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by Aerokev

A journey into the world of malt whisky with Uisge Beatha

“Too much of anything is bad, but too much of good whisky is barely enough” – Mark Twain

Every lover of malt whisky sooner or later becomes a connoisseur and a collector to some extent, which often is a natural journey of discovery into the world of Malt Whisky. Uisge Beatha – a unique concept to showcase finest single malts of Scotland, is one of the catalysts of the journey.

Uisge Beatha is a scot Gaelic word for ‘aqua vitae – water of life’ from which the word whisky is derived and is pronounced as ISHKA – BAHA. The concept sought to demystify the complex world of malt whisky for new consumers and engage them in learning about the origins, get expert advice on malts and tasting the myriad flavours of whisky. The concept went on to win the coveted industry honour of Best Speciality Concept Frontier Award at the TFWA World Exhibition in Cannes.

Thereon, several airports introduced the concept at their duty free shops with their nuances, including the duty free shop in Delhi, India. This showcases malt whisky from Scotland and offers to customers and malt connoisseurs an overwhelming choice and unique experience.  Even a booklet representing the entire range, complete with tasting notes and advice has been developed which are given away to passengers who take a keen interest in Malts.

Malt Whisky is a unique drink produced with passion, bottled and aged with exceptional care by true craftsmen giving it a distinctive character and a special experience enjoyed by millions of people all over the world.  To the whisky connoisseur, single malts are quite simply the crème de la crème of whisky, the epitome of quality, luxury and exclusivity.

Primarily Malt Whisky has three ingredients – water, barley and yeast. Sugar is extracted out of the barley by letting it grow a bit and then mill it. Then water is added to it and the sugar is drained out. The sugar liquid is then added to yeast which is further cooked, distilled and matured.  And Scottish malts come mainly from four main regions within Scotland – Speyside, Highland, Lowlands and Islay.

Every malt at Uisge Beatha is unique with its rich history, encased in beautiful bottles that simply provide one of the fascinating and indulgent experiences.  Some of the finest malts are available at Uisge Beatha, like the Cardhu, Glenfiddich, Johnnie Walker Green Label, the Glenlivet, Caol Ila, Taliskar, Scapa and many more.

The Uisge Beatha also stocks some of most expensive and best crafted malts aged with care, like the Highland Park Vintage, Macallan Limited Edition, Glengoyne, Dalmore, Auchentoshan 50 YO, Bowmore and more. This unique single malt platform brings to table the best from the world of whisky and also offers a chance to know, learn and grow for the malt lovers.

The journey of discovering malts is endless, one which once you embark on, we are sure you’ll enjoy!

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Related Malt Whisky Articles

by josewolff

What is Malt Whisky

Malt Whisky is made from a type of malted grain and it comes to the market as Single malt whisky or double malt whiskey which is also called vatted malt. These single malt whiskies are the best since it uses a single type of malt as it sounds. Double malts are not as expensive as single malt whisky, but they use multiple malts and produce a blend. 

The ingredients used to make malt whisky are water, barley and yeast. The production starts by mixing the barley with water and it is kept for some time to allow germination. The enzymes which are released in the malting process assist in breaking down the starch in the grain and result in converting them to sugars. Once the germination is complete the malted barley is dried. Famous distilleries such as Balvenie, Glenfiddich, Bowmore, Springbank and Highland Park have their specialised malting but produce only a small quantity. 

Next, the malted grain is carefully examined for any stones or other elements before they are milled. The malt goes through the milling machine and leaves the powdered grain at the bottom of the milling machine. This powdered dust which is called the grist is then mixed with hot water. The grist gets mixed with water for about 6 hours, until it produces a thick porridge. The moisture, the heating and the movement then extract the sugars or maltose from the grist which is now called wort. Next yeast is added to the wort in a large container or a vessel which is made out of stainless steel. These large vessels usually contain thousands of litres. When yeast is mixed it feeds on the maltose and transforms it to crude alcohol. 

The crude alcohol which contains a very low strength of alcohol next goes through boiling. The vapour is collected in a container which is submerged in cool water so that it gets back to its liquid form. This liquid gets distilled about twice or three times which finally contains 60 to 70% of alcohol. This new spirit is then stored in oak casks until it gets matured. The longer it is kept, the more flavour from the wooden cask it contains. For best results the newly malted whiskey is kept for a minimum of three to four years. Finally the malted barley produced at a single distillery is named as single malt whiskey while others will be called vatted malt, pure malt, double malt or blended malt. 

Malt whisky should be stored in a cool place, away from direct sunlight or heat in order to avoid evaporation. It is advised that the corked bottles should be stored upright to avoid contact between the cork and the spirit, since the taste of the alcohol can be ruined by mixing with the cork. 

Each malt whisky is different in its taste from the other and today there is a wide selection of malts in the market. Some people are obsessed with collecting whiskies such as Highland malt whiskey which range from more fragrant malts such as Glenmorangie to Talisker or Lagavulin. Although malt whiskey comes with a price today people are willing to spend more money for a good malt whiskey.

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by Ethan Prater

What is a Fine Malt Whisky?

I am not pretending to be an authority with 40 years knowledge of the whisky business but I do remember in my younger days enjoying from time to time a malt whisky.  I also new by choice I’d ask for a malt, though never quite sure why.

I’ll try and provide a simplistic view of what and why a malt whisky is a fine whisky and with Scotland having in the order of 140 distilleries producing one or more whiskies then I must confess I tend to think of a malt as fine Scotch whisky.

Generally speaking people mean a single malt whisky when they refer to a malt whisky and this is because the malt whiskies are distilled in distilleries which usually only produce one whisky.  It is possible to have more than one brand of whisky from a distillery and this can be attributable to a number of factors.  For example a distillery may have a single malt whisky which is a mere 10 years old and then another brand name which is matured for a full 20 years.  Similarly the unique flavour of a fine whisky is as much about how the whisky is matured and stored and specifically the history of the casks that are used.  The Benriach distillery, for example, produces several brands and they are a mix of age and the casks that have been used.  Benriach specifically refer to whisky being matured in originally American oak casks and then finished either in casks having been used for storing sherry, port or dark rum.  In all these cases the actual distillation process may have been the same but how the fine whisky is stored and for how long are the key factors to the product which is eventually consumed and enjoyed.

The ingredients of a fine malt whisky.

Almost all malt whiskies and made by malting barley gain (though rye grain can be used).  The barley, yeast and water are the only ingredients used in the production of single malt whisky.

In the first instance the barley used is malted, which means, it is soaked in water for a few days. This malting or soaking process is the start of the germination process which leads to the natural starch being converted to a fermentable sugar.  This process is then stopped and the malted barley is dried.  Eventually the dried and germinated malted barley can now be ground or milled to produce something which the industry calls a grist.  From here the grist is combined with hot water to remove the sugary liquid which is called a wort.  This wort will now have the yeast added.  This where the first alcohol is produced and anyone familiar with brewing beer will recognise this process as both are very similar until this stage.

The next stage is where beer making (brewing) and whisky making (distilling) differ because the wort liquid is then distilled which means it is heated to boiling point such that the alcohol boils away but is captured on the cooler condensing surfaces and the alcohol is collected.  This distillation initial process produces a relatively low alcohol strength liquid so the process is repeated (and sometimes a third time) until such time as a liquid is produced which is typically two thirds alcohol by volume.

These are the initial processes of making a scotch single malt whisky.  Note it is not a scotch whisky for another year or two yet!

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