Now that the days are getting shorter and chillier, it’s the perfect time to curl up with a good book and a nice warming glass of whisky - or should that be whiskey? Same thing, just different spelling, right? Well, that depends…
Before we get going, let’s define the liquor in general:
No matter how you spell it, whisky/ey is an umbrella term for a type of spirit distilled from a mash of fermented grains.
Now let’s look at some different types:
Within the broad category of whisky/ey are many sub-categories, including bourbon, rye, Tennessee, Scotch, Irish, and Canadian style whiskies. The manufacture of each of these types of whisky/ey is guided and regulated by the government of the spirit's country of origin. As a result, Canadian whisky, for example, is a whole different animal from Scotch whisky, Irish whiskey, and American-style whiskeys such as Tennessee, bourbon, and straight rye.
(Okay, so far, so good. Maybe at this point, you’d be happy to enjoy a glass of the stuff no matter how it’s spelled. But if you've ever wondered why the word often appears different ways in different contexts, read on...)
Now things start to get tricky:
American and Irish liquor producers (and copy editors) tend to favor the spelling WHISKEY, while Canadian, Scottish, and Japanese producers (and copy editors) tend to favor (or should I say, favour) WHISKY.
The controversy:
So we have two things going on here: copy editing style and actual liquor style. The big question is: Are WHISKEY and WHISKY just two different spellings of the same word, or are they two slightly different words describing two separate groups of spirits? What do you do if you're a resident of Scotland writing about Irish whiskey or an American writing about Canadian whisky?
A solution:
Up until quite recently, The New York Times tackled the problem by spelling everything the American way (with an E), regardless of the spirit’s country of origin. From Kentucky bourbon to Islay malts, everything was “whiskey” to The NYTimes. But then, last February, the venerable newspaper made a decisive change.
After receiving a raft of complaints from some serious Scotch whisky drinkers, the paper re-tooled its approach to follow that of many specialized spirits publications, spelling each type of spirit according to the way favored by its country of origin. So, while American-produced varieties such as bourbon, rye, and Tennessee - as well as the Irish stuff - kept their previous NYTimes-styled "whiskey” spelling, the stuff from Scotland, Canada, and Japan now would be referred to as “whisky.” Makes a lot of sense, I think.
Whiskey/whisky nmemonics:
Here’s a quick way to remember how some of the world’s biggest producers spell their products:
- Countries that have E’s in their names (UnitEd StatEs and IrEland) tend to spell it whiskEy (plural whiskeys)
- Countries without E’s in their names (Canada, Scotland, and Japan) spell it whisky (plural whiskies)
Whew! Time for a drink.
Nora Maynard is a longtime home mixologist and an occasional instructor at NYC’s Astor Center. She is a contributor to The Business of Food: Encyclopedia of the Food and Drink Industries and is the recipient of the American Egg Board Fellowship in culinary writing at the Writers’ Colony at Dairy Hollow. She previously covered food and drink in film at The Kitchn in her weekly column, The Celluloid Pantry.
Related: Cozy Whiskies for Chilly Fall Days: Smoky Single Malts
(Images: Nora Maynard)
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I love Scotch Whisky and the Japanese have some great ones, too.
Haven't really ventured over to the American whiskeys much. Fun articles. Thanks for writing it!
My drink of choice is a single malt scotch on the rocks.
I only spell it with an "e" if I'm referring to Irish Whiskey.
It's not just a tendency. The "e" in Irish "whiskey" is an appellation. It's like the difference between Champagne and Cava.
I don't know anything about whiskey/whisky but it appears that it can't be an appellation because if you spell it whiskey, you don't know if it's from the US or Ireland. If it is an appellation, it would just be whiskey and you would know its Irish. Instead it is Irish whiskey or American whiskey. You still have to define the geographical location.
Also want to say this is a very interesting post. Makes for good conversation starters. Hopefully you will have more posts like this one.
Excellent post, Nora. Thanks for the information.
Explanations of why whisky is spelled as it is (whisky versus whiskey) make up one of the most common myths about whisky. Why? Because they are so difficult to refute without a fair bit of research. So, mischievous people, wishing to appear knowledgeable, have just made up explanations and these have, over time, become the perceived wisdom on the subject. While they all make sense, none that I have read have any basis in fact.
I’ll go over the main explanations I have heard:
The Irish did not, as some would have us believe, add an ‘e’ to whisky to differentiate their whisky from the Scots’ because they (the Irish) thought their whisky was superior to Scotch. A few may have, but this never happened across the board, and when there were hundreds of distilleries in Ireland both spellings were used commonly. Later, when whisky distilling went through difficult times and almost every Irish distillery went bankrupt, the three remaining distilleries merged to form a single entity, adopting a single spelling. There is no evidence that the spelling with the ‘e’ was chosen for any particular reason. However, there are still plenty of full bottles of Irish whisky around with labels that spell whisky without the 'e'.
The idea that countries with an ‘e’ in their name spell whiskey with an 'e' does not hold up for French whisky made in France, Welsh whisky made in Wales, British whisky made in England and a whole raft of others, but the nmemonic works well for those just beginning their whisky journey. Legally, in Scotland Scotch whiskey is spelled with an 'e' - whiskey, but you never see this on the labels. Editorial decisions of the New York Times notwithstanding, and despite the certain indignant outcry from those who have accepted, uncritically, the above-noted perceived wisdom, American writers who write about Scotch whiskey are just as correct as those who drop the ‘e’.
As you undoubtedly are already aware there are at least five popular brands of whisky made and sold in the USA which use the whisky rather than the whiskey spelling on their labels. As well, there is absolutely no truth in the commonly-held belief that Americans use the ‘e’ spelling because of a predominantly Irish heritage. First, that heritage is greatly exaggerated, second, the famed Scotch-Irish (Scots-Irish) were in fact Scots who spent a couple of generations in Ireland then came to America. But they were Scots, not Irishmen. Third, the almost-exclusive use of the ‘e’ spelling in Ireland did not happen until the 1970's, way too late to influence American spellings.
Similarly, the supposition that Canada uses the whisky spelling because of a Scottish heritage is refuted by the fact that both spellings have been commonly used by Canadian whisky makers, bottlers and distillers. In Canada, we now seem to have settled on the no-e spelling but I can assure you this was not always the case. At least into the 1960's and probably much more recently than that we have used both spellings on our labels, and we still use both spellings in the press.
Here is an article I published a couple of years ago on the maltmaniacs web-site.
http://www.maltmaniacs.org/malt-109.html#0810
I have since done considerably more research on the matter and am more certain than ever of my position that either spelling is correct in any country (or more precisely that neither spelling is incorrect in any country), have more examples of whiskies, labels, distilleries, whisky-makers, and writers who are seemingly unaware of there being any distinction, and more photos of bottles with labels sporting a spelling that perceived wisdom and the New York Times style book would deem incorrect.
Davin
Very interesting post, thanks.
I'm laughing right now because I just tried the Laphroaig last night; a friend brought it to a party. It has this really interesting cigar-like finish on it.
If you can, get the Laphroaig 15 year. I don't really like the 10 year, but another 5 years smooths everything out. You get a wonderful tasting whisky with, so far as I can tell from the Scotch I've tried, a very unique taste.
Around here, the price difference is $20. I say it's worth it.
Well, the important thing is no matter where it comes from or how you spell it, it still gets you drunk and a little happier :D
Maker's Mark calls itself a Whisky, so the over generalized statements don't really always work. I say take it on a brand by brand basis.
it's like pronouncing tomato and tomah-to - its the same difference. whether it's a whisky drink made from a whiskey still -- the spelling matters little since the absence or presence of an E would still make anyone happily drunk.