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Origin of Whisky?

Did Highland Crofters discover "The Water of Life" (Uisge Beatha) while looking for uses for left over golden barley? Was it Knights returning from the Crusades, or in fact, Irish Missionary Monks that brought this great treasure to light?

This debate has raged for many years and will continue long after you and I are gone. Whatever the source, we should all be grateful that someone came up with the concept and that we can all now buy whisky of such great variety and quality

Remember, if it wasn’t for that first mystery distiller you would not be reading this article!

Scotland in a glass

Since those early days there has been considerable commercialization at the larger distilleries yet still you can’t often hear the word “whisky” without conjuring up pictures of the great Scottish outdoors. The sound of pure water as it runs over clean granite and filters through the peat beneath your feet. The rustle of the golden barley in the wind as it takes its nutrients from the rich, life giving earth.

Wherever I am in the world I can always return to my homeland through the whisky in my glass and that is a wonderful thing. Does your mind follow the same thought process when you are buying whisky or is it just me?

The main production regions

The geographical influences on this wonderful drink are quite surprising and it may help you to know the following before you consider which whisky to buy

Highland malts can be found from Wick in the far North East to Glengoyne outside Glasgow. When buying whisky from here you will see they are medium to light bodied with heather and some peatiness in Northern Highland whiskies and a sweeter floral flavour in the whiskies further South. We generally recommend pairing Romeo Y Julieta cigars with the Northern Highlands and Montecristo with the Southern Highlands. (That said the best combination we found was a Hoyo de Monterrey Epicure No. 2 with the Dalmore Cigar Malt, very tasty indeed!)

Islay malts take their smoky flavour from the peat fuel used for malting the barley. These malts are often described as being smoky, medicinal, salty and 'seaweedy'. Given their strong flavours you must avoid powerful cigars or your palate will never forgive you. Try an H. Upmann or Punch cigar when next you buy whisky from Islay

The Island whiskies are produced across a very wide area – from the West coast to the North East. These whiskies vary although all seem to have been influenced by their seaside locations - often salty, with a peaty, smoky character. Not as big hitters as the Islay whiskies but still well worth your consideration when pondering your next whisky purchase.

If you are about to buy whisky from Campbeltown be advised that the general style of these whiskies are medium to full bodied. They possess some of the peat found in the neighbouring Islay whiskies together with some saltiness. We recommend pairing these whiskies with a softer cigar such as San Cristobal.

The Lowland region lies South of an imaginary line that runs from Edinburgh to Glasgow. The whiskies tend to be light and dry and are often used as introductions to the world of Scotch Whisky or as aperitifs to a connoisseur. The BEST combination of cigar and whisky from this region (in our view) is the Auchentoshan Triple Woods and the Bolivar Inmensa.

The whiskies from Speyside are typically the sweetest of the malts, with a variety of strength from light, floral flavours to heavy, rich, sherried flavours. Depending on which side of this spectrum you buy whisky from you could consider pairing a Trinidad cigar with the light, floral style or a Montecristo with the heavier sherry style

Buying whisky from Robert Graham

Whether you are looking to buy your next bottle of whisky to drink or you are a whisky collector looking to add to your showcase at home we are more than happy to serve you from our extensive range of single malt whiskies.

Many of our lines are from single casks meaning that only a few hundred people in the world will get to buy whisky appearing on these pages.

We are proud to have a range of Robert Grahams exclusive bottlings and you should know that you cannot buy these whiskies from anyone else but us

If ever you find yourself needing to buy whisky in Glasgow, Edinburgh or London then please do stop by and say “hello”….there will be a dram waiting for you when you come!

Slainte!

Robert Graham Ltd Est 1874
10-14 West Nile Street, Glasgow ,G1 2PP Phone: +44 (0)141 248 7283
194a Rose Street, Edinburgh, EH2 4AZ - Phone: +44 (0) 131 226 1874
254 Canongate, Edinburgh, EH8 8AA Phone: +44(0) 131 556 2791