Single Malt Scotch
A whisky produced at a single Scottish distillery from malted barley and water, distilled in pot stills. It must be matured in oak casks in Scotland for a minimum of three years.
Regional identity is central to the single malt tradition. Speyside single malts tend toward elegance and fruit; Islay malts are often defined by peat smoke and maritime character; Highland malts range across a wide stylistic spectrum.
Blended Scotch
A blend of one or more single malt whiskies with grain whisky, the latter typically produced in continuous column stills. The great majority of Scotch whisky sold globally is blended.
Blending emerged in the second half of the 19th century as a means of producing a lighter, more consistent and internationally exportable style. Great blending houses such as Walker, Chivas, Dewar and Ballantine shaped the global reputation of Scotch.
Single Pot Still Irish
A uniquely Irish style, distilled from a mash of malted and unmalted barley in traditional copper pot stills at a single distillery. The use of unmalted barley — a response to 19th-century British malt tax reforms — produces a spirit with a distinctive silky, oily texture.
Once dominant in the global whisky trade, the style nearly disappeared in the 20th century. Its modern revival, led by expressions such as Redbreast, is one of the notable success stories in contemporary spirits.
Blended Irish Whiskey
The majority of Irish whiskey sold today is a blend of pot still, malt and grain whiskies, typically triple-distilled. The Irish tradition of triple distillation yields a spirit generally lighter in character than its Scottish counterpart.
Japanese Whisky
Japanese whisky was formally introduced to Japan in the 1920s and drew explicitly on Scottish tradition. Over the following century it developed its own aesthetic — one that prizes balance, quietude and precision of blending.
In 2021 the Japan Spirits & Liqueurs Makers Association introduced a voluntary code of practice defining Japanese whisky more precisely, in response to concerns about products bearing the label that were not produced in Japan or that combined imported spirit.
American Bourbon
Bourbon is an American whiskey made from a grain mash containing at least 51 percent corn, distilled to no more than 80 percent alcohol by volume, and matured in new charred oak barrels. It is a legally protected American product, though not restricted to Kentucky.
The reliance on new charred oak — a legal requirement — produces bourbon's characteristic vanillin, caramel and coconut lactone notes, and generates the vast supply of once-used barrels that maturate much of the world's Scotch and Irish whisky.
Tennessee Whiskey
Tennessee whiskey meets the legal requirements of bourbon but adds a further step: the Lincoln County Process, in which the new-make spirit is filtered through several feet of sugar-maple charcoal before entering the cask. The result is a smoother, slightly sweeter spirit.
Canadian Whisky
Canadian whisky is typically a blended style, historically built around rye and often lighter and smoother than its American counterparts. It has a long and distinguished history in the North American whisky trade.
Canadian whisky may be produced from a wide variety of grains and is distilled to a fairly high proof, contributing to its characteristically approachable, mixable style.