Scotch: How Classy Chaps Get Plastered
A CRASH COURSE IN SCOTCH
Photo & article by MATTHEW GRAY for urbanemagazine.org
One of my favourite drinks has always been scotch. Amidst comments by friends of being a “sixty-year old man”, due to my choice of drink, I have grown quite fond of the stuff. It’s often called an ‘acquired taste’, due to the high alcohol content, and the very distinctive woody flavours. The right scotch is similar to an amazing cup of coffee, bar of dark chocolate, or bottle of red wine. It’s a drink that has a distinctive set of flavours, rather than just one.
The other day, I picked up a bottle of The Balvenie 12-year old single malt scotch. For all you non-scotch drinkers out there, here’s a breakdown of what that means;
The age of a scotch refers to how long its sat in a barrel or cask maturing, and gaining the flavours of the wood. In this case, it was aged in two different kinds of cask; one sherry oak, and one traditional oak. This matters because it affects the flavour of the whisky. In this case, it’s smooth and well-rounded.
Single malt means that it comes from just one distillery, rather than being a blend of whiskies.
Scotch refers to whiskey that is distilled in Scotland, rather than ‘whiskey’, which can come from the United States, Canada, and elsewhere. Scotch meets a certain set of stringent quality criteria, and is often regarded by snobs and aficionados as being somewhat superior.
In any case, The Balvenie is a good ‘starter’ scotch; unlike a Glenfiddich, it is full bodied (it doesn’t just taste like rubbing alcohol), and is smooth. The big question is whether the $59.99 pricetag at the LCBO is justified. If you’re curious about exploring the world of scotch, the LCBO on Queen’s Quay has a tasting bar where you can explore various blends and malts for substantially less than the price in a bar.
