SPIRITS
Whisky
W H I S K E Y, W H I S K Y & B O U R B O N
FROM THE BEGINNING
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hilst legend has it that grains were distilled in 13th century China, it is widely accepted, that Ireland was the birthplace of water of life made from barley. It is known from anecdotal writings that whisky played a part in Ireland’s life from the 1400’s but the first official evidence seems to come from a 1556 Act of Parliament: “...graine in making of aqua vitae...”. The first tangible proof of spirit of barley from the Scottish Exchequer Rolls of 1494 states “VIII bolls of malt to Friar John Cor wherewith to make aquavitae”. John Cor was a monk based at Lindores Abbey in Fife, which existed from the late 1100’s to 1559. A boll was a Scottish measure which would have been the equivalent of just over 5 bushels, and this could have produced about 1000 bottles of spirit, but of course we don’t know what strength the final spirit would have been distilled to. Regardless, the nomenclature is clearly Celtic; aqua vitae in Gaelic is uisge beatha, which became uisge and ultimately whisky. In both countries distillation developed through the middle ages and by the 17th century whisky drinking had become widespread. As a result Charles, I saw an opportunity to raise a lot of money; in 1644 taxes were imposed on Scotch whisky and laws passed restricting 138
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the rights of distillation to the landed classes. In Ireland taxation began a few years later in 1661. Whilst this may have raised some money for the Exchequer it really gave rise to illicit distillation. Either distillers made false declarations and sold quietly on the side, or more commonly, they simply disappeared into the countryside with their stills. Across the Atlantic, the first wave of America’s Scots and Irish immigrants also brought distilling techniques (although it is more likely rum was the first to be made in America; molasses being brought to New England from the Caribbean as part of the trade triangle of slaves, molasses and rum) and by the mid 1600’s applejack, peach brandy and whisky were being produced along the East Coast. These pioneering colonists soon found that, whilst barley was ideally suited to British and Irish soils and climates, corn and rye would be much more rewarding crops in their new land. Couple this with a natural disposition for independence and rebellion, and it is not surprising that American whiskey branched off in a totally different direction both in terms of production methods and taste. Head for head, Ireland lead the way in whisky production, the first official distilling licence being granted in 1608 and one hundred years later there were reckoned to be 2,000 stills - WHISKEY, WHISKY & BOURBON
in operation! However, just as Irish distillers probably introduced us to whisky, the country also was the first to introduce formal temperance societies; the establishment of the Ulster Temperance Society in 1818 heralding a century of rising prohibitionist tendencies which finally lead to the Volstead Act in 1920, in the USA. The American temperance moves combined with the development of continuous distillation and the arrival of the phylloxera outbreak in Europe (which temporarily removed brandy from the market) led to the demand for whisky rocketing. Irish whiskey producers prior to this time had been outselling Scotch as they were larger in number and used unmalted barley which produced a more popular lighter spirit. The Scots took to the new Cofffey stills as did the Canadians and in these two countries production advanced enormously, for a period in the 1860’s and 70’s Canada was the world’s largest producer of whisky, but in the 20th century it was in Scotland that the industry powered ahead.
3 is the magic number! It is only after a minimum of 3 years of ageing that Scottish whisky can be called scotch. Some distilleries hold casks of whisky which are a grand 70+ years old.