However, because of lacking knowledge and inaccurate tools the results of the distillation was rarely the same. Sometimes the end product turned out too weak, sometimes too strong, and sometimes it even had a harmful influence on the drinker’s health, leaving them with not only a big head ache but with blindness. In the 16th and
17th centuries distilling went through numerous advances that helped make distilling what it is today.

In about the 16th century whisky became very popular and was deeply woven with Scottish life. In the beginning of 17th century the ever growing popularity eventually attracted the Scottish parliament to get their fingers in the pie and thereby introduced a taxation system on malt and the end products. This forced distillers, who could not afford the tax, to produce their beloved product in secrecy and away from the public eye
– the mysterious and almost romantic period of the illicit distilling and smuggling of whisky began.

To fight this illegal activity, the council employed a special force: the excise men. These were the men who searched for the smugglers and the distillers who weren’t paying tax and often bloody skirmishes took place in an attempt to settle the problem. Soon smuggling became a highly developed art form, smugglers were using anything they could to conceal their product and transport it unnoticed. They even developed techniques and an information network to warn people of the approaching excise men. Smuggling went on for about 150 years.

It was only in 1823 that the Duke of Gordon proposed to the House of Lords that the government could make more profit if whisky was produced legally. So, a new law was introduced, demanding that distillers had to pay a £10 licence fee as a set payment per gallon of whisky. Almost instantly smuggling died down completely. Today the Scottish Single Malts and Blended Whiskies have fans and admirers around the globe.

How is it made?
Malt Whisky is made from three ingredients; barley, water and yeast. The following describes the basic traditional process of making whisky.

The malting process begins as the barley is soaked in water for two-three days in steep tanks. The soaking increases the moisture content of the grains which in turn triggers the germination process. The barley is then moved to a malting facility (e.g. a malting floor or a drum malting) where the germination continues. The purpose of the malting is to convert the starch in the grains into fermentable sugars which will feed the yeast during the fermentation stage. Heat is produced during the germination so it is important to turn the barley continuously to keep the temperature even. If the temperature rises above 22°C the grains will die and the process of converting the starch into sugar will be halted. In a traditional malting floor the barley is turned by hand with wooden shovels called ‘shiels’.

After the germination is completed it is necessary to prevent the grain from developing further, thereby using up its food supply (the fermentable sugars). This is accomplished in a kiln where the malt is dried to remove enough moisture from each grain so that further growth is halted.

A kiln is a two-storey building where the upper floor is perforated to allow hot air to pass through from below. The lower floor contains a furnace where bricks of peat are burned to generate heat and smoke. The heat and smoke rise through the perforations and dry the green malt. It is during this stage that the malt gains its characteristic ‘peat-reek’.
To be continued in the next issue

The Process of Whisky making. Photo by The Eye