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InvisibleVvellum
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Registered: 05/24/04
Posts: 10,920
scotch
    #5910335 - 07/28/06 10:11 PM (17 years, 6 months ago)

Single malts might be the glamour boys of Scotch whisky these days, but if it wasn't for blended Scotch, we wouldn't be drinking Scotch at all.

That's right. For over a hundred years, blended Scotch was Scotch. Single malts just didn't exist in the market. In addition, it was blended Scotch that made the drink respectable. It created a market for the rough-hewn Caledonian moonshine that Highland farmers concocted in their barns using homemade pot stills, and turned it into the $3.5 billion world-wide industry it is today.

Back in the 18th century, Scotch was no more than illicit the hooch produced by those barbaric, cattle-thieving, highlanders--or, at least, that's how they were regarded at the time by the good burghers of Edinburgh. These respectable folk would no more consider drinking this firewater than they would turpentine, as their tipple was Sherry, Port and Cognac--all refined, gentlemen's drinks.

But it was during the 19th century that two totally unrelated events turned this situation on its head. The first was the invention of the continuous still, which made possible the production of grain whisky on an industrial scale. This invention made production easy and cheap, but the resulting spirit had very little flavor.

The second event occurred when some enterprising merchants, with names like Johnnie Walker, George Ballantine, James Buchanan and the Chivas brothers, hit on the idea of blending their inexpensive, grain whisky with the more distinguished whiskies from the pot stills of the farmers, which were by that time legal. This eventually led to the emergence of predictable and consistent brands, many of which are still available today.

But back to the 19th century, where Scotch remained a small time, local product until the emergence--in the 1860s--of a lousy little parasite named phylloxeraI, which proceeded to wreak havoc in the vineyards of continental Europe. The devastation caused by this diminutive bug curtailed the supply of not only table wine, but also of Port, Sherry and Cognac. In doing so, it opened the doors to a wider world for Scotch.

And Scotch didn't miss this opportunity. It first won acceptance in Scotland, then its popularity spread south of the border to England, and eventually, thanks to the wide reach of the British Empire--then in its prime--which stretched to the four corners of the globe. Today, according to the Scotch Whisky Association (SWA), it is the world's number one spirit drink.

This seems like a good point to explain the difference between a single malt and a blended Scotch. Single malt Scotch is the product of one particularly distillery and each is distinct and different from that produced by any other distillery.

Blended Scotch, on the other hand, is--as its name implies--the result of blending approximately 65% grain whisky with 35% single malts, sometimes from dozens of different distilleries. Each brand of blended whisky has its own particular flavor profile, and while the grain whisky that goes into it is pretty consistent, the barrels from the individual distilleries all vary. So the tricky task falls on the Master Blender to produce a consistent product, year after year, from these endlessly varying components.

The exact formulas of the various blends are closely guarded, but it is possible to detect certain obvious characteristics. For instance, Johnnie Walker Red Label has strong hints of the highly distinctive Skye malt, Talisker.

The difference between the various price categories of blended Scotch--Premium, Super Premium etc.--does not indicate that they contain higher proportions of malt whisky, but that both the grain and malt whiskies are older. This can mean a smoother blend, as in Chivas Regal, or a more flavorful blend, as in White Horse 12 Year Old, or both, as in Famous Grouse Gold Reserve.

By the way, when any Scotch has an age statement on its label, this indicates the age of the youngest whisky in the blend. There are often appreciable amounts of older whiskies, too.

Scotch is the leading international spirit drink. Nine out of every ten bottles produced are exported from Britain, which might explain why the Greeks drink more Scotch than ouzo, and why the French put away more Scotch in a month than they do Cognac in a year--or so the SWA claims.

The SWA also reports that 122 million bottles of Scotch were imported into the U.S. in 2003, an increase in 10% over 2002. Of this total, only 10% were single malts--the remaining 90% being blended Scotch.

Another interesting aspect of the Scotch picture is the fact that, while sales of value brands are declining in the U.S., the further you move up the price spectrum, the more you find sales growing. So, while the sale of Premium brands managed only a 3.1% growth rate increase, the sale of Super Premiums shot up 13% from 2002 to 2003.

Apparently, Americans are drinking more of the good stuff.

As the SWA points out, "Scotch drinkers are trading up to High End Premium and Super Premium products." These whiskies not only generate more revenue than their plebian siblings--for example, even though the top-end brands represent only 20% of sales by volume, they bring in 36% of the revenue--but because their margins are higher, they also contribute disproportionately to the bottom line.

The Distilled Spirits Council of the United States (DISCUS) paints a similar picture, even if their actual numbers differ slightly. According to DISCUS spokesperson Shawn Kelley, "While blended Scotch volumes saw minimal growth, the general trend was for higher-end products to do better. Value brand blends declined by 3.0% (from 2002 to 2003), Premium brands grew by 2.0%, High End Premium brands were up by 3.7% and Super Premium brands were up by 11.6%."

To clarify this industry-speak, "Premium" refers to Scotch that costs less than $27 per bottle, "High End Premium" costs from $27 to $33, and "Super Premium" runs $34 and up.

The big advantage of drinking blended Scotch is that it doesn't have to be taken seriously; you don't have to treat it with the ritualistic reverence that goes along with drinking single malts.

Rather, it's a comfortable, everyday drink--something you don't have to think too much about. Simply throw a handful of ice into a glass and add a good, blended scotch (and, perhaps, some soda). It's a drink you can enjoy it in the bar after work with your buddies or at a raucous party, and you won't have to concentrate on savoring all of its subtle nuances.

Not that blended Scotches don't have their own distinct flavors--they most certainly do. Some are pale and light, some assertive and punchy and others smooth and creamy.

thanks.


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InvisiblePat Bateman, VP
Dr. House's Inspiration
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Registered: 10/15/04
Posts: 50,876
Loc: Inconceivable opulence
Re: scotch [Re: Vvellum]
    #5910351 - 07/28/06 10:16 PM (17 years, 6 months ago)

i didn't read any of that

but scotch is good

i don't really know anything at all about the stuff, though


--------------------
Is a man not entitled to the sweat of his brow?
No, says the man in Washington; it belongs to the poor.
No, says the man in the Vatican; it belongs to God.
No, says the man in Moscow; it belongs to everyone.

I rejected those answers. Instead, I chose something
different. I chose the impossible. I chose...
Rapture.
-  Andrew Ryan

Formula: 0


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Invisiblemycogirl
goddamn
 User Gallery

Folding@home Statistics
Registered: 07/03/05
Posts: 1,135
Re: scotch [Re: Vvellum]
    #5910352 - 07/28/06 10:16 PM (17 years, 6 months ago)

Thanks.

:peace:


--------------------


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Offlinerelativexistance
"beads, bees!?!?beads ....BEADS!!!"
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Registered: 01/08/04
Posts: 1,778
Last seen: 11 years, 7 months
Re: scotch [Re: Vvellum]
    #5910641 - 07/28/06 11:34 PM (17 years, 6 months ago)

good read  :thumbup:


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InvisibleRandalFlagg
Stranger
Registered: 06/15/02
Posts: 15,608
Re: scotch [Re: Vvellum]
    #5910710 - 07/28/06 11:56 PM (17 years, 6 months ago)

Dewar's....& Dewar's specail Reserve....


DR
UNK!!!!

O h god.

Neeed to stop dsrinking.


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Invisibledrowneduck
The Mad Scot
Male

Registered: 12/23/04
Posts: 731
Loc: Lurkland UK Flag
Re: scotch [Re: Vvellum]
    #5911435 - 07/29/06 09:00 AM (17 years, 6 months ago)

Interesting stuff :thumbup:


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