Whisky Castle Gifts
HOW MALT WHISKY IS MADE - CLICK HERE!
Malt Whiskies by their nature reflect the very best that Scotland has to offer. The simple marriage of malted barleycorn, mountain spring water, peat smokings, yeast, and above all, many long years spent in an oak cask, becomes a creation that is elegant, distinctive and equals the complexity of taste and enjoyment to be found in the finest of wines.
There are six main areas in Scotland producing Malt Whisky. Speyside (has over 50% of distilleries), Highland: Island: Lowland: Campletown: Islay : Click on the map to discover Them.
Malt Whisky is truly the life blood of Scotland, historically, socially and economically. This has been proven over several centuries. (Historically whisky maybe also termed "the life Blood of Westminster" through three centuries and a plethora of Chancellor of the Exchequer's, each with an insatiable appetite for excise duty upon it). Up to 70% of a bottle can be tax!
When You drink Malt Whisky you are for 70% of the flavor drinking the cumulative essence of sun, weather and geology of the oak trees that made up the cask as they once stood green, taking in sun through leaves, minerals and life force through soil. Only approximately 30% of a dram's taste can be attributed to the distiller's art. The rest is down to the choice of wood, what other wines or spirit have been in it previous and how patient the owner is until he or she bottles it! The relationship between wood and spirit is the essential metaphysic that makes every cask in the warehouse an individual, both in taste and character. To taste Malt Whisky cask by single cask and not as a mixture (marriage or vatting) of casks is a daily delight in the adventure to find the perfect dram, for those devoted to pursuit of the finest Malt.
Modern day demands for harmonization have changed the expectations for single malt whisky to be a commercial, more world-wide product - one which can be guaranteed to taste the same, batch after batch. This is accomplished by "Master Noses", people who are talented enough with 100 casks or so, to be able to match the blend of malt casks with the "Brand" taste, time and time again. This whisky is then taken from cask strength of between 50% to 60% down to 40% or 43% alc/vol with purified water.
In the search for clarity should water or ice be added, the whisky is then cooled down to between +3 degrees centigrade and -3 degrees centigrade and filtered through a 3 micron wad of filter papers to extract oils that would go solid in the solution at these lower levels of alcohol. This process also extracts both short and long tails esters from the dram. Aiding further harmonization of color, often Distiller's Caramel is added. Although essential in marketing terms, this can change the taste smell and finish of a whisky. For the most part these styles of Malt Whisky are distributed as brand names and expressions by the major distilling companies throughout the World.
There are alternatives where the finest of Malt Whisky can be savored in a more natural form. This is achieved by "Independent Bottlers" in the main. Individuals or small companies who purchase casks from the distilleries, which either do not fit into their remit, or are casks in surplus to distillery requirement. These whiskies are bottled differently, either kept at cask strength or taken to 46% alc/vol - But not below! At this level there is sufficient alcohol to suspend the oils in the solution without them going solid and milky if water or ice is added. Independent bottlers are purists and will not color their single malt whiskies either. Malt whisky is at best when it is a natural product, not unlike food! - The fresher and less processed it is - the better!
At Whisky Castle it is these Independent Bottlings that we specialise in and although we keep nearly every bottling of single malt from the distilleries, the Independent bottlings , including some casks that we bottle ourselves, are the bottles that give us most pleasure to sell you. We know that they are the best that we can find and truly deserve the title of 'Water of Life'!
Remember with that with "Water of Life' in mind , the great excitement for us mere mortals is the journey along the 'Maltster's Highway' as we graduate along the 'Whisky Trail' searching out that "Perfect Dram".
However, whatever your pocket, whether chill filtered, blended, caramelized or not - There is no such thing as a bad whisky! Just some more memorable than others.
Slainte' Mhaith
Mike Drury. Whisky Castle Ltd.
