My flatmate works with the Scottish Parliament and told me about this.
It is a celebration of the Association's 100th Birthday. I Learned some interesting facts, for instance 'White Horse' is named after the White Horse Inn from where the coaches to London left in the eighteenth century. The Inn is still there, just up the road on the Canongate, must pop in for a pint some time..
Also, did you know, Scotland ships 40 bottles of whisky a second overseas.
After looking round the exhibition, I went and watched the debate on Scottish science in the chamber. Apparently we are quite good at it, punching above our weight in terms of UK funding. We seem to have a problem with female scientists leaving the profession. There was some discussion of whether scientific evidence led to policy or policy led to to a scramble for 'evidence' to back it up. Alex Harvey, the leader of the Scottish Greens recommended a a book called 'The Geek Manifesto', which sounded quite interesting. It was an interesting debate to listen to.
The debate was fairly sparsely attended. The rest of the MSP's came in at five to vote and after they left there was a wee debate on the Camphill communities that were set up by in Scotland by German Anthropsophical refugees before the war. They are now all over the world and do good work caring for young and old, with learning difficulties etc. It turned out to be an interesting afternoon.
Anyway I took some notes on the exhibition, for those of you interested who can't make it along in person.
What is the Scotch Whisky Association?
In 1909, under Chancellor Lloyd George, taxes on
whisky rose 30% to fund social reforms. This is the background against which the Scotch Whisky Association was formed, rising taxes and consequent falling sales.
In 1912 The Wine and Spirit Brand Association was formed. In
1917 this organisation changed its name to the Whisky Association. In 1942 it
was renamed the Scotch Whisky Association.
The main functions of the Scotch Whisky Association are -
(1) To
protect the integrity of Scottish Whisky world wide.
(2) To
promote responsible attitudes to alcohol consumption.
(3) To
secure fair and equal access to international markets.
(4) To
tackle tax discrimination and help secure appropriate regulation of the
industry.
(5) To
promote Scottish Whisky as a quality product made from natural raw materials.
(6) To represent the Industry’s interests at Government level, both at home and
abroad.
Facts and Figures
Scotland
has the greatest concentration of distilleries in the world and Scotish Whisky
is the most productive food and drinks industry in Europe.
It employs 10,000 people in Scotland
and a further 25,000 jobs are supported by the industry.
Forty bottles of whisky are shipped overseas every second.
United States
654 million bottles (up 31%)
Asia 318 million (up 44%)
Taiwan
155 million (up 44%)
Brazil 99 Million (up 48%)
Rising demand in both mature and emerging markets has
resulted in export values increasing by an average of 10% a year over the last
five years.
Whisky Regions
Today five main whisky regions are recognised-
Highland
Lowland
Speyside
Islay
Campbeltown
Difference between Grain and Malt Whisky
Malt whisky is made by the pot still process and grain
whisky by the patent or Coffey still process. Malt whisky is made from malted
barley only, while grain whisky is made from malted barley and other cereals.
Flavour
Many imitators have tried in vain to copy the aroma and
flavour of Scotch whisky. The main factors are –
Water
Peat
The Scottish Climate
The cask
The exact reasons for it’s distinctive flavour remains a
mystery, there is no universally accepted answer. However the Scottish climate
is thought to be particularly important, particularly when the whisky is
maturing, the soft Scottish air permeates the cask while it is maturing,
eliminating the harsher elements to produce a mellow flavour.
Malting
Tradition meets science. During malting the barley secretes the enzyme diastase which makes the starch soluble for conversion into sugar. The barley is regularly turned and germination is stopped by drying the malted barley, or green malt in the malt kiln. This process used to be carried out manually, at the distillery, on malting floors. Nowadays this process tends to be carried out mechanically in malting drums and often not at the distillery itself.
Distilling
The true art of distilling is only acquired over
many years and is handed down from generation to generation.
Laws and regulation
The Scotch Whisky
regulations 2009 govern the production, labelling and presentation of
Scotch whisky and prohibit and whisky, other than Scotch to be made in Scotland.
These regulations also state that for blended whiskies, the
age displayed must be the age of the youngest whisky used in the blend.
Categories of Scotch Whisky
(1) Single
Malt
(2) Single
Grain
(3) Blended
(4) Blended
Grain
(5) Blended
Malt
Recipe
Only three
ingredients
(1) Water
(2) Cereals
(3) Yeast
But the production process is complex, combining tradition,
science and innovation. It takes highly trained and dedicated people to make
Scottish Whisky. Patience is also required. The production of whisky is an art
form, not to be rushed, as generations of families who work in the Scottish
whisky industry will tell you.
Maturation
For the distilled spirit to become Scottish Whisky it must,
by law, be matured in an oak cask for at least three years, in Scotland.
By law, Scottish Whisky must be wholly matured in Scotland.
Scottish Whisky is often matured
for much longer than three years.. Oak casks are used because they are
semi-permeable and allow air to pass through, this is essential to the
maturation process, the harsher constituents are removed and it becomes a
mellow whisky.
Malt whisky generally takes longer to mature than grain whisky
and is often left in the cask for ten years or more. The period of maturation
required depends on the size of the barrel used and the temperature and
humidity of the warehouse.
The newly distilled spirit is a colourless liquid. Scottish
Whisky derives much of its colour and flavour from the cask in which it is matured.
White Horse
White Horse Whisky is named after the White Horse Cellar Inn on the Cannon Gate in Edinburgh.
This was the starting point for the eight day coach trip to London
in the Eighteenth Century. At this time most of the leading brands would be
sold under the founders names, White Horse stood out as the exception to this
rule.
White Horse was registered as a Trade Mark in the UK
in 1890 and in the USA
six years later by Sir Peter Jeffrey Mackie. Peter Mackie realised the
potential of brand identity to fire the imagination wherever it was sold.
Tourism and Marketing
The realisation of the tourism and marketing potential of
whisky distilleries in Scotland
only occurred in the late 1960’s when the first dedicated visitor centres opened.
Since then, many distillery visitor centers have opened and make a significant
contribution to the range of tourist activities in Scotland,
welcoming over one million visitors a year.
The advent of Blending/ Whisky goes global
Around the middle of the nineteenth century blended
whiskies were introduced to the market. This was a significant development in
relation to both the branding and marketing of Scottish Whiskies. At this time
Andrew Usher was leading the way in advertising blended Scottish whiskies in London
and this paved the way for the opening up of overseas markets in the late
nineteenth century.
The industry was hugely supported by the fashion for all
things Scottish led by Queen Victoria.
Early advertising capitalised on the association between Scotch and Scotland.
The kilted Scottish soldier was highly respected by all levels of British and
colonial society. An image of him communicated glamour, heroism, honour and
tradition, a perfect combination of male virtues
The introduction of glass bottles
Whisky hasn’t always come in glass bottles. Initially it was
obtained from distillers, distillers’ merchants or public houses straight from
the still or cask and dispensed in stoneware flasks or jugs known as pigs.
Glass became more commonplace once it could be manufactured
rather than being produced by hand. With the introduction of moulded glass in
the 1820’s, it became much easier to standardise capacity.
The earliest know whisky bottles are from 1841 and are
reused wine bottles often used by local grocers.
