Part 1: Whisky buying guide - words that matter and words to avoid

With the popularity of whisky today one can easily be overwhelmed by the sheer number of choices available in the whisky section of the liquor store. A person new to whisky can easily be swayed to buy one bottle over another solely based on its label. This often leads to people getting disappointed with whisky in general because a lot of things written on bottle labels are just marketing terms that say nothing about the quality of the product. This series of posts seeks to help you make an informed decision by identifying popular whisky terms that matter and those to avoid. Hopefully at the end of the post, you are able to make informed purchase decisions based on the bottle facts.

Whisk(e)y.

Source: crownroyal.com

Let us start with the basics - what is Whisk(e)y? When a bottle carries the word Whisk(e)y that means it is a spirit distilled from a fermented mash of grain at less than 95% alcohol by volume (190 proof) having the taste, aroma and characteristics generally attributed to whisky and bottled at not less than 40% alcohol by volume (80 proof) (source). From this very basic definition of whisky comes different types that are determined by either the grain used and/or the country of origin. To give you an example; If a whisky is distilled from malted barley and produced in Scotland it is allowed to carry the label Scotch Whisky. If the exact same whisky is produced in a different country it cannot be called Scotch. Let me give you another one; if a whisky is distilled in the USA using at least 51% corn and aged in charred new oak containers, it is called Bourbon. If that same whisky is produced in Canada, it cannot even carry the word Bourbon on its label. This is exactly what happened to Crown Royal’s recent release called “Bourbon Mash”. Crown Royal received a big backlash from US whisky consumers and the regulators had to step in and forced Crown Royal to change the label for their next batch of the same product. Today it is sold as Crown Royal "Blender's Batch". If you see a bottle with the term Whisky, you can be assured that it is from grains, it is a minimum of 40 proof and if it carries a geographically protected designation (Scotch, Irish, Bourbon) it meets the legal requirements for that designation. 

Small Batch.

You will see this term mostly in American whiskies and it is very misleading. When you see the word small batch, you immediately get a picture of a small amount of barrels being used to produce the whisky. The idea behind small batch is that using a small amount of barrels to produce the finished product will result in a more consistent and unique flavour. This may be true but when you ask distillers what they mean by small batch you may get different answers. The problem with this label is that there is no legal definition of small batch. How many barrels need to be in a batch to be called small batch? Nobody knows and for that I consider this term as fluff. Just look at some of the small batch bourbons in the market today and ask yourself – if the batches are small how the hell do they keep the liquor store shelves stocked with their product? Consider two of the most popular small batch bourbons out there: Maker's Mark and Elijah Craig Small batch. These two distilleries have two completely different definitions of Small Batch. Maker's Mark claims the bourbon in their standard bottle is comprised of around 20 barrels, while Heaven Hill claims that the whisky in their Elijah Craig Small batch bourbon is comprised of not more than 200 barrels. That is a huge difference in definition of small batch which is why I do not trust this term. Does this mean you have to avoid every bottle that says Small Batch? Not at all, but you must not let this term be the sole basis for purchasing a bottle. Try it at a bar first and then decide if you want to buy a bottle.

Grain to glass.

This term is slowly being used in whisky labels and is derived from the term “bean to bar” used for chocolates. The idea behind this term is that the grain used in the whisky came from their own farm, processed in their own facility then distilled, aged and bottled in their own facility as well. I have a few problems with this term. First is the fact that it is not defined in regulation so the truth behind the term is relevant to whoever is using it. Second, using your own grain does not necessarily mean it is going to be good. Grain quality is important but the flavour of the final product is influenced by so much more than the grain. The yeast strain used in the fermentation process affects the flavour, the type of still used affects the flavour, the number of times it is distilled affects the flavour, the barrel used to age the whisky affects the flavour, the location of the barrel in the warehouse affects the flavour, the climate of the area where the whisky ages affects the flavour and many more. This term is nothing but a marketing fluff. The one thing I hate about this term is that it is always presented like a guarantee that the whisky will be great because you can taste the full terroir of the distillery. If a bottle carries this term I suggest you avoid buying it until you have tasted it in a bar. 

Craft Whisk(e)y.

The popularity of whisky has spawned a growing number of craft distillers producing craft whiskies. Many bottles you see today in liquor stores will carry the word "craft" and is a term that often evokes a sense of careful craftsmanship and therefore the product must be really good. The word craft is usually presented to mean that the product was produced by a craftsman who is involved in every step of the production of the product to ensure it is great. Many of the craft distilleries are small and therefore the master distiller is involved in all of the aspects of production. My problem with the term craft is that small is not always good. A lot of craft distillers have to start earning some cash quick and therefore a lot of them release really young whiskies. Many of them do not wait for the whisky to fully mature because they have to make sure they start releasing product into the market. Adding to the problem is the fact that a lot of these craft whiskies are usually in the premium price range too. These two things - relative poor quality of the product sold at premium prices turns a lot of people off. If a bottle carries the word "Craft" I suggest you avoid buying it until you have tasted it in a bar. 

Straight.

Another word you see a lot in American whisky bottles is Straight. What is Straight Whisky? This is a federally regulated term for an American whisky that has met all of the following requirements: 

Whisky produced from a

fermented mash of less than

51 percent of any one type of

grain and stored in charred

new oak containers for 2

years or more and 

produced only in one state. 

For a whisky to be called straight, it actually has to pass these requirements so there is some sort of guarantee on what you are buying. When you see the word "Straight" in a bottle, I suggest you buy it. The whisky tends to be good and has had enough contact with the wood to have developed those caramel and vanilla flavours. 

Bottled in Bond.

Some bottles will also carry a very peculiar term "Bottled in Bond". When I first saw this on a bottle I really thought it was just another marketing fluff. Why would a whisky need to be bonded? Then I started reading up on what this term means and my gosh does it matter a lot. To me, this is the term you want to always look for in a whisky. So what does it mean? For a whisky to carry the term "Bottled in Bond" or "Bonded" it has to meet this legal definition as defined by the Bottled in Bond act of 1897:

"In order to be labeled as "Bottled-in-Bond" or "Bonded," the spirit must be the product of one distillation season and one distiller at one distillery. It must be bottled and stored in federally bonded warehouses under the U.S. government supervision for no less than 4 years. The bottled product's label must identify the distillery by DSP number where it was distilled and, if different, where it was bottled." 

As you can see, the requirement is very restrictive for a whisky to call itself bonded. When a bottle carries the term "Bottled in Bond" you can be guaranteed that the product inside is going to be great. When you see a "Bonded" whisky, grab it. The other great part about bonded whiskies is that a lot of them are relatively cheap too! 

To be continued......