From the Whisky Land

Toffee, peppery, smoky, lemon salty, cocoa …. No sir I am not talking about flavors of wines. My latest visit to the “Whisky Land” tells me that drinking Scotch whisky is not just about having 40% alc. and getting drunk. It’s a lot more. From the tongue twisting words of Irish & Scottish Gaelic, comes a much simpler English version called ‘Whisky’. Converted back to its origins means “water of life”. Equivalent to “Aqua Vitae” in Latin.

I can conveniently say, that if there is any place where one can get to know the insides of the history, heritage, methods, tastings and classifications of Scotch whisky, it’s The Scotch Whisky Experience on the Royal Mile, Edinburgh. It is actually the name of the place, in case you are confused. A tour costing just 11 pounds was worth every penny of it. I sat in a small cart moving slowly on rails and was stylishly shown the entire method of producing whisky from its only three ingredients- barley, water & yeast. We were told about the different regions of Scotland where whisky is produced and how the landscape affects the taste of whisky. The lowlands, Highlands, Speyside, Campbeltown & Islay are the 5 regions where millions of liters of Scotch whisky is produced every year. Each of these regions produce whiskies of distinct flavors and aromas. What most people don’t realize is that such are the diverse flavors of whisky (not Scotch whisky), that it falls second only to wine.

After all this, came my favorite part which was obviously – tasting Single Malt Scotch Whisky. We were told the best way to drink whisky is to add just about 5ml of water. It makes sure that the strength of the whisky doesn’t overtake your senses and also, small amount of water enhances the aroma and flavors of the whisky. I tasted the Ardbeg Single malt Scotch from Islay. It was absolutely perfect from start to finish. There is an initial impact of peat-smoke followed by smooth flavors of sawdust & seaweed with a wonderful rich finish. Ardbeg has been maintaining its robust and earthy aromas since 1817.  The Islay whiskies typically have very strong smoky and earthy flavors as the distilleries use a lot of peat-coal in the malting of barley. So basically it is not advised for the faint hearted. On the other hand, whiskies from the Lowlands are very mellow and fruity. The Highlands Whiskies offer a great diversity in styles from dry and some peatiness in the West to spicy character in the far North and some notably fruity whiskies in the East and South Highlands. The Speyside region is the most populated in term of distilleries. Over half of Scotland whisky distilleries are in this region and are known for their subtle and elegant character.

The tour was now nearing its end when we were told that the best is saved for the last. The unique collection of Claive Vidiz is much heard of in the whisky world. A record 3,384 bottles came from Sao Paulo as a loan to The Scotch Whisky Experience for Homecoming Scotland 2009. The Scotch Whisky Experience invested a huge sum of money to prepare a vault where this intriguing collection is showcased very stylishly. Whisky was all around, from the floor to the ceiling we got to see some beautifully shaped bottles. One could probably feel the high just by looking at them. The collection displayed years of artistic work behind whisky. Some of the labels, bottles and the packaging were absolutely stunning. The rarest of whiskies were on display including the Strathmill single malt produced to celebrate the distillery’s 100th anniversary (one of only 69 ever produced) and a limited edition JW Blue Label signed by F1 driver Pablo Montoya in 2005. But the most coveted and also Mr. Vidiz’s favorite was the very rare Dimple Pinch. It was one of the first special editions of a scotch whisky ever produced. The circular shaped bottle with a long neck (shape like a regular cognac bottle) was bought in 1969 for USD 1000. This collection of the best and rarest whiskies was built in over 35 years by the Brazilian and this largest collection in the World showed his love and devotion for whisky.

So apart from Scotch whisky, Scotland is also very famous for its lamb wool.  But the selfish being that I am, would rather just stick to what interests me more.
My next destination was the richly beautiful town of Oban on the West Coast. The first settlers came around 5000 B.C to this town and sheltered in the caves. It was then known as “AN OB“(no prize for guessing how “OBAN” came about). The town also holds historic importance as during WWII is became an important port used by the Royal navy. Such is the beauty of the Oban that it is widely called as a resort town. Covered by small islands and mountains on either side, Oban is a weekend getaway spot for the Scots with Glasgow being the nearest big city.

The Oban Distillery is the 4th oldest distillery in the world and has been producing Single Malt Scotch Whisky since before HRH Late Queen Victoria was even born. The distillery was build before the actual town and they are running operations on the same property since past 215 years. WOW. I believe the process of producing whisky i.e malting, mashing, fermentation and distillation is known to everyone but what came as a surprise to me was that for a small batch of whisky, all the processes after malting are completed in about 6-10 days, and the spirit – as they technically call it- gets ready to be jailed in the oak casks.
“Old is Gold” truly stands for ageing single malt whiskies if for nothing else. The oak casks which are used for ageing are used twice before the single malt spirit is locked in. First, the fresh American oak casks are used to age bourbon. They are shipped to Scotland for ageing blended Scotch whisky. It is than, when majority of the flavors have been sucked out of the cask, the single malt is aged in order to preserve its most original natural taste. The alcohol content is brought down during this ageing. After this ageing, some distilleries age the whisky in the European sherry casks for a small period to add some flavor to the whisky.

The alcohol basically evaporates which is also known The Angel’s Share. About 2% of volume is lost each year which amounts to a few million liters only in Scotland (angels surely drink a lot). We were also given a taste of whisky straight from the cask. We had a 1996 single malt whisky which had 1 more years to go in the casks.  The whisky had about 56-58 % alc. but was smooth and tasted of honey & sweet spices along with a bit of peaty smokiness. Tim (the gentleman who was showing us around) than said “I bet you get agitated when the barman delays your whisky for 2 minutes. We wait here for 10 years minimum to taste our own drink. So please cherish every Scotch whisky you have as it takes a lot of devotion to make it the charming and beautiful drink that it is.” I realized that making whisky in Scotland is not all about business. It’s “their” drink. They are so passionate especially about single malts, that some of the proud scots don’t even like blended whisky. Its ruubish – they say. 

With the pleasant smell of malted barley still in my head I came out of the Oban Distillery. So much history, such heritage, wonderful methods and extreme devotion behind one of the most popular drinks in the world. “Water of life” – truly it is.  Slainte mhath (slawn-je vah - meaning "Cheers to your good health" in Scottish Gaelic).