “That’s not a good way to develop your palette. Try it straight.” The only thing he suggests you add is plain old water. Just a few drops can “open it up” and heighten the taste.

Also, despite the classic image of a scotch on the rocks, Erskine also warns against using ice, as it “numbs your senses – not a good way to develop your palate.”

When you actually work up the nerve to taste your whiskey, “take enough to swish around and coat the tongue,” Erskine says. Take care to note the texture of the whisky and identify one of its four primary tastes – sweet, sour, salty or bitter. Then see if you detect any other flavors, such as honey, wood, chocolate, vanilla, nuts, etc.

While all these rules and guidelines may seem overbearing at first, Erskine urges that you don’t let yourself get stressed about it. “If you are trying to develop your palate, have it one way, but if you’re having cocktails with friends, have it how you want.”

Whiskey Terminology Beginners Should Know to Avoid Looking Like an Idiot
Dram – a non-specific amount of Scotch that you pour as a single serving. It could be a shot, it could be two shots, it’s whatever you feel like pouring into your glass.
Cask – for scotch purposes, a cask is a big oak barrel that’s used to mature the whiskey. Some experts say that the oak provides 60-70% of its character and taste.
Peat – Peat is basically earth – decaying vegetation matter. Peat fires are used to dry malted barley for use in Scotch whisky distillation. This gives Scotch whisky its distinctive smoky flavour, often called “peatiness” by aficionados.
Malt – Barley that has been soaked in water, allowed to begin to germinate, and then dried. This promotes the conversion of starches to fermentable sugars.
Alcohol By Volume (ABV) – This one is pretty basic; it’s the amount of alcohol in an alcoholic beverage represented as a percentage of the overall volume. Scotch whiskey typically comes in 40%, 43% and 46% ABV.
Proof - is an old fashioned British way of measuring alcohol in a drink. It is twice the ABV, i.e. 40% ABV = 80 Proof.