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Scotchy Scotch Scotch

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If you’re like me and you’re not a scotch aficionado, hopefully you’ll share the same joy I had at finally learning this simple nugget: all scotches are whiskys, but not all whiskys are scotches. “Whisky” is is a broad category of distilled beverages; if that whisky is made in Scotland and adheres to certain rules governing its production, it’s known as “scotch.” While that may make a walk down the spirits aisle a little less overwhelming, you’re not out of the woods yet.

At its core, scotch is either single malt (produced at a single distillery and comprising water and malted barley) or single grain (produced at a single distillery and comprising water, malted barley and grains). From there, scotches can be a “blended malt” (a blend of two or more single malts from different distilleries), a “blended grain” (two or more single grains from different distilleries) or just “blended” (one or more malts and one or more grains from different distilleries).

As for the nuances between the five classifications... well, you’ll just have to taste them. Fortunately, one of the best scotch selections around is at Bristol’s DeWolf Tavern. What better way to sample scotch then with an award-winning meal in one of East Bay’s coziest spaces.

Beverage Manager Kate Turner, an eight-year veteran of the restaurant, walked me through some of the scotch menu’s nearly three-dozen selections. The first pour was DeWolf’s best-seller, The Glenlivet 12-Year-Old (many scotches are labeled with their age). A short ritual preceded every first sip – swirling the glass to warm and open up the flavors, then bringing the glass up to your nose where a deep whiff primes the senses. The 12-Year was followed by other Glenlivet offerings – an 18-Year-Old and a Nadurra 16-Year-Old, with the latter being the highlight for its “crisp vanilla notes and long, dry finish with a licorice tang.”

Round two was a broader sample of distilleries and flavor profiles – a nutty oak Macallan 12-Year-Old Single Malt, a lemony toasted almond Glenmorangie Nectar D’Or (per Turner, “girlie Scotch”) and a salty, peety Talisker 10-Year-Old. I highly recommend a taste of the Talisker – while the Nadurra gets my top vote for drinkability, the Talisker wins “most interesting” (in a good way).

A word on water. Some scotch drinkers add water to their drink to soften the taste or intensity. I tried each drink with and without a few drops of water – I generally preferred the latter, though found that a big gulp of ice cold water between sips helped stifle the bite. There is no “right” way to go about it - personal preference is all that matters and experimentation is encouraged.

In the name of experimentation, DeWolf will be unveiling some surprises this January – scotch-based cocktails. Blasphemy for some Scotch aficionados, but Turner sees the greater good: “True Scotch drinkers might not be happy about it, but it’s fun and opens Scotch up to a whole new audience. Bartenders love it because they can innovate around new flavor profiles. Just because some people don’t like an idea doesn’t mean it’s not a good one.”

Does Turner think that scotch-based cocktails will alter scotch’s reputation as a “manly” drink? “All kinds of people are exploring more and more, and many are reaching out to classic cocktails. Our menu is thought out, researched and built on an idea or theme – in this case, unexpected twists on classics. Along with our many single and blended scotch selections, we have something for everyone.”

De Wolf Tavern, Bristol, Scotch, Whiskey, Malted, Barley, Distillery, the bay

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