Whiskey or Beer on St. Patrick’s Day?

While many associate beer with St. Patrick’s Day, did you know that St. Patrick contributed to the development of distilled spirits, such as whiskey?

It is mentioned that the art of distilling was pointed out somewhere in Asia in roughly 800 B.C. The argument was that this method was simply used to make perfumes, though this has been refuted.

The technique by which the phases found its alternative to the British Isles is uncertain; though we do know that the Moors brought the art of distilling to Europe. It is believed that the art was then refined in monasteries in the course of central Europe. Apparently the patron saint of Ireland, St. Patrick, carried this trade into the monasteries in 432 AD on a Christian mission. even though, the Celts did attain the secret eventually and generated their water of life that in Gaelic is pronounced “Uisge Beatha”.

This basic yet not well known name is how the scotch whiskey came to be, as Uisge signifies whiskey. The millstone year for whiskey in history would have to be 1494 as a Sir Friar John Cor of Scotland ordered 8 bolls of malt. It was reportedly to be used for aqua vitae which is the first accountable proof of production of whiskey in Scotland.

The ability of distilling in a while left the monasteries for the farms where just about everyone was making whiskey up until about 1820 this is when the government decided they were going to shut down personal and private distilleries making them unlawful. The rough and once in a while brutal taste differs enormously from today. It wasn’t until the eighteenth century that it was pointed out that with aging came a mellower brew. The findings of the aging process was basically tripped upon when an old cask long forgotten was found out full of the good stuff.

The uniting of the two parliaments one from England and one from Scotland in the year 1707 is what drew into end result the Union Act. Realizing that it would pay off for both sides, they came up with an unheard of plan for making the malt.

By the year 1725 the English malt tax was forged though not without bloodshed. at this moment every second bottle of malt distilled in Scotland was of the unlawful kind because of roving excise men, illicit distilleries, and the fashion of smuggling.

In 1820’s much problem arose in the sort of crime and tough taxing policies which eventually became definitely unmanageable. To solve the trouble, the government ordered the Excise Act which authorized the government to track which distilleries were legal and those which were not by utilizing labels.

Whisky started out as a product for the British market in the 1820s, but today it has turned a drink that is appreciated and loved around the globe. Much of this amazing development is the result of the intro of blended whisky. Even today roughly 90 percent of all whisky that is generated in Scotland is used in blended whisky. though the interest of single malt whisky has increased in recent years and this development is probable to begin again.

So while beer is typically associated with St. Patrick’s Day, it is also perfectly acceptable to honor St. Patrick by drinking some of the finest distilled spirits.

And don’t forget to stop by our tent at the Quad State Beer Fest: Shamrocked on Saturday, March 12th, between 2 and 7 PM. Bottoms up!