Blends: The Backbone of Scotland's Whiskey Industry

Overview

• Blended Scotch: Backbone of Scotland’s whiskey industry for nearly 2 centuries.
• Market Share: Makes up around 90% of all Scotch whiskey sold today.
• Perception: Often overlooked by whiskey enthusiasts despite many famous brands being blends.
• Renaissance: A new wave of blended Scotch is emerging.

Definition of Blended Scotch

• Blended Scotch: Combination of two categories of whiskey—single malt and single grain.
  • Single Malt Whiskey: Made entirely at one distillery from 100% malted barley and distilled in pot stills.
  • Single Grain Whiskey: Made on a single site from other cereal grains in addition to malted barley or using different stills.
    • Can include a mash of wheat or corn and malted barley, distilled continuously on column stills.
    • Example: Loch Lomond Single Grain
    • Rye and malted barley can also be single grain if distilled on one site.

History of Blended Scotch

• Leith, Edinburgh: Once home to many Scotch whiskey blenders, bottling halls, and bonded warehouses.
• Early 1800s: Birth of grain whiskey and blended Scotch.
• 1823 Excise Act: Allowed legal whiskey production to expand.
• 1831: Aeneas Coffey patented the continuous still, leading to cost-efficient, palatable spirits.
• 1860 Spirits Act: Allowed blending of different spirits under bond, removing financial obstacles for blenders and allowing longer maturation.
• Boom Period: 1870s demand for Scotch increased due to the phylloxera crisis in the cognac industry.
• Patterson Crash (1898): Financial crisis caused by over-reliance on credit followed by World War I, Prohibition, and World War II, significantly affecting Scotch industry.
• Mid-20th Century: Boom time post-WWII saw a ramping up of production and emergence of single malts.
• 1980s Onwards: Single malts gained prominence, making blends appear inferior.

Modern Trends in Blended Scotch

• New Wave Brands: Emergence of new and innovative blended Scotch brands.
  • Compass Box: Founded by John Glaser, with successful blends like Asyla, Great King Street, Artist Blend, and Glasgow Blend.
  • Other Brands: Peat by Atom Brands, Woven Whiskey, Thompson Brothers at Dornoch Distillery, White Heather, Coach Built, McLean’s Nose, Turntable Spirits, and ARDRE.

ARDRE: A Case Study

• Vision: Created to highlight the excellence of blended Scotch, combining insights from both Scottish and Japanese blending traditions.
• Creation: Led by Richard Bates, involved 3 years of development and hundreds of iterations.
  • Blend Components: Used whisky from various distilleries including Bowmore, Laphroaig, Auchentoshan, Ardmore, Glen Garioch, Macallan, Glenrothes, and Highland Park.
  • Solera System: Double solera system for blending and maintaining consistency across batches.
• Blending Process: Four building blocks - blended grain, American oak malt, sherried malt, and peated malt.

Blending Process and Components

• Blended Grain: Sweet and delicate with American oak, contributing smoothness and volume.
• American Oak Malt: Fresh fruity notes, green apple, honey, showcasing top notes.
• Sherried Malt: Rich fruit from oloroso sherry casks, tannic with European oak influence.
• Peated Malt: Incorporates both island and mainland peat, providing smokiness and complexity.

Key Challenges and Market Perception

• Bartenders' Insights: Blend provides versatility in cocktails; new wave blends encourage trying new flavors.
• Consumer Resistance: Preconceptions about blends being inferior persist, need for education and engagement.
• Cocktail Culture: Highballs influenced by Japanese bartending are popular, blending offers unique cocktail experiences.
• Signature Serve - Off the Rocks: Encourages experimentation with slight chill and dilution enhancing the flavors.

Conclusion

• Blends' Future: With new wave blends like ARDRE, the perception and appreciation of blended Scotch is evolving.
• Market Presence: Blends continue to be the backbone of the Scotch industry, with a potential renaissance on the horizon.