Whisky Terms
My brief look at simple whisky terms from A-Z:
A
Age: The age of any bottled whisky is calculated on the youngest whisky used to produce this bottle.
Alcohol by Volume: ABV as its known is the amount of 100% pure alcohol present in any unopened bottle of whisky regardless of country of origin.
B
Blended Whisky: In general whisky obtained from different distillery’s present in a single bottle of whisky, can contain spirit from multiple grains.
Bourbon: Any whisky produced in the U.S.A. made from a mash of 51% corn, distilled to a strength less than 80% by volume and matured in new oak barrels.
F
Feints/Tails: Usually discarded, at the end of the distillation, dis-coloured and chemically tainted solution.
Foreshots: The first fluid produced from the still, usually hazy and chemically tainted and discarded.
M
Mash/Wash/Beer: The liquid made from crushed and fermented grain that is distilled into new make spirit by passing through a distillation process, a still.
N
New Make Spirit: The spirit direct from the still before it has had maturation time in barrels to classify it whisky.
R
Rye Whisky: A spirit, usually American, produced in the same manner as bourbon with a mash of no less than 51% rye grain.
S
Scotch Whisky: A spirit made exclusively in Scotland, mainly from barley but can be made from other grains for use in blended scotch and matured for a minimum of three years.
Single Barrel Whisky: A whisky from a single barrel at an individual distillery, quite often numbered.
Single Malt Whisky: A whisky produced exclusively from malted barley at one distillery only.
U
US Proof: An America n term for alcohol content , just double the ABV.
Abbreviations
YO: Years Old
QC: Quarter Cask
PX: Pedro Ximenes Cask
OB: Official Bottling
CS: Cask Strength
DE: Distillers Edition
IB: Independent Bottling
E150A: Caramel Spirit Colouring
ABV: Alcohol by Volume
CF: Chill Filtered
NAS: No Age Statement
PPM: Parts per Million (usually referred to peat content)
DW: Double Wood
TW: Triple Wood
Roger Gillard, Your Laird