This whiskey is usually heavier and fuller-bodied that most Scotch blends. The malted barley used is the distilling process is dried over coal-fired kilns.
Regardless of the types, the distinctive character of Irish whiskey is determine chiefly by:
*the grain
*the water
*the fire
The Irish fire the kilns for drying the green barley malt with coal instead of peat, an important difference because essentially no aromatic chemicals are picked up from coal smoke or combustion. This drying process has little or no effect on the whiskey’s taste.
The Irish do not make a straight malt whiskey but rather use from 25 to 50% malted barley, mixed with from 50 to 75% of grist made up of unmalted cereals, barley, oats, wheat and on occasion, relatively small amounts of rye.
Irish whiskey became popular in Britain and its colonies during the 18th and 19th centuries. Records in the Irish House of Common show that in 1779 there were over 1152 distilleries in Ireland.
Irish whiskey
