There have been plenty of misunderstandings over the concept of Scotch, Whiskey and Bourbon. People may confuse these drinks of being the same with different names. However, it is not the truth and each drink has its own story and way of preparation. To explain it in simple words, the booze is distilled from the fermented mash grain. Among the exceptions could be the whiskey made out of corn which may not be aged. The varieties of whiskey should be distilled at up to 40% with up to 94.8% alcohol volume. The key difference between different whiskeys would rely mostly upon the kind of grain useful for mash.
Whiskey comes from the fermented grain and it’s no different with scotch. In order to be called as scotch, this spirit requires to be prepared out of malted Barley. The scotches must not use anything apart from yeast, water and barley. You may also go ahead and include the whole grains of another cereals and caramel coloring. There is zero fermentation addictives and short cuts allowed. This spirit should be aged into the oak casks for up to three years. It should have the ABV below 94.8%. Ultimately, you shouldn’t call the drink scotch if it isn’t 100% from Scotland.
The Bourbon is another whiskey type prepared out of grain mixture. It comprises of up to 51% corn and the fermentation procedure begins by mixing up mash. It is usually out of an older fermenting batch through a procedure termed as the sour mash. In the similar lines as Scotch prepared in Scotland, the bourbon may be labeled if it is prepared in United States. The rules tend to be loose in case of Bourbon compared to scotch, it should confirm to certain requirements.
Spirit should be distilled with hardly below 80% of alcohol. It shouldn’t exceed 62.5% while put into the casks to age in fresh half-burned oak barrels. The Bourbon doesn’t come minimum aging time but the same item to be termed as Bourbon should be a minimum of two years old. Blended bourbon is allowed to contain flavoring, coloring and more spirits. A limited of 51% of mix is simply straight bourbon. Total age printed on blended bourbon’s bottle should be similar in age as youngest whiskey within the mix.
Tennessee is another variety of bourbon prepared in the Tennessee state. People involved in the production of the spirit like the Jack Daniels aren’t in favor of the whiskey to be branded as Bourbon. They claim it’s the only whiskey putting the spirit via a charcoal purifying procedure.
The Irish whiskey ages in Ireland or basically Northern Ireland. Like whiskey, it requires to be distilled with ABV of below 94.8%. It should be prepared from the yeast fermented mash grain. It should be done in a way which distillate comes with a flavor and aroma derived from materials used. Rye is another whiskey variety made from the mash of the same name. As in case of Bourbon, the Rye that has aged over two years can be referred as straight.
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