The American Whiskey Renaissance: The Rebirth of an American Spirit

INTRODUCTION Whiskey making has a long history in the United States. Even President George Washington owned a distillery. In the early days of American making, many distillers were farmers who also produced and sold as a source of additional income. In 1791, the U.S. Secretary of the Treasury, Alexander Hamilton, placed a 25% tax on distillers in order to generate revenue for the young country. Most of these distillers were operating small production facilities and many were located in Pennsylvania. They greatly objected to a tax imposed by the federal government. By 1794 the hostility grew into a rebellion, called Whiskey Rebellion which caused the federal government to send troops to enforce the tax (video). The result was the relocation of distillers to the West, most notably to Kentucky. Over time was being produced in a number of states, including Tennessee which produced the famous Jack Daniel's brand. The popularity of grew over the years and reached its heyday in the 1950s in the U.S., but soon the drink lost popularity and sales declined. During the past decade American has experienced a renaissance, both in the United States and internationally. Whiskey is once again a popular drink and that popularity is growing exponentially in foreign markets. Whiskey producers have expanded capacity and new entrants have entered the market. Whiskey distillers in the United States can now be found from Alaska to Florida, many producing popular small batch lines. The general feeling in the industry is that this popularity will continue, however, it is yet to be seen if this surge will be long-lasting or simply a fad. WHISKEY, BOURBON, OR SCOTCH? The word whiskey, or whisky, has a Gaelic origin meaning of life. There is often some confusion about the differences among (or whisky), bourbon, and scotch. In the end they are all but their contents and location of production make them different products. They are all alcoholic drinks distilled with grain. While there are a number of nuances that make each different, the main differences can be briefly summarized. As far as the difference in spelling, the term whiskey is used for products produced in the United States and Ireland, and whisky is used for products produced in Canada and Scotland. Bourbon, by law, must be produced in the United States, and most of it is produced in the state of Kentucky. Since bourbon can only be made in the United States, the drink is sometimes referred to America's whiskey. Bourbon must be produced from a mash of at least 51% corn, distilled at a level no higher than 160 proof, stored in new charred oak barrels, and aged for a minimum of two years (although most bourbon is aged longer). Tennessee Whiskey is not bourbon and has its own legal requirements. While similar to the requirements of bourbon, Tennessee Whiskey must be made in the state of Tennessee and be charcoaled filtered using sugar maple charcoal. Scotch is a produced in Scotland and malted barley as the main ingredient. All goes through a six-step process which includes preparation, mashing, fermenting, distilling, aging, and bottling (Figure 1). The preparation phase involves crushing and then cooking grain. The mashing process adds water to the crushed grain. Fermentation involves adding yeast, which converts to alcohol and through distillation, the alcohol is turned into a vapor. Water is added to the vapor runoff and stored in barrels for aging. After the has aged to the desired number of years it is then bottled and is ready for sale. Unlike some spirits, requires aging and therefore has a long lead time between production and availability for sale. A ten-year bottle of requires ten years of aging. While some blending of younger and older is not an uncommon practice, ramping up production still requires years until the product is ready for sale (video). …

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