It’s not uncommon to see a bowl of salted peanuts on the bar of any fine cocktail establishment. The...
Whisky's, Whiskey's and Bourbons.
There are many different whiskeys that you can purchase, but in general there are 4 main categories of whiskey: Scottish, Irish, American, and Canadian.
Scottish whiskeys are made from a process that uses peat in the malting of the barley. Malting is the process of drying the barley and then soaking it to make it sprout before drying the barley again. Since peat is used during this process, Scottish whiskey comes out with a mossy or peaty flavor that can be very strong at times. Scottish whiskeys may be single malt or blended; single malt simply means that the whiskey comes from a single distillery where as a blended Scottish whiskey is made from several distilleries.
Irish whiskey, like Scottish whiskey, is primarily made from barley. However, when the malting process takes place, no peat is used which takes away the earthy, mossy flavor that is found in the Scottish whiskey and produces a smoother tasting whiskey. Also, like Scottish whiskey, Irish whiskey can be single malted or blended, made at one distillery or blended from several.
American whiskeys can also be made of barley, but the majority of American whiskeys are made from other ingredients. The American whiskey, Bourbon, is mainly derived from corn, which gives it a sweeter taste than other whiskeys. The American whiskey known as Tennessee whiskey is actually bourbon that has been filtered through maple charcoal before it is put into casks, giving it a distinctive smokey flavor that differs from regular Bourbon. American Rye Whiskey uses the rye grain as its main ingredient, which gives it a fruity and sometimes spicy flavor.
Like American Bourbon, Canadian whiskeys usually feature corn as the main ingredient and like whiskeys from all other countries, Canadian whiskeys may be casked differently to alter the final product. Oak barrels are usually used in all countries, but the barrels may be new, used, or even charred to give the final product distinct flavours.
The name for Whiskey is said to mean "the water of life", so maybe experiment with different whiskeys at your next cocktail party.
Pardon the interruption
Did you know that you can become a member for free, taking your cocktail making skills up to level 11. You can save your My Bar ingredients, make tasting notes, have personalised Tried and Want to try lists and more.
More to explore
When it comes to cocktail making, some ingredients work harder than others. It's rareto find a cockt...
As much as we love a cocktail bar that has been tried and tested – proving itself as the place to be...
Bartender's top tip
Related posts
The Travelling Cocktail Drinker: The Best Bars in Singapore
In a country that is constantly evolving and developing, it is no surprise that Singapore is home to some of theworld’s best bars. The southern Asian state has an incredibly diverse,multicultural soci... read more
The Travelling Cocktail Drinker: The Best Bars in Auckland
The list of restrictions due to the global pandemic keeps getting shorter and we can now visit certain countries on holiday. New Zealand has always been at the forefront of fighting Covid-19, with the... read more
The Travelling Cocktail Drinker: The Best Bars in Lucerne
It’s February, the month of love, so it is only right that The Travelling CocktailDrinker visits one of the most romantic destinations in the world. Paris andVenice were too obvious, so, this month, t... read more
Subscribe to our Newsletter
Get tips straight into your inbox.
Upgrade your mixology
Become a member for free taking your cocktail making skills up to level 11.
- Save your bar forever
- Access to our Cocktail Creator, allowing you to create your own wonderful concoctions.
- Save cocktails to personalised 'Tried' and 'Want to try' lists
- Create and record tasting notes on cocktails
- Create lists of cocktails to share with friends and family
- A pesonalised MyBar URL, allowing you to share everything you can make with friends
- And much more ... (what to buy next, measurement choices, search personalisation...)
Olympic Cocktails and More
Discover a host of cocktails inspired by the Paris 2024 Olympics, meet the bartenders behind the cocktails and win yourself some juicy Amazon vouchers.
Our Olympic Cocktail Hub