LET ' S TALK ABOUT WHISKY By David Beaufort-Dysart
W L FOOD & DRINK
LET ' S TALK ABOUT WHISKY By David Beaufort-Dysart
Hello fellow Whisky lovers.
‘ Namaste’ and greetings from India, although I am not actually in India. I am heading to my second yoga class later, let’ s be honest if the likes of Tom Hanks, Jennifer Aniston and David Beckham swear by it then I’ m down-ward with the dog!
Anyway, onto the subject of Whisky, did you know India started making Whisky as far back as the early 1900 ' s. The Kasauli distillery in Himachal Pradesch was founded in 1855( interestingly that was the same year the famous Médoc classification system was created by Bordeaux ' s wine brokers for the 1855 Paris Exposition)
For a time, Indian Whisky was perceived inferior, mostly produced by blending imported malt whiskies along with molasses, hence in the UK, US and Europe it could not be labelled as Whisky.
Present day there is a renaissance happening, the rise of online sales which gives consumers more access, also helped when the worlds Whisky expert rates a certain Indian Single Malt the 3rd best Whisky in the world( that’ s the one we are tasting today!)
Sales of Indian Whiskies are on a meteoric rise for e. g. last year Indri Single Malt, triple cask sold 100,000 cases that in amount in their first two years of production, this is a world record!
There is a real excitement currently, let’ s talk about a few of the USP ' s,( or unique selling points) Indian Whisky has a different flavour profile, partly due to the faster maturation! Angels in India I would say are the happiest why? Well, they get the largest share.
If you compare evaporation in Scotland, which is around 2 % annually. Bangalore, India is up to 12 % and as goes as high as 25 % in the Rajasthan desert. This faster maturation means younger malts gain more complex flavours, similar to that of older Whiskies.
The other point of difference is the Barley India uses, they use what ' s called a six-row barley which has a higher protein content, this gives more of a bread-like character also a slightly sweeter flavour, the sixrow barley uses less water that Scotland so better for sustainability.
What are we tasting today?
Amrut ' Fusion ', Single Malt Whisky, 50 % abv. The name Fusion is from the fact that they use two types of barley, 75 % of unpeated Indian barley from the feet of the Himalayas and 25 % of peated Scottish barley. In case your curious the word ' Amrut ' is from Sanskrit and meaning ' Elixir of Life '.
Founded in 1948 Amrut was the first Single Malt Whisky made in India, Fusion was launched in 2009, let us take a guess where Amrut decided to launch their Whisky? No other place than Scotland, Glasgow to be precise( no pressure guys!)
Amrut ' s founder, Neelakanta Rao Jagdale, believed that if the whisky could pass the test in Scotland, it would be well-received elsewhere. Its common knowledge that Scots are fond of their curries, in particularly Chicken Tikka Masala, this is said to have originated in Scotland, maybe the Scots love of Curries gave them a little bunk up!
The seal of( Scottish) approval in addition to Jim Murray giving ' Fusion ' the title of third best Whisky in the world( out of 4,500 whiskies) now if they are not two great accolades! This is a no age statement Whisky, although it will be around 4-6 years old( maturation rate would compare it to a 12-year-old or slightly older!)
Amrut ' fashion ' also won gold at the 2020 International Worldwide Spirits Competition, they use mostly American white oak casks, but since the distillery has gained an international reputation and demand risen, they have also started to use sherry casks. The Whisky is non-chill filtered and natural colour.
Nose: Sweet barley, fruit, citrus, hint of peat. Taste: Peat, coffee, dark chocolate, and marmalade. Finish: Spice, barley, and dried fruit.
“ We make a living by what we get, but we make a life by what we give.”— Winston Churchill
Until next time friends... Slàinté wirrallife. com 33