Sherry casks play a huge role in the scotch whisky industry. And what’s not to love, with those delicious notes of sweet, dried fruits, nuts and baking spices, it’s basically a fruit cake in whisky form! Sherry casks are deeply embedded in Scotland’s whisky-making tradition. Nowhere more so than in Speyside, the country’s most densely […]
There are many factors that contribute to the final flavour of whisky. In Scotland the spirit must mature in casks for a minimum of three years before it is legally allowed to be called whisky. In this time the spirit will be heavily influenced by the cask it’s been in, therefore it is important to […]
The grappa harvest takes place as soon as the grapes have become ripe enough, in order to obtain fresh vinaccia. The freshness of the vinaccia is the key of making a top quality grappa. The grapes are then destemmed and softly pressed, in order to separate the must (this is used to make wine) from […]
To produce whisky you need three simple ingredients: water, yeast and barley (this can be mixed with rye or corn, I will talk about rye whisky soon) . The best type of barley is the one that produces the most sugar. There are five stages in the process: malting, mashing, fermentation, distillation and maturation. Malting During malting, the barley […]