Dictionary definition of Whiskey is “a spirit distilled from malted grain, especially barley or rye.” and the synonym is “water of life”. In Britain, its spelled as Whisky, while in the U.S. its spelled as Whiskey.
And according to Wiki “Whiskey or whisky is a type of distilled alcoholic beverage made from fermented grain mash. Various grains are used for different varieties, including Corn, barley, rye, and wheat. Whiskey is typically aged in a wooden barrel, generally made of charred white oak”.
Whiskey is a strictly regulated spirit worldwide with many classes and types. The typical unifying characteristics of the different classes and types are the fermentation of grains, distillation, and aging in wooden barrels.
There are many types of whiskies and some of the very popular types are –
1 American
2 Australian
3 Canadian
4 Danish
5 English
6 Finnish
7 German
8 Indian
9 Irish
10 Japanese
11 Scotch
12 Swedish
13 Taiwan
14 Welsh
Whiskies mature only in the barrel and not in the bottle, which means the age of the whiskey is the time between distillation and bottling. The strength of most whiskeys is near 40%abv however it can vary and can be as much as twice the alcohol percentage in cask-strength whiskey. Malt whiskey is made primarily from malted barley and Grain whiskey is made from any type of grains. They differ in the base product, alcoholic content, and quality.
Most whiskies are sold at or near an alcoholic strength of 40% abv, which is the statutory minimum in some countries– although the strength can vary, and cask-strength whiskey may have as much as twice that alcohol percentage. The distinctive smoky flavor found in various types of whiskey, mainly Scotch, is due to the peat smoke treatment to the malt.