How Much Is Scotch Whiskey

Drinking In Moderation For Health And Lower Calories

You might find it hard to believe, but drinking whiskey actually has health benefits! You have probably heard about the health benefits of drinking red wine, and actually it is the alcohol content in it that boosts your health. That means that any kind of alcohol actually has most of the health benefits associated with red wine including whiskey!

Drinking a small amount of whiskey can improve heart health and increase brain power among other benefits, however it must only be consumed in moderation. Two drinks per day for a man and one drink a day for a woman is adequate, and drinking more will cause the health benefits to disappear as the alcohol can be harmful to your health.

If you currently dont drink alcohol, it isnt worth starting just to obtain the health benefits. However if you already drink alcohol in moderation, look on it as a bonus. Drinking alcohol in moderations also helps to keep the daily calorie total down remember that each drink adds up!

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How Many Calories Are In Scotch

Compared to other alcoholic drinks, a dram of Scotch will save you some calories. Naturally, this also depends on if you drink it neat or mixed. A serving of 1oz 50% abv Scotch contains about 80 calories. In the chart below, you can check out exactly how many calories your Scotch has.

The Glendronach Allardice 18 Years Old Highland Single Malt Scotch Whisky

Another 18 year old release thats aged only in sherry casks, sipping this Highland single malt is like sitting in front of a blazing fire while a storm rages outside. Its aromas and flavors twist and turn, but elegantly so, switching from sweet vanilla and dried red fruits to dark chocolate and mocha on a dime. Bright fruit on the finish lures you in to take another sip. Average price: $190.

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Best Islay: Ardbeg 10

Courtesy of Reserve Bar

Region: Islay | ABV: 46% | Tasting Notes: Smoke, Brine, Menthol

“If youre going Islay, go big or go home, is Chasses philosophy. So dont be fooled by the light golden color of Ardbeg’s 10-year-old single malt, a great example of Islay scotch. As soon as you get it near your nose, she says, you get all the flavors of the island, the menthol notes of the peat, the brine of the ocean and the smoke that incorporates it all.

It works so well, though in reality, it isnt a heavy scotch, says Chasse. When youre sipping on it, its light and easy to drink, so its body balances out to the boldness of the flavor in a really nice way that gets you going back sip after sip after sip.”

Alternatives In The Same Price Range

As for bourbons at the same price range as Virginia Black, its not difficult to find them, as this price is set at about the average. Buffalo Trace is a popular option, which is especially attractive for the gamblers out there because its a blend of different bourbons, with the bottles having a somewhat variable taste.

Four Roses Small Batch is another well-known brand of similar price. This one has a stronger taste of cinnamon, but, on the other hand, it also has more alcohol. At 90 proof, it might be too strong for some people who are used to spirits typically of 80 proof.

A third big player on the field is Makers Mark. Their standard offering competes on the low-proof market, using this as a marketing point in the same way as Virginia Black. This brand will cost you typically few dollars more – around $40.00.

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Best For Cocktails: Bowmore 12

Courtesy of Drizly.com

Region: Islay | ABV: 40% | Tasting Notes: Tropical fruit, Black pepper, Vanilla

With scotch cocktails, says Chasse, you want to feel like youre enhancing the spirit with other ingredients, but you dont want those ingredients to overwhelm the whisky. Bowmore has the right amount of smoke, with sweetness and layering, so whatever other flavors youre pairing it with have enough to bounce off of, she says. Tropical fruit, vanilla, plenty of black pepper and other spicesall of these things it delivers are very easy to incorporate with other flavors in a cocktail.

Nevertheless, its particularly great with a classic cocktail thats not too fussy, like a wintery and warm Rob Roy. You dont need a lot of extra ingredients because youre getting all that flavor from spirit itself,” says Chasse.

Best For Sipping: Speyburn Bradan Orach Single Malt

Courtesy of The Whisky Exchange

Region: Speyside | ABV: 40% | Tasting Notes: Flowers, Walnuts, Honey

Light, easy and imminently sippable, this Speyside scotch is aged in former bourbon barrels, so it doesnt have the excessively sweet sherry profile of many of its neighbors. That makes it great for an afternoon dram when you want something reasonable to enjoy before going on with your evening.

Tommy Tardie, owner of New York’s The Flatiron Room and Fine and Rare, is a fan. Its light, floral its approachable, he says, and though it also makes great cocktails, its diverse enough to throw a cube in or sip neat.

Region: Speyside | ABV: 46% | Tasting Notes: Flowers, Vanilla, Pineapple

Made from a blend of mature scotches transferred into former oloroso sherry and American bourbon casks , this blended whisky has a luxurious texture from its additional 9 to 18 months of oak aging.

Its flavor mingles vanilla with brûléed pineapple flavor. You can still experience the Scottish heather, though, in its floral nose. At 46% ABV, its big, but goes down easy.

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Whats A Standard Drink

A standard drink in the United States is any drink that contains about 14 grams of pure alcohol . Below are U.S. standard drink equivalents that in theory contain the same amount of alcohol , and therefore create the same level of intoxication.

In the rest of this article you will find that alcohol levels often vary significantly from the guideline below and that there are some drinks that are much lower in calories than you would expect and some that are total calorie bombs. What is not discussed is whether the calories are good or bad. Or, is a calorie really just a calorie?.

Possible Sources Of Gluten Contamination

When distilled, all alcoholic beverages are gluten-free. However, some scotch whiskies may have been aged on oat or wheat, containing gluten if it is not labeled as such.

It can also get contaminated with gluten by mixing additives and flavorings after the distillation process. Gluten cross-contact is also a possibility in facilities that produce wheat, barley, or rye-based goods.

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Drink Moderately Then Scotch Can Be Beneficial

You might have heard this before, and it is true. Drinking Scotch or another Whiskey can be beneficial to your health. The benefits of regularly drinking a glass of red wine were proven a long time ago, but theres evidence that a moderate intake of alcohol, in general, can be good for your health. -With the emphasis on moderate and regular.

That does not mean you should start drinking alcohol if you havent done it before. There are countless other things you can do to improve your health. But it means that drinking moderately and having a sip of Whiskey after a long day is not as much of a guilty pleasure as you perhaps thought it was. Again, moderate is the critical element here. In the article I linked in the paragraph above, I explain what it means exactly. And if you respect those limits, your risks of having a heart attack can be lowered significantly. Cheers!

How Does The Distillation Fermentation And Aging Affect The Levels Of Sugar In Scotch Whisky

The reason why Scotch Whisky is so low in sugar is due to the production process. Fermentation and distillation practically remove and dilute the sugars to such an extent that they are negligible in the final product.

Fermentation

In terms of fermentation, the yeast eats the sugars that comprise the barley and other grains that make up the mash base for Scotch Whisky. When the yeast eats the grains, it produces ethanol along with other congeners. This process consumes almost all of the sugars present, although they can creep back up later on during aging.

Distillation

The yeast and the remains of the grains sink to the bottom of the pot along with any excess sugars. These remnants, also called the wort, do not carry over into the distillation process. Most high-quality spirits go through several distillation rounds and this removes any excess wort, including sugar. Scotch Whisky is no exception.

The distillation process involves a low temperature boiling point that releases and cooks away most excess sugar.

Sugar & Aging

During the toasting and charring process of oak barrels before theyre part of aging whiskies, theres a chemical process that occurs. It essentially degrades the woods hemicelluloses and makes it reactive.

This means when it comes into contact with Scotch Whisky for aging, it releases a small amount of sugar into the liquor. This is because of how the ethanol in the whisky reacts with the toasted oak inside the barrel.

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How Johnnie Walker Is Made

While Johnnie Walker produces a wide range of whiskies, they are a blend of both grain and malt. The grain is mostly barley, but the rules do allow for other types of grains to be fermented to make the spirit, such as rye or wheat. Malt, a mysterious word heard often in the Scotch world, just means barley that is dried using a process known as malting.

While Johnnie Walker has always been popular, its been losing some ground lately to other brands. To combat this, the brand has started to make some significant pushes in marketing. In 2018, they released special-edition Jane Walker bottle and they intend to release another later in the year on the heels of the last season of Game of Thrones.

Drinking Scotch Every Day Can Help Your Body Battle Inflammation

A study published in the European Journal of Clinical Nutrition found that 12-year-old, cask-aged Scotch whisky was able to raise a person’s level of antioxidants even more so than red wine, as reported by BBC News. Antioxidants are important for several reasons, but are especially useful for fighting inflammation, Shawn Talbott, an expert in nutrition and dietetics, revealed to . Although antioxidants aren’t just found in wine and scotch, the latter is especially rich in antioxidants. “In an Australian study done at Monash University, whiskey had so much antioxidant activity that it surpassed what you’d get from the ascorbic acid available in a glass of regular orange juice,” reported the Health & Wealth Bulletin.

However, the kind of whiskey you choose matters. Based on the study published in the European Journal of Clinical Nutrition, BBC News reported there was “a marked fall in antioxidant capacity” in participants after they consumed newly-distilled whisky as opposed to aged scotch, possibly due to the amount of copper in non-matured whisky.

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American Whiskey & Bourbon Alcohol Content Percentages

Straight American whiskeys must be distilled at no more than 80% ABV and placed into the barrel to age at no more than 62.5% ABV , then bottled at no less than 50% alcohol by volume . A straight whiskey is one that has a grain type, so it is a rye whiskey, bourbon whiskey, corn whiskey, malt whiskey, or wheat whiskey.

Unqualified American whiskeys that do not have a grain type must be distilled at less than 95% ABV and bottled at no less than 40% alcohol by volume . These rules are designed to give consumers a product that is close to the optimum dilution level.

What Is Scotch Whiskey

Scotch is a spirit made from cereal grains, water and yeast. The word whiskey actually comes from a Gaelic word that means water of life. Scotch whiskey must be matured in Scotland for at least three years, and is bottled at a minimum strength of 80 proof, which is 40 percent alcohol by volume. Scotch whiskey is also sold in 100-proof formulations, which clock in at 50 percent alcohol by volume.

A standard serving of alcohol, as defined by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in the United States, is 1.5 ounces. With this serving size, an 80-proof scotch whiskey provides 97 calories while 94-proof whisky contains 116.

Of course, most mixed drinks made with Scotch whiskey are going to have a higher calorie load. Add a little water to your scotch, however, and you get no added calories. The classic scotch and soda, made with club soda, adds bubbles to your drink, but no extra calories either.

Add 3 ounces of sour mix to create a Whiskey Sour, youll get 80 more calories in your drink. A drink made with 8 ounces of regular cola adds 110 calories on top of the count already found in whatever proof you are drinking.

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Best Smoky: Laphroaig 10

Courtesy of Reserve Bar

Region: Islay | ABV: 43% | Tasting Notes: Vanilla, Oak, Smoke

I personally love peaty scotches, says Chasse, because they are so indicative of utilizing local ingredients and making a spirit in a specific place. They speak of the terroir of the Scottish bogs, where the peat burns to make the fire that dries malted or sprouted grain.

In Laphroaig, peat flavor is at the forefront. I can imagine being on a blustery field the moment I pick up the glass, says Chasse. Although smoke is prominent, its not overpowering, and thats what makes the scotch so good. Anything thats one-note is not interesting, she says. But from the peat to the vanilla and oak notes to the fruity backbone, this takes the imbiber on a journey.

Glenfiddich Bourbon Barrel Reserve 14 Year Old Single Malt Scotch Whisky

Doubling down on American influence, this single malt ages 14 years in ex-bourbon casks then spends a brief spell in charred new American Oak barrels. Toffee and stone fruit aromas rise to the fore followed by vanilla and baking spices. The palate is bold and rich without ever feeling cumbersome. Average price: $59.

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Is Single Malt Scotch Expensive

Several points in the transcript give an excellent explanation of why single malt whisky is expensive: It takes a long time and a lot of effort to make single malt. Ground barley is added to spring water after it has been ground down. In other words, older whiskeys are expensive because they are rare, not because they are old.

The Macallan Valerio Adami 1926 60 Year Old $107m

The second release of 12 bottles of the Macallan 60 Year Old from that elusive cask came in 1993. This time, it was the turn of another famous pop artist to design the label: Italian painter Valerio Adami. Adamis label depicts a nude figure seemingly admiring the same bottle of The Macallan 1926.

Out of the 12 bottles produced, it is rumored that one was destroyed in a Japanese earthquake, making it even rarer and ultimately more sought-after. When a bottle came up for online auction in February 2020, it attracted 1,642 bidders from 56 countries across the globe, including Australia, Singapore and the UK. The winning bidder is said to be a European who paid £825,000 making it one of the most expensive bottles of whisky ever sold at auction.

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The Finest Bottles Of Scotland’s Premier Spirit From Blended To Singles Malts

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Best Single Estate:Glenmorangie The Cadboll Estate at Drizly

Its honey-blossom nose leads to vanilla and roasted nuts, a delightful herbaceousness, and a hint of orange.

You can have a single malt in America, Japan, Taiwan or elsewhere, but to be scotch, it has to be made in Scotland, says Tommy Tardie, owner of New York’s The Flatiron Room and Fine and Rare. But thats just a starting pointtheres plenty of diversity to the nations signature spirit, including single malts, which are made with malted barley, and blended scotches, whose mash bills include other grains.

The world of scotch is also evolving, with restless distillers nowadays playing around with various categories of the whisky, from heavily-peated smoke bombs to sherry-cask whiskies. Theres been a blurring of the lines in terms of flavor profiles, and theres more experimentation going on, says Pedro Shanahan, spirits guide for Los Angeles bar group Pouring with Heart. Its excitingit makes it more of an adventure for a novice who wants to start exploring scotch. From the Highlands to the isle of Islay, here are the best scotch whiskies to get you started.