Some of the most incredible advancements in speedboat and high-performance engine design came from the Prohibition period. We’ll be covering the most interesting facets of bootlegger history as it relates to high performance transportation.
Whiskey is undoubtedly one of the world’s most complex spirits. Over hundreds of years the family of spirits collectively known as whiskey has evolved from its relatively simple origins as a generic spirit in Ireland and Scotland and followed the movement of its creators around the globe. This tradition of whiskey making was enjoyed by both the wealthy and the humble, from lords that would have their own stills to the farmers whose grain fed not only the stills, but the country, as well. The story of whiskey is intimately tied with the story of the people that make it and the regions where it is produced and in those respects, little has changed since it was first made.
Though the process of distillation has been with the world for over 3000 years, it is fairly widely accepted that it was the Irish who first began making whiskey, the spirit resulting from distilling grain mash and aging it in barrels. Indeed, some claim that St. Patrick brought the art of distillation to Ireland. What is certain is that whiskey has been produced in Ireland for hundreds of years. Its production first noted by Henry II of England during his “uninvited visit” in 1174. Distilled spirits were generally known by the Latin aqua vitae (“water of life”), but it was the Celtic equivalent Uisge Beatha, pronounced “oo-ISH-KEE BAHthah” that would give this particular spirit its name. As the name suggests, distillers and drinkers held (and still hold) whiskey in very high esteem, and to those who knew little of the actual chemistry involved it must have seemed miraculous for totally different reasons than it does to its contemporary admirers.
The production of Uisge Beatha was first officially noted in Scotland in 1494 when the rolls of the Scottish Exchequer note, “Eight bolls of malt to Friar John Cor wherewith to make aquavitae.” Chronicles dated to 1577 sing its praises, claiming that Uisge Beatha “slows the age” and “quickens the spirit….it keeps and preserves the head from whirling, / the eyes from dazzling, / the tongue from lisping”—to sum up, “truly it is a sovereign liquor / if it be orderly taken.”
Whiskey moved beyond its purely medicinal uses early on and its production was steadily refined. Soon it would come to more closely resemble the whiskey we know and love today and in the process its name would evolve as well. From Uisge Beatha to Uisge, Uisky and finally, whiskey—its Anglicized form—reflecting the domination of England over the original whiskey-producing regions. As the process of making whiskey was further honed, the Scots would introduce several innovations that would lead to the name of their nation becoming synonymous with the finest whiskies in the world.
But the story clearly didn’t end there. As Scots and Irish immigrated to the New World their distilling practices followed and as a result of the staggering abundance and varieties of grain found in what would become the United States, whiskey making took yet another turn.
Please check back soon to find all that you ever need to know about the world of Whiskey.
