Easy Whisky Quiz: Beginner Trivia

The general convention follows country of origin: Scotland, Japan, and Canada drop the 'e' ("whisky"), while Ireland and the USA typically insert the 'e' ("whiskey"). Exceptions exist (such as Maker's Mark in Kentucky using "whisky"), but geographic convention remains standard.

"Single" denotes single-distillery origin, not a single barrel. A single malt is almost always a vatting of dozens or hundreds of casks from one distillery to maintain consistency. If drawn from a single barrel, it is labelled "Single Cask".

The age statement is a legal minimum guarantee. Even if a vatting contains 99% 25-year-old whisky and 1% 12-year-old spirit, the label can legally only state 12 Years Old.

Unlike vintage wine with live yeast, distilled spirits do not mature in the bottle. Once separated from the oak barrel and sealed in glass, a 10-year-old whisky remains a 10-year-old whisky indefinitely, provided the seal remains intact.

Oak is naturally porous. Over years of maturation, roughly 1.5% to 2% of liquid evaporates through the wood staves every year in Scotland. Coopers poetically dubbed this lost vapour the "Angel's Share".

By US statutory definition, Bourbon must be made in the United States from a fermented mash of at least 51% corn (maize), distilled to no higher than 80% ABV (160 proof), and entered into brand-new charred oak containers.

E150a is a flavourless, bitter, dark food colourant made by thermally caramelizing sugars. Because natural wood maturation yields varying shades across casks, mass-market brands use microscopic drops of E150a to ensure every bottle looks identically golden on the shelf.

Whisky contains microscopic fats, esters, and proteins extracted from barley and oak. When temperature drops, these fats precipitate and form a cloudy mist. Chill filtration freezes the whisky and strips these fats out for cosmetic reasons, though many connoisseurs prefer non-chill filtered drams for fuller mouthfeel.

Peat smoke flavour is infused during the malting process. When damp, germinating barley is dried on kiln floors, burning peat smoke is directed through the grain bed. Phenols in the smoke adhere to the barley husks and survive distillation into the final dram.

Originally an apothecary unit of fluid weight (one eighth of an ounce), "dram" became Scotland's universal term for a glass of whisky. While UK law sets commercial pub measures at 25ml or 35ml, a "wee dram" poured at home with friends is famously generous.