How Whisky Is Made

December 22, 2024 6:53 AM

"How Whisky Is Made" is a charming 3D animation that helped me understand the process better than any written description had.
posted by Lemkin (14 comments total)

Best enjoyed with a wee dram.
posted by Lemkin at 7:06 AM on December 22, 2024 [2 favorites]

Interesting, thanks for sharing!
posted by Toddles at 7:36 AM on December 22, 2024 [1 favorite]

Scottish Whisky Distillery Tour Guide
posted by Pryde at 7:47 AM on December 22, 2024 [3 favorites]

Scottish Whisky Distillery Tour Guide

"Aye."
posted by Lemkin at 8:05 AM on December 22, 2024

I'm no expert but they left out an important part of the process. You don't drink the stuff right out of the barrels. They mix the contents of the barrels with water and mix bits of various barrels in together to ensure that the brand/label you are buying tastes uniform. In a way, this is the most important part, because otherwise Brand X would taste very different from year to year (and even bottle to bottle) and be vastly different in alcohol content.

Not sure if they mix barrels in "single barrel" whiskey, but there's still adjustments made before it goes into the bottle you buy at the store.

But this is a cool video. I've been to beer breweries, and eating the crunchy, toasted malt is surprisingly tasty, and sweeter than I would have expected.
posted by SoberHighland at 8:14 AM on December 22, 2024 [4 favorites]

I'm no expert but they left out an important part of the process. You don't drink the stuff right out of the barrels. They mix the contents of the barrels with water and mix bits of various barrels in together to ensure that the brand/label you are buying tastes uniform.

For that matter, very few distilleries still do their own malting.
posted by Lemkin at 8:19 AM on December 22, 2024

If you wish to soak yourself even deeper in the trade, Wikipedia is quite informative...
posted by jim in austin at 8:35 AM on December 22, 2024 [1 favorite]

Single barrel means what it says on the label: all the liquor in the bottle came from the same single barrel.

(I work in the Bourbon business. AMA if you like, here or in a memail.)
posted by Insert Clever Name Here at 8:43 AM on December 22, 2024 [5 favorites]

thanks for this, this goes very well with what I'm reading at the moment, Iain Banks' Raw Spirit
posted by fregoli at 8:46 AM on December 22, 2024 [5 favorites]

Great vid, Lemkin, thanks for the rec. Always impressed w the amount of work that goes into one of these animations.

Also, Brian Cox pronounces Scotches.
posted by ishmael at 8:56 AM on December 22, 2024 [2 favorites]

⚠️This animation may only be used for demonstrations, presentations, training courses, whisky tastings etc. after purchase.⚠️⚠️A demonstration with watermarks and safety instructions is not permitted.⚠️⚠️To purchase a license, please write to [e-mail]⚠️
posted by JHarris at 9:48 AM on December 22, 2024 [3 favorites]

This is a good video explainer, but that game looks like a grind.
posted by mollweide at 8:03 PM on December 22, 2024 [1 favorite]

Explainer from the same source, but for the beer brewing process: https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=ZL_HGOgy_Zo
posted by fubar at 9:14 AM on December 24, 2024

I'm not even going to point out the sheer eponystery of the posted by SoberHighlands. Oh, oops!

But that is one beautiful meeting of topic and posted by whom
posted by y2karl at 8:27 PM on December 28, 2024