Ireland is the place where the alcoholic beverage known as whisky came into existence. In fact, Irish missionary monks are believed to be responsible for bringing the art of distillation to Europe. On the other hand, Scotland is known for refining the drink. Today, the beverage is produced as well as consumed throughout the world. There are basically five categories into which whisky can be broadly classified. These include Bourbon, American Blended Whisky, Irish Whisky, and Canadian Whisky. In this article, we will tell you the difference between two of these five whiskies i.e. Irish whisky and Scotch whisky. Read on to know more.
Difference Between Irish Whisky and Scotch Whisky
- Irish whisky is the one made in Ireland, while Scotch whisky is the one made in Scotland.
- Irish whiskey has a softer, more rounded flavor as compared to Scotch whisky.
- Irish whiskey goes through triple distillation process, while Scotch whisky is distilled only two times.
- The pot stills used for making Irish whisky are larger than the stills used for making Scotch.
- While making Irish whisky, more emphasis is laid on the process and the casks, while Scots give more importance to the skills of the master blender.
- Irish whisky can be divided into Single Malt, Single Grain, Pure Pot Still and Blended Whiskey, while Scotch includes Single Malt, Vatted Malt (also called "Pure Malt"), Blended and Single Grain.
- In case of Scotch, only malted barley is used, while it is not necessary for an Irish whisky to have all malted barley only. The latter usually has both raw and malted barley.
- Irish malt generally is dried without using peat or any other smoke, unlike Scotch whisky, in which malt is first sprout and then dried.
- The making of Irish whisky is such that more natural flavors of barley rise in it, as compared to Scotch whisky.
