Whisky

Whisky (Gaelic, uisge, ‘water;’ uisge-beatha, modified into usquebaugh, ‘water of life’), a spirit made by the distillation of the fermented extract from malted and unmalted cereals, potatoes, or any starch-yielding material. The best qualities are made either from malted barley alone, or from a mixed grist of barley-malt and dried barley and oats. Very large quantities of maize and rice are now used, whilst sugar and molasses, and smaller quantities of wheat, rye, sago, and other materials are employed. On the Continent potatoes and beet-root are extensively used, and artichokes and other roots are also employed. The mode of manufacture is described under DISTILLATION. Pure malt-whisky is almost exclusively made in Scotland, and always has been so, the pot-stills being used in the distillation. In Ireland pot-stills are most generally used, but, with the exception of two or three distilleries, malt forms only about one-third of the materials mashed, the remainder being barley, oats, and maize. In England large quantities of spirit are distilled by Coffey’s still from a wort prepared from the raw cereals with some malt and sugar, whilst a few of the largest Scotch and Irish distillers make a portion of their produce in the same way. Much of this quality of spirit is used for making methylated spirit, and much for making gin, British brandy, and cordials, whilst some is used for blending with the pot-still spirit or whisky. Quantities of whisky identical with Irish are now made in Scotland. Wales has also its whisky distillery, and in England a few distillers are once more returning to pot-still whisky. Large distilleries for grain-spirit are at work in the United States, and for grain and potato spirit in Prussia, Sweden, France, Holland, Belgium, and Russia. Spirit is also distilled in Australia (Melbourne). The continental spirit, though of high strength and great purity, is more suitable for methylation, for fortifying wines, and for manufacturing and scientific purposes than for a beverage. In 1891 there were 9 distilleries in England and Wales, 136 in Scotland, and 31 in Ireland. The quantities of whisky for each of the three countries in that year were in gallons:

Thus the spirits in bond are equivalent to three years’ consumption. In 1897 the quantity charged with duty was 13,102,404 gallons in England, 12,434,265 in Scotland, and 8,176,459 in Ireland. The revenue derived from the excise duties on spirits in the United Kingdom was in the year 1897–98 £16,400,000. The export in 1897 was 4,652,600 gallons; nearly half to Australia, much to the East Indies and West Africa. Spirits exported are free of duty, and a drawback of 2d. per proof gallon is allowed. Proof-spirit consists of nearly equal portions by weight of water and absolute alcohol, the exact proportions being water, 50.76; alcohol, 49.24. The legal definition of proof-spirit is such as at 51° F. weighs twelve-thirteenths of an equal bulk of distilled water: its specific gravity is .9231 at 51° F. With the present excise duty at 10s. 6d. per proof gallon, the distiller is slightly protected by the tax on foreign spirits being 10s. 10d. per proof gallon. The manufacture of whisky in the United Kingdom is under the control of the excise, and the principal governing statute is the Spirits Act, 1880.

In England and Scotland whisky gradually displaced the monopoly as a beverage formerly held by gin and brandy of continental origin. Distilling was practised in England as early as the 11th century, but was confined to the monasteries, the produce being used as a medicine. During the Tindor period distilling as a trade commenced, monopolies and charters were granted occasionally, and a system of licensing was adopted and greatly abused. Home or private distilling from grain was introduced into England from Ireland by settlers in different counties. In Scotland during the 14th century whisky had already displaced much of the imported continental spirit; the monasteries had for a long time preserved the secrets of distillation. By the middle of the 16th century a large trade was established, and house or cottage stills were found in all parts. In 1579 Scotch distilleries were taxed for the first time, and private distillation was interfered with. In Ireland as early as the 11th century the natives distilled 'nisge-beatha,' and no interference occurred till the 16th century, when licenses were enforced in the case of all but the gentry, offenders being made liable to capital punishment.

During the Great Rebellion the excise-tax on spirits originated in all parts of the kingdom. It was placed at 8d. per gallon in England, but was reduced to 2d. in Scotland and Ireland the tax was on the retailers; and the duties were 'farmed out' in all three countries. In Scotland by the time Charles II. was restored a considerable revenue was obtained. Soon after the Restoration the duty was fixed in England at 1d. per gallon, but it soon rose to 8d. per bulk gallon. Varying rates were subsequently established according to the materials used, the tax being levied upon the wort, which, according to its origin, was expected to yield 20 to 25 gallons of spirits per 100 gallons of the wort. In 1736, with the object of suppressing drunkenness, 20s. per gallon of spirits was levied on the retailer, a high license was charged, and the distiller's tax raised. But seven years' experience compelled the repeal of these provisions, for illicit distillation and illicit sales were enormous. The spirit tax was continued upon the wort, and for many years the rate stood at or near 2s. per gallon, with an expected yield of 19 gallons of spirit per 100 gallons of wort, so that the net tax on spirits was $2s.\; \backslash times\; \backslash frac\{19\}\{100\}\; =\; 10s.\; 6d.$ per gallon. This high estimated yield forced distillers to use very strong wort, hence the spirit distilled was coarse, and the whole of the English produce went through the rectifier's hands before it was fit for consumption.

In Scotland at the Restoration the spirit tax was remodelled; and in some cases fixed sums were levied upon certain districts in lieu of the tax. Towards the end of the 17th century private distillation was again taxed, the taxes being as a rule farmed out; but the people vigorously resisted the interference, for the licensing regulations were severe and unequal. At the Union the English system of levying the spirit duty on the trade distillers was introduced—viz. by an estimated spirit yield from the wort—and this system prevailed for the next eighty years, during which period the trade made great advances. Though the tax was similarly levied to the English method, it was not so heavy, so that Scotch whisky could be sold in London more cheaply than that of English make. The Scotch tax permitted of a lighter wort being made, so that the produce was less coarse than the English and did not require rectifying; a large English trade accordingly sprang up. But in 1784 the English distillers succeeded in getting the Scotch tax raised to an equality with their own, and 20 gallons at 1 to 10 over proof were expected from every 100 gallons of wort. Fine whisky could no longer be profitably made from a light wort; and if a stronger wort were used the spirit was coarse. The Highland distillers at this period only paid a license on their stills, and the Lowland distillers were in danger of being extinguished; but they succeeded in 1786 in getting the famous 'license system' introduced and the English system discarded. Still the Highlanders had great advantages in the license rate, and could sell in the Lowland markets. The Lowlanders soon brought skill to their aid. The original license rate was 30s. per annum for each gallon of the still's capacity, and an estimated rate of speed was allowed for in fixing this charge. By various improvements the enterprising distillers were able to far exceed the estimated spirit yield, and when this became known the tax was raised to £3, and so on till in a few years it mounted to £160 in some cases. No two distillers were taxed alike, and gross inequalities prevailed. To secure their high yields from taxation, smuggling was resorted to, and more particularly across the Border. The interference with cottage stills, especially in the Highlands, had encouraged illicit distillation; Glenlivet being famous as the home of the smugglers. The law was in fact defied, and even those in authority connived at the illegal practices; the revenue officers were powerless. Licensed distilleries were in some cases destroyed by the people. For many years smuggled spirit ruled the markets, and it is believed that for every licensed distiller either in town or country there were fifty or a hundred unlicensed ones. Not one-half the legitimate revenue was secured. Eventually, during the last years of George III.'s reign, the 'license system' was abolished and the English system again introduced with all its abuses. The estimated spirit yield being placed too high, the Scotch distillers were again threatened with ruin; the trade and the revenue fell off, so that by mere compulsion wiser regulations and a more moderate tax were adopted in 1816. Highland and Lowland systems were assimilated, but the smuggling so universally established could not be readily eradicated, and as late as 1822 not one-half the spirits made in Scotland paid duty. Trade fluctuations may be judged by one illustration; in 1816 there were only 36 licensed distillers in Scotland; next year, through some slight alteration in the law, there were 108.

In Ireland at the Restoration 4d. per gallon was imposed upon distilled spirits; and this duty continued for fifty years, but was then gradually raised till in 1815 it stood at 6s. 1½d. The license system as in Scotland was tried in Ireland; in 1779 no less than 1152 stills were licensed. An arbitrary number of distillings per still was recognised; it varied with the size of the still, but inversely, a still of 200 gallons capacity being assumed to work oftener than one of 500 gallons. This system favoured the large traders, so that of 210 trade distillers in 1798 only 51 survived in 1806, and then a license was refused for any still below 500 gallons content. As in Scotland for many years, a race took place between increased skill and an increased tax, whilst new inventions were discouraged by the government. The refusal to license the small stills immediately led to extensive smuggling from illicit stills (the produce of which was specially known as potheen). The smuggling was so universal that in 1815 to discourage illicit distilleries licenses were granted to stills of only forty gallons content. The smuggling flourished however, large illicit imports coming from Scotland. The restrictive legislation in Ireland accounted for the fact that, whereas in 1792 nearly 3½ million gallons of whisky paid duty at 1s. 2d. per gallon, yet thirty years after, with double the population, a considerably smaller number of gallons was charged when the rate was 5s. 6d.

During the reign of George IV. the present mode of charging the spirit duty upon the quantity at proof strength was introduced successively into Scotland, Ireland, and England. The table shows the rates in the three countries during the 19th century :

Although illicit distillation on the large scale is occasionally attempted now, it is quickly suppressed. In the Highlands of Scotland a few detections are still made annually, but those in Ireland are very numerous, and average some fifteen or sixteen hundred annually. From the revenue point of view the loss is insignificant. The whisky retailed throughout the United Kingdom is generally of pure quality, though often too new. Occasionally attempts are made to remove from methylated spirit its distinctive odour and to retail it for drinking, whilst ether is also manipulated for sale in poor and populous neighbourhoods. The warehousing system was introduced for the convenience of distillers in 1804 in Ireland, extended to Scotland in 1823, and to England in 1848. The bonding system is now very extensively adopted.

Very recently a number of processes have been patented for artificially 'ageing' or maturing whisky, by electrical appliances or by aeration and flavouring. It is unlikely that the excise will permit any such processes to be applied to bonded spirits, so that they must be confined to duty-paid spirits. The practice known in the trade as 'grogging' as applied to whisky casks, and so extensively pursued from 1880 to 1890, has by the excise regulations of 1892 been peremptorily stopped.

Although the Select Committee on British and Foreign Spirits which sat in 1890 and 1891 were unable to settle upon any definition for whisky, yet much valuable information was collected. Compulsory bonding was not advocated, on account of its being unnecessary and impracticable. All British and Irish spirits, whether of pot-still or patent-still origin, were to be continued to be described as 'Plain British,' whether blended or not. It was shown, too, that out of an annual consumption in the United Kingdom of some 28 or 29 millions of proof gallons about 16 million gallons were from pot-stills. Of the total quantity of patent-still whisky or 'silent spirit' made in the United Kingdom about one-fourth was used for blending with pot-still whisky, and another fourth was sent to the rectifiers for manufacture into gin and cordials, but much patent-still whisky went straight into consumption.

Blending of whiskies and spirit of different origin is largely carried out in bond, and doubtless very extensively in the duty-paid stocks of dealers and retailers. Blending of pot-still and patent-still spirit is defended upon two grounds—viz. the mildness of the product and its cheapness; the latter being likewise the chief reason for the large blending operations. All commercial spirit, however pure, contains a small proportion of impurities or by-products of distillation, known as 'fusel-oil.' Fusel-oil includes the alcohols other than ordinary or ethylic alcohol, and it consists of propylic, butylic, and chiefly of amylic alcohol, with lesser quantities of still higher alcohols. Along with these alcohols there are minute quantities of acids, of ethers, and of pyro-compounds, the chief constituent of the latter class being furfurol. It has always been alleged that during the 'maturing' or 'ageing' of whisky these constituents of fusel-oil underwent decomposition, but the analyses of Dr Bell of Somerset House totally disprove this supposition. The only ingredient of fusel-oil that can be proved to diminish during storage is the furfurol, and this at a very slow rate. The probable cause for increased flavour and aroma in bonded whisky is the interaction of the spirit upon the bodies absorbed by the wood from the wine previously contained in the casks. This statement is supported by the fact that whisky stored in wine-casks soon doubles its original percentage of acidity whilst other constituents remain the same. Improved methods of 'maturing' spirits rapidly are based upon these facts. The total percentage of the bodies known collectively as fusel-oil ranges in pot-still whisky at proof strength from '13' to '21,' and in patent-still or 'silent' spirit from 'nil' to '05.' Fusel-oil in less quantities than '3 per cent. per proof gallon is harmless.

Whisky when first made is quite colourless, and all the admired colours of favourite brands or their imitations are produced either by storage in sherry and other wine casks, or by the direct addition of a little caramel syrup or of a 'maturing wine' to the spirits. The new whisky as it runs from the last distillation in a pot-still distillery varies in strength from proof to 50 over proof; at the latter strength it contains 80 per cent. by weight of pure alcohol. The strength varies with the mode of working. The patent-still spirit on the other hand, very properly called 'silent' spirit from its flavourless and other negative qualities, ranges in strength from 65 to 70 over proof as it runs from the still: at the latter strength it contains over 95 per cent. of pure alcohol by weight, and is of specific gravity '8079 at 60° F. The chief centres of whisky distilling are the small towns and numerous villages in the Highlands and the Western Highlands of Scotland. Much is made in the Lowlands too. Large quantities of plain, patent-still, or 'silent' spirit are made in Edinburgh, Glasgow, and the towns near those places. Irish whisky is chiefly made in Dublin, and almost exclusively from pot-stills. It is also made in Belfast, Cork, Londonderry, Limerick, and many other towns, but large quantities of patent-spirit are also made in the same towns. In England almost the whole of the spirit production consists of patent-spirit, London and Liverpool being the centres of the manufacture. Pot-still whisky is now made at Bristol, and at Frongoch in North Wales.

In the United States spirit manufacture is largely carried on, the spirit being commonly made from maize (corn whisky) or rye. Wheat also is largely used. Bourbon whisky was a term originally given to whisky made of wheat or maize in Bourbon county, Kentucky. The whisky from Pennsylvania and the brand known as 'Hermitage Bourbon' from Kentucky are best known and obtain high quotations. The chief distillery states are Illinois, Ohio, Kentucky, Indiana, New York, and Pennsylvania. As in Britain, the tax on distilled spirits is the most important source of internal revenue from manufactures. In the United States the tax was first imposed in 1791, but led to the Whisky Insurrection (q.v.), and was abolished. Reimposed during the war years 1812–15, it was renewed till 1862, when the rate was 20 cents per gallon manufactured; in 1864 it was raised to 60 cents, to 1.50, and to 2. In 1868 it was reduced to 50 cents; in 1872 it was 70 cents; in 1875 it was fixed at 90 cents, at which it was retained. But during 1868–72 various additional taxes were imposed on distilling and distillers amounting to nearly 70 cents per gallon more. In 1863 the revenue from spirits was 5,176,530; in 1864, 30,329,150; and with violent fluctuations from year to year it rose to 55,606,094, but did not again reach so large a figure till 1876 and 1877. In 1880 the figure was 61,185,509; in 1884 the figure was 76,905,385, out of a total internal revenue of 121,368,620. After that date a decline set in.

The duty on imported spirits under the M'Kinley tariff was fixed at $2.50.

See, for history, Morewood's Inventions and Customs in the Use of Inebriating Liquors (1824), and Scarisbrick's Spirit Manual (1891); and for technical processes, Maercker's Handbuch der Spiritus-fabrikation (4th ed. 1886), and The Manufacture of Spirits, by the present writer (1892). See also the articles ALCOHOL, EXCISE, FUSEL-OIL, SMUGGLING.