Whisky & Bourbon
60 Secs…
Whisky is made the world over, with records dating back hundreds of years to Scotland & Ireland, although the commonly held view is that monks from Europe were responsible for the earliest spirit now known as whisky.
Bourbon is one form of world whisky, and it’s been made in the US since the late 1700s. Typically it’s made from a variety of grains (the ‘mash bill’) BUT importantly to be called bourbon at least 51% of these must be corn.
The standards also require that bourbon be matured in charred virgin oak barrels i.e. fresh oak, hence why there are so many ex-bourbon barrels available to mature other spirits. Unlike whisky here in the UK, there’s no minimum-ageing requirement, but if it’s <4 years this should be clear on the label.
Bourbon must be made in the US but, contrary to popular belief, does not have to be made in Kentucky – albeit estimates are that 90+% of bourbon is made in the ‘Bluegrass State’.
So bourbon is whisk(e)y but with its own rules.
