Origins of scotch whisky Flashcards
What is the gaelic name for scotch/ the water of life
uisge beatha
who discovered that the discovery of distilling whisky was accidental and when
the Novelist Neil Gunn in the 1930s
when was tax first imposed on whisky and by what group
Puritan parliament in 1644
how has the term whisky been shaped in the past in terms of pronunciation
originally uisge beatha was later abbreviated into uiskie in the 17th century which became wiskie by 1715. The modern spelling appears as late as 1736
What are some theorised/ believed origins of distillation
-distilling came to Scotland from across the Irish sea and was done by the Scots as they are called
-The ancient Irish where taught how to distil by saint Patrick two centuries before their arrival in Scotland
-distilling was brought to Europe from the middle east in 950AD
Who revived or revitalised distilling after the dark ages in Europe and when
Arnaldus de Villa Nova in the 13th century
Who is described as the father of distilling and what did they do
Arnaldus de Villa Nova due to studying the distillation of nitric, hydrochloric and sulfuric acids. He was the first to distil wine and name it alcohol and describe it as potable
What is the origin of the word alcohol
It comes from the Arabic word al’khol, a fine powder derived from khol or antimony which was used as eye shadow by the Egyptians
who where the original European primary dabblers in distilling and why
Monks for medicinal purposes
Where was the first recorded Scotland distilled spirit found
in an Exchequer roll of 1494 where there is a written order from the king to friar John Corr to make aquavitae VIII bolls of malt
Who is the king who ordered the first distilled spirit known in Scotland
King James IV the best loved of all the ill-fated house of Stuart
What discovery was crucial to progressing the distilled spirit to a more potable drink that could be used for purposes other than those purely medicinal
the invention of ways to condense the spirit produced when mildly alcoholic wash was boiled and the advantages to secondary distillation were discovered.
When was the benefit of cooling the condenser in a tub of water discovered
In the 15th century
When was it discovered that coiling the condenser tube in the tub of water traditionally used would increase the condensers effectiveness
In the middle of the 16th century
What is this coiling of the condenser tube more commonly called
worms or worm tub
In the mid 16th century the condenser tubes were coiled into ‘worms’ what other change was made to the whisky stills during that period and why
The head of stills was elongated into a pear like shape to increase the reflux of condensate going back into the still allowing for a better separation of the spirit and the water whilst also reducing the carrying over of noxious impurities
What where the advantages to the newly elongated pear shaped stills in the mid 16th century
It increased the reflux of condensate which improved the separation between the water and the spirit. It also reduced the carrying over of noxious impurities
In 1560 what happened to Scotland’s Monasteries and how does it compare to those in England around the same time
they were dissolved over time, the difference is that in England it was more ruthless and done in a shorter period.
how did knowledge on distillation move from monks to common folk
As monasteries were dissolved monks settled in with common folk and shared their knowledge on distillation. From here on wherever suitable cereals were grown some was used for distilling in the farming year
When was the first recorded mention of aqua vitae in Scotland
1494
In 1575 what was used to make whisky and what sort of things were added to it
it was made predominantly from any cereal crops at hand such as oat, wheat and barley but it also had additives such as sugar herbs and spices which where compounded with the whisky in much the same manner as gin now
from the early 17th century spent barley husks and spent grains were used to produce what
Animal feed, particularly for cattle in the winter
In the highlands in particular how much of their crops were grown as ‘drinks crop’ and why
1/4 to 1/3rd were grown to produce whisky and this was due to the barley husks and spent grains being usable as cattle feed in the winter which was heavily relied on
what led to the smuggling era around 1757
A ban on distilling in Britain until 1760 which forced a lot of small whisky distilleries out of business leading to home distillers illegally selling whisky.