Whisky-Whiskey, Bang-bang

Whisky – Scottish dialect. (uisge beatha)

Whiskey – Irish dialect. (uisce beatha)

In either case: Water of Life

A spirit that is distilled from a fermented grain mash (essentially beer wort) that can be made up of a variety of grains or a single grain. This is a highly regulated spirit and the specific styles and classes are recognized under international trade agreements. The various regulations make-up a list that would reach the length of your arm, but to name a few: the grain bill, pot still vs. continuous still, aging requirements, barrel requirements, alcoholic strength, place of origin, and so on…

At the moment I think my favorite variation of W (by the way, from here on Whisky/Whiskey will be referred to as “W”) is Scotch. Though there are times that various wines, beers, and spirits hit my favorite list I am always overjoyed when something comes around that pushes into first place, so I am bound to contradict myself somewhere along the way. Regardless I think Scotch and the traditions there-in that still lead to such distinct variation between labels and styles is ridiculously entertaining. Although I wanted to address W in general, so I will try not to get stuck into Scotch.

I do break W into a few discernable categories myself, but it has much more to do with drinking style and consumption quantity, three to be exact. These are a far cry from anything that is anything near international recognition. All classes are created equally but with various reasons for their interest.

Cowboy W: The Cowboy designation is reserved for W that is generally inexpensive ($17-$30) and designed for drinking. Drinking in the case indicates W for mixing, shooting, or straight-up style swigging (note that I did not say sipping.) This is a great bracket for W to fall into, it has many perks. My favorite has to be the man factor; this is essentially due to old western movies, hence the class name. The cowboy walks into the saloon and orders a shot of W, takes it down, and then orders another. It works the same when you are hangin’ out with friends. Swigging on some straight-up W earns some respect points with the guys and the gals on some heavily engrained level. Other perks are the price, mixed drinks, and accessibility. This to me is a “Drinking with Intent” W. I can recall a recent B-day in which a bottle of Buffalo Trace Bourbon was split amongst the two of us, it went down easy……

Gents W: This is probably where I spend 60% of my time with W, with Cowboy making up about 35%, and Respect rounding out with 5%. This to me represents a highly drinkable W that is smooth and balanced with enough complexity to entertain, but not to overwhelm. This is the kind of W that you would enjoy on X-mas morning with some brothers or with your best friends over a good cigar after dinner. This one has the sophistication factor; this is an indication that you appreciate the finer things in life, and you feel that others should too. I spend most of my time in this category because you may dent the bank account ($50-$100), but you won’t break it while drinking some of the most impressive W that I have ever met. Currently, at this moment, I am sipping on Chieftains bottling of an 11 year old W from the Glendullan distillery. This W literally approaches the mouth-feel of clarified butter, and that texture alone is enough to keep me coming back to the glass. This category should be a flavorful W that has a pleasant texture and alcoholic strength of 40-50 degrees leaving it balanced enough to drink without cutting with water. Although if it is your choice to add a touch of water to the W here it does not weaken your position as it might under the Cowboy designation.

Respect the W: And we arrive here. Not underutilized voluntarily (remember 5% of my time is spent here), but this particular category has a tendency to be cost prohibitive. This W has the Connoisseur factor; as such, if you have tried that than you have a good point of reference for judging quality. First we will address age, in this category I feel that this starts at around the 18 years old mark. Not because of anything to do with legalities I assure you. This is where most W takes a significant leap in price. A W of 18 years represents over 20% of the average US lifespan, and as such must be respected even when W of 25 and 30 years or more are floating around out there. None the less this is a spirit that has been alive, and in barrel for eighteen or more years, pretty impressive. A great example of this type of W is Bruichladdich Black Art. This is a 19 year old W that spent its first two years in bourbon barrels and every year there after was racked into a barrel of varying origin; wine, sherry, other W, brandy, port, and on, and on... You’re job is to sip on this ethereal W and attempt to identify what is coming at you through this highly complex glass of W that has actually “lived” a life. Extraordinary age is one factor, barrel usage another, and the last that I want to approach is cask strength. Cask strength W is just as it sounds. As W sits in barrel and ages over extended periods of time the alcoholic strength of that W increases through evaporation of the water with-in the barrel, they call the evaporation the Angels Share. Essentially God is taxing the producers of anything that barrel ages with a portion of their product lost to evaporation. Anyway, the end product in the world of W is called cask strength and typically represents W that is of 50 degrees or more in alcohol. These can be wonderful drinks of W, but for me must always be cut by water to become enjoyable. I find that with these W I will sometimes cut the solution with as much as 30-40% water to achieve balance. Unfortunately, by my taste this often dilutes the flavors of these fiery W to the point in which it distracts from their enjoyment.

So whether you are a Cowboy, Gent or you simply Respect the W you are essentially right in your opinions for different reasons. Such is the beauty of individual preference and tastes.

Cheers