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What’s The Difference Between Single Malt and Blended Whisky?

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Ballantine’s Whisky
What’s The Difference Between Single Malt and Blended Whisky?

If you consider yourself a whisky admirer, you should know the differences between single malt and blended whiskies. A lot of consumers seem to misinterpret that single malt whisky isn’t considered as blended.

However, on the contrary, single malt scotch is also a kind of blend, but it is very specific. Nearly all the premium whiskies available at present are blends of various types, such as ryes, Tennessee, bourbon, and scotch.

The reason why this confusion occurs is due to the misconception of the words “Blend” and “Single”, which appear to mask a rather important reality. Therefore, let us take a look at the fine line of differences in single malt and blended whiskies.

Single and Blended Whiskies – What Are They?

When it comes to blended whiskies such as Ballantine’s scotch whisky available for a certain price, they are nothing but a product that offers a mix of grain whiskies and barrel-aged malts. However, if whisky is labelled as “Single Malt”, it need not necessarily be a product of a single barrel of whisky.

Rather, most of the single malts are usually blended. Talking about a single-malt scotch, it is nothing but a product gained from a single distillery. A single-malt Ballentine may contain several whiskies from numerous barrels at their distillery, but the whisky added is only produced at Ballentine’s.

House Style, Consistency, and Variables

When a whisky is kept to age in a barrel, several processes take place that generate variables that might influence the look and taste of the spirit. While numerous variables take place, the climate variations, quality of oak, and barrel placement that make most of the difference.

As there are almost endless variables that may change the character of a particular whisky, almost all of the whiskies available in the market are produced by mixing the barrels to produce a consistent product in the end. For instance, the Ballantine's Finest scotch whisky is affordably priced and is produced by mixing over 50 single malts. 

There’s also a master blender available at the distilleries to taste the spirits and mix them with the brand’s flavor profile to create the end product. However, not every barrel will produce the expected flavor profile and style.

What is a Single Barrel Scotch?

As the name suggests, a single barrel scotch is a spirit produced only from a single barrel of whisky. Each barrel provides a unique product, like the flavor, color, aroma, and other characteristics may vary from barrel to barrel. 

However, these releases are inconsistent in terms of flavor and taste, as every new release alters the previous taste and color. When it comes to scotch, there are not many single barrel scotches available in the market and are more common in American whiskies.

Bottom Line 

If you truly enjoy the essence of whiskies and look forward to knowing more about your spirits, then understanding the differences between blended and single malts is a great topic to get started. In case you need to know your preferred Ballantine's price, make sure you check out ballantines.com.

Also Read: Most Famous Blended Whisky | Ballantine’s Whisky

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