B - like blended malt whisky
What is a blended malt whisky?
A blended malt whisky is a composition of at least two single malt whiskies from different distilleries. As soon as even one drop of a single malt whisky from distillery A is added to a single malt whisky from distillery B, this blend can no longer be called a single malt, but is classified as a blended malt whisky.
What examples of blended malt whisky are there?
There are now numerous blended malt whiskies on the market that are not just limited to Scotland, but can be found all over the world. At St. Kilian Distillers, we also created our own blended malt in 2023. The unique Franconian Vatted Malt Whisky was created by blending our single malt whisky with the smoky single malt from the Upper Franconian distillery Elch-Whisky.
What does the term vatted malt mean?
Until 2009, the term vatted malt was used in Scotland to describe the blending of several single malt whiskies. The Scotch Whisky Association (SWA) then replaced this term with blended malt. This change was aimed at making the term more accurate and easier to understand, as vatted malt - according to the SWA - was sometimes misinterpreted and did not reflect the exact nature of the product.
What is the difference between blended malt and blended whisky?
A blended malt is created by blending various single malt whiskies from different distilleries. This blend is made exclusively from 100% malted barley. In contrast, a blended whisky contains both single malt and single grain whisky.
What is grain whisky?
Grain whisky is made from a mash that does not consist of 100% malted barley, but is composed of other types of grain or mixtures. Wheat or maize are usually used as the basis, to which a small proportion of malted barley is added as a source of enzymes. After alcoholic fermentation, the resulting wash is distilled in a continuous still, also known as a column, Coffey or patent still. This process can produce distillates with an alcohol content of almost 95% by volume. If the grain whisky comes from a single distillery, it is referred to as single grain.
Does St. Kilian also have a blended whisky in its range?
Yes, our range not only includes single malt and blended malt whiskies, but also blended whiskies. These include our mild Bud Spencer - The Legend bottling and the two mild and smoky Terence Hill - The Hero whiskies. These belong to the blends category. Our St. Kilian single malt whisky was married with various whiskies (malt, pot still, grain whisky) from the Irish Great Northern Distillery. According to the current European Spirits Regulation, they belong to the blended whisky category.
What is blended Scotch whisky?
This term refers exclusively to whiskies that are produced, matured, bottled and labeled in Scotland. To produce a blended Scotch, single malt whiskies and single grain whiskies from Scottish distilleries, each of which has been matured in oak casks for at least three years, are blended together. Scottish blends usually contain between 12 and 25 malts, although in some cases the number can be as high as 50. Although the quality of a blend does not necessarily depend on the number of malts in the blend, the higher the proportion of malt, the better the taste of the blend.