There Are More Than 5000 Types Of Single Malt Whisky

International Whiskey Day is a yearly celebration on March 27. “The water of life” or ‘uisce na beatha’ in Gaelic, is the term given to whiskey by the Gaelic language. Soon after, the name was shortened to ‘uisce’ (meaning ‘water’), and the pronunciation gradually shifted from ‘ish-key’ to ‘whiskey.’ Since then, the pronunciation has stayed the same.

Whiskey has a long and distinguished history of careful distillation, dating back more than 500 years. When it comes to whiskey, there’s no better way to bring people together than to have a few glasses and make some amazing memories. Today is the ideal opportunity for whiskey fans to indulge with a high-end bottle and some friends.

• 2000 BC – In Mesopotamia, the first evidence of distillation was found.
• 1405 – The first official reference to whiskey as a distilled product is made.
• 1494 – The official founding date of Scotch is the year 1494. On this date, John Cor bought 500 kg of malt for the production of “aqua vitae.”
• 1608 – The Irish government grants permission for the establishment of a whiskey distillery there.
• 1797 – George Washington opened a whiskey distillery three miles from his Virginia estate. In 1799, it produced 11,000 gallons of whiskey and made Washington the largest American whiskey producer in the 18th century. – Source
• 1830 – The average person over 15 years old drank 88 bottles of Whiskey per Year
• 1856 – Jasper Newton “Jack” Daniel ran away from his stepmother at the age of six and learned to distill whisky from a Lutheran minister.
• 1860 – The first blended whisky in the world, was a mixture of malt and grain produced under the name Green Stripe in 1860.
• 1920 – During prohibition, an exemption was made for whiskey prescribed by a doctor and sold through a pharmacy. The Walgreens pharmacy chain grew from 20 retail stores to almost 400 during this period, from 1920 to 1933. – Source
• 1920 – Americans acknowledged whiskey and began producing their own just after Prohibition in 1920.
• 2008 – The first announcement of International Whiskey Day is made.
• 2009 – The first celebration happens at the Whisky Festival in the Northern Netherlands.
• 2017 – A 30-year-old cask of Macallan set a new world record in 2017 for the most expensive whisky cask ever sold at auction. It fetched a whopping £375,000 (almost $500,000).
• 2017 – Scottish scientists powered a car using a biofuel derived from whisky residue.
• 2018 – The world’s first regulated whisky investment fund was launched. Single Malt Fund allows investors to buy a small part of a bigger collection of rare and limited-edition whiskies.
• The world’s largest consumer of whisky is India. Canada is next with the US far behind. However, the US is Scotch’s biggest market.
• Despite its unique features, Macallan Sherry Oak 18 Years Old is considered one of the world’s best whiskies because of its selection of casks used during the aging process, its unique characteristics, and its widespread popularity.
• Malt Whisky red wine is more useful because it contains more ellagic acid – an antioxidant that can stop the growth of cancer cells and resist heart disease.
• There are five basic classifications of whisky: Irish Whisky, Scotch Whisky, Bourbon, Canadian Whisky, and American Whisky.
• If the bottle is “whisky” it is manufactured in Scotland; if “whiskey,” then it was not made in Scotland.
• A closed bottle of whisky can be kept for more than 100 years, and it will still be good to drink.
• The dark color of whisky comes from the wooden barrels in which it is aged. The wood expands and contracts with the temperature change, making the movie in and out of the wood. The compounds from wood give whisky its dark color.
• Whisky and whiskey are the same liquor.
• In American English and Irish English, it is spelled “whiskey”.  In British English, it is spelled “whisky”.
• A whisky stops maturing after it is bottled.
• There are more than 5000 types of Single Malt Whisky.
• The barrels made from American White Oak have been claimed to produce the tastiest whisky.
• The Glenfiddich bottle is triangular to represent the three pillars of whisky making: air, water and barley.
• The word whiskey comes from the Irish uisce beatha or “water of life.” From Ireland, whiskey spread across the North Channel to Scotland.
• The number next to the Whiskey’s name refers to the age of the youngest whiskey to produce that specific product. If there is no number, then it is a minimum of three years old.
• Each year, about 2% of the whiskey in the barrels is lost to evaporation, and in some cultures, this is referred to as the “angel’s share.”
• Whiskey is the official state beverage of Alabama.
• According to the Kentucky Department of Commerce, more than 249 9-liter cases of straight whiskey are consumed per 1,000 adult residents in that state annually.
• Jameson sells more Irish whiskey than all other Irish producers combined. Nearly half of all Jameson, $1.8 billion annually, is sold in the U.S., where it sells 13 times more whiskey than its closest competitor. – Source
• There are around one hundred distilleries and five regions to produce Whiskey in Scotland.
• In Lynchburg, Tennessee, the Jack Daniel’s distillery can’t sell any liquor because it is in a dry county. Instead, they sell commemorative Jack Daniel’s bottles that happen to have whiskey in them. – Source
• An incredible one billion bottles of scotch are exported from Scotland every year.
• Some 2500 bottles of whisky are exported from Scotland every minute…or 41 bottles per second.
• Kentucky is home to more barrels of maturing bourbon than people.
• Mountain Dew was originally meant to be a whisky chaser
• Frank Sinatra was buried with a bottle of Jack Daniel’s.
• All whiskey starts with a ‘mash’, which is a mixture of grain and water that is slowly heated to break down the starch into sugars.
• Here’s a quick rundown on the different types of grains that result in all of these unique types of whiskey beverages:
  • Bourbon starts from a mash that is 51% or more corn base, though it becomes a Corn Whiskey once it reaches 81%.
  • Malt whiskey is made from 51% malted barley.
  • Rye is 51% plain rye.
  • Wheat Whiskey, as one might suspect, is made from Wheat.
• One of the basic ingredients of Tabasco sauce is whisky
• Whiskey is lower in calories and sugar than other alcoholic beverages. Its ellagic acid content may also help to reduce inflammation in the body and obesity.
• Whiskey helps alleviate the symptoms of a cold, boosts the immune system, and improves brain health.
• Drinking whiskey may have additional health benefits, according to research. Moderate drinking is the key to reaping these benefits, as binge drinking can have detrimental effects on one’s health.
• Anxiety sufferers may find relief from the barbiturate impact of alcohol, which also has sedative effects.
• The oldest whiskey, according to “Guinness World Records,” believed to have been packaged between 1851 and 1858, is the 400ml bottle of Glenavon Special Liqueur Whisky, which was owned by an Irish family until it was auctioned off to Bonhams in London and sold for a remarkable £14,850  ($19,136).
• The co-founder of Alcoholics Anonymous, Bill Wilson, demanded whisky on his deathbed but was refused it.
• John Jameson, the founder of Jameson’s Irish whisky was Scottish.
• The same John Jameson was the great-grandfather of the radio transmission pioneer, Guglielmo Marconi.
• John ‘Johnnie’ Walker was a grocer in Kilmarnock, Scotland in the mid-1800s who specialized in blending tea before he decided to start blending whisky.

Sources:

Foodimentary

Mobile-Cuisine

Kickass Facts

World Whisky Day

Days of the Year

Scoop Whoop

National Today