…Is a wonderful phrase used across the middle ages to describe a simple spirit or alcohol in an aqueous solution. Here is a role call of other pronunciations you may have come across both here and abroad - Vodka, Eau-de-Vie, Akvavit to name but a few, basically every country touched by Christianity will have their own version. (This part of drink history is fascinating with a couple of surprising twists – definitely a separate Blog!)

We’re talking about whisk(no e)y from Scotland this week, the Gaelic for ‘water of life’ uisge-beatha [ooshkie bayha], we’ll stick with whisky as it’s much easier to pronounce. You may have seen whisk(e)y spelt with an ‘e’ this basically covers every other country outside of Scotland.

Whisky is brilliant – with a depth of history, passion and styles unsurpassed by any other spirit producing area in the world! Quality always comes to fore – production is controlled to defined standards, whisky has to be aged for at least 3 years before release and really importantly if an age is declared on the bottle that must be the age of the youngest whisky inside.

A couple of key defining feature of how a whisky tastes are the oak barrels the whisky is aged in – as they add flavour and colour to the finished whisky. Second, and my favourite, the influence of peat, basically the more peat used in the production the more robust the whisky will taste, particularly in a single malt Scotch whisky. Single malts are from a particular distillery, made in a distinct area and in a defined style, they are very roughly covered by:

LIGHTER MALTS: You’ll find the Lowland malts and lighter Speyside in here as no peat is used and they can be triple distilled like an Irish whiskey – fabulous starter malts!

FLORAL: a little more oomph and not necessarily from peat, the oak barrels whisky is aged in start to play more of a part, think Speyside and lighter Highland and Island whisky – nice with a pint.

FRUITY: Highland, Island and lighter Islay come into this bracket oak barrels and light peat flavours mingle to give some heroic flavours – great after a bracing winter walk.

RICH: Island, Cambletown and Islay the peat influence is growing giving salty, seaside flavours – dark nights and open fires…

SMOKY: Islay now you’re talkin’ – not for the feint hearted or for first timers, the peat gives us smoky, TCP [trademark] flavours – try them with smoked salmon like Bleiker’s Highland Peat Smoked Scottish Salmon (on offer at £3.50 for 125g pack until the end Feb 2012) [Twitter https://twitter.com/#!/bleikerssalmon and Facebook http://www.facebook.com/bleikerssmokehouse ]

I tried this gem a couple of months ago and it’s phenomenal! Bleiker’s are an award winning smokehouse & proud purveyors of the world’s finest Scottish Salmon & Scottish Smoked Salmon. They’re provenance is guaranteed from the cold, clear waters of Northern Scotland, providing the perfect duet with this -

 Big Peat (Islay Region, Scotland) £33.79

This is what the Scotch whisky industry has traditionally called “a marriage of Malts” or vatted, basically this is a blend of four Islay Malts - Ardbeg, Caol Ila, Bowmore and wait for it, big white light, Angels singing… Port Ellen! Closed in 1983 and whiskies from there are becoming rare and expensive – the wee dram included here has to be at least 28ish years old!

The Laing family who produce this hail from Islay and they are very proud of the islands ‘traditions’ - and no wonder! A wonderful whisky that does exactly what it says on the bottle ‘ISLAY’ and ‘PEAT’ mean only one thing, this is a monster… phenolic or peat flavours from the off – beachy, oceanic and a slightly ashy November 5th finish, wonderful.

Jim Murray’s Whisky Bible: (96 Points) Scottish Vatted Malt of the Year 2011.

Slàinte mhòr agad!

Andy