It is often forgotten that blended brands make up more than 90% of the global sales of whisky. It’s a phenomenal amount of market share, and it is fair to say that if we ceased creating malts tomorrow, within the week, whisky would be on its knees.
There are the classic names, Chivas Regal, Johnnie Walker, Famous Grouse and many more, but there are some lesser known, wonderful blends on the market today.
Blended whiskies are often seen as the ‘Cinderella’ of the whisky world – certainly in the UK! They do all the work behind the scenes, keeping the industry ticking over and ensuring that everything is clean and tidy.
On the face of it, the Single Malts often take the glory and the limelight, being the sought after whiskies on the market. The ‘Ugly Sisters’, per say.
So, what is a blend, and how is it different to Single Malt?
The vast majority of whisky is made up of casks that have been vatted together to create a flavour profile. This goes for Single Malts too. Nearly all Single Malts are, in practice, Blends. The only difference here is that the whisky being used has all been created in one disitllery, hence the term ‘Single’ – this is a nod to the fact that one single distillery produced all the spirit.
With Blended Whisky, more than one distilleries products have been used. They are then combined with a product called Grain Whisky. Grain whisky was introduced to Scotch whisky production in the 1800’s when an Irishman by the name of Aeneas Coffey created the Coffey Still (now known as the Column Still) which was patented in 1831.
Grain Whisky is distilled to a higher abv than Malt Whisky, which strips more flavour from the spirit and allows the creation of a lighter, more consistent drink. The amount of Grain Whisky used in a Blend varies from around 80% for the mainstream names, down to 50% for some niche market and ‘Deluxe Blends’ (there is no legal definition of what makes a Blend ‘Deluxe’).
This allowed for the Scottish Whisky market to expand globally with consistent products and the creation of Blended Whisky was the true birth of our worldwide fame as a whisky producing nation.
Blended Malt
Blended Malt is kind of a hybrid between the two styles, Blended Whisky and Single Malt. Effectively this is a blend of Single Malts with no addition of Grain Whisky. This gives the producer the ability to marry together the flavour and mouthfeel of Single Malts and get the consistency and bulk volume of a Blended whisky.
The Future of Whisky?
With the prices of casks ever increasing and the tendency for these to be held for investment rather than bottling, Independent Bottlers are finding the release of Single Cask Single Malts every more challenging.
Many are now looking to create a consistent, Blended Malt to allow an affordable, yet top quality whisky to bear their name and help create a whisky to appease demand.
With Lady of the Glen, Dram Mor, Berry Brothers & Rudd, Mossburn and Little Brown Dog amongst the host of brands looking to branch into Blended Whiskies, expect to see more on our shelves. Grab one and enjoy!
So remember, the next time someone turns their nose up at your choice of Blend, remind them that their fancy Single Malt is probably blended too, and would undoubtedly not exist if you weren’t enjoying your Blended Scotch Whisky.
Brilliant Blends at Inverurie Whisky Shop
