5 min · Beginner

The words that matter

By the end, the five most important phrases on any whisky label will tell you exactly what's in the bottle.

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What kind of whisky is this?

Single malt — one distillery, 100% malted barley, pot stills
Single grain — one distillery, other grains allowed, column stills; lighter
Blended whisky — malt + grain whiskies from many distilleries married together
Blended malt — malts from several distilleries, no grain whisky

'Single' always means one distillery — never one cask, one grain or one batch.

The places this lesson covers, in the Atlas.