Who invented whiskey in scotland

Today, Scotland's distilleries guard the secrets and ancient traditions that have made Scotch Whisky famous around the world. To be officially classed as Scotch Whisky it must be produced in Scotland and matured in Oak Casks for a minimum of three years.

The entire process is nothing short of an artform; four ingredients — water, malt, peat and yeast — are refined through fermentation and distillation and then maturation. Each step has a subtle but tangible impact on the overall taste, and though the process is always the same, Scotland's five regions produce Scotch whiskies with key differences. Preference is a matter of taste; some connoisseurs prefer the smoky flavour of Islay whiskies, while others enjoy the light taste of a triple distilled lowland whisky.

The Islay malts are generally described as having a peaty or smoky character derived from the water and peating levels of the barley. The island malts are known for being powerful, flavourful and full of character.

Find out more about the Islay region at VisitScotland. Characteristics include a defined dryness with a pungency, smoke and a solid salinity with a pinch of salt. Of its three distilleries, Glengyle is so new that it has yet to bottle any single malt. Find out more about the Campbeltown region on VisitScotland. The largest whisky region in terms of size, covering a vast area and diverse range of distilleries.

Whiskies made here are known for a heavier and drier character, with hints of nut, honey and heather. But, in , Aeneas Coffey invented the Patent Still which enabled a continuous process of distillation to take place. This led to the production of Grain Whisky, a different, less intense spirit than Malt Whisky.

The lighter flavoured Grain Whisky, when blended with the more potent and fiery malts, extended the appeal of Scotch Whisky to a considerably wider market. A spot of luck also helped global expansion.

In the s, the phylloxera beetle devastated French vineyards, and within a few years, wine and brandy had virtually disappeared from cellars everywhere. Once again canny Scots were quick to take advantage. By the time the French industry recovered, Scotch Whisky had replaced brandy as the preferred spirit of choice. The Scotch Whisky Association was created against a backdrop of rising taxes, global expansion and the need for a united industry voice. Brand owners held a series of conferences to discuss how to protect the sector which led to major gathering in London on 3 October Find out more about the role of the SWA here.

In , prohibition was introduced in the United States. Whisky was exempt, as long as it was prescribed by a doctor for medicinal purposes. Some famous faces used this to their advantage World War II re-shaped the industry as distillers increasingly looked to international opportunities.

At the time, one Minister said: "…the country needs food, dollars mean food, and whisky means dollars. Five centuries after it all started, the Scotch Whisky industry celebrated the th anniversary of whisky production in Scotland — and did it in style! What is the origin of the name 'whisky'?

Gaelic is that branch of Celtic spoken in the Highlands of Scotland. When was Scotch Whisky first distilled? Whisky has been distilled in Scotland for hundreds of years. There is some evidence to show that the art of distilling could have been brought to the country by Christian missionary monks, but it has never been proved that Highland farmers did not themselves discover how to distil spirits from their surplus barley.

A boll was an old Scottish measure of not more than six bushels. One bushel is equivalent to The earliest reference to a distillery in the Acts of the Scottish Parliament appears to be in , when mention is made of the famous Ferintosh distillery owned by Duncan Forbes of Culloden.