There are five basic whisky types: single malt, blended malt, single grain, blended grain and blended, where the latter is a blend of at least one single malt and one single grain.

Single malt whisky
Single malt whisky is produced from malted barley, water and yeast and was produced at a single distillery. Single malt whisky is often hailed as the preferred whisky type by most whisky fans because of its unique character, linked to its single origin. Every distillery produces a distinct flavour profile.

Blended malt whisky
This whisky is a blend of at least two single malt whiskies, combining the flavour profile of the whiskies that are present in the blend.

Single grain whisky
Single grain whisky is produced from a diversity of grains (primarily corn, wheat, rye, malted and unmalted barley), water and yeast and was produced at a single distillery. Single grain whisky is cheap and easy to produce and hailed for its non-demanding character.

Blended grain whisky
This whisky is a blend of at least two single grain whiskies, combining the flavour profile of the whiskies that are present in the blend.

Blended whisky
A blended whisky is a product that contains a mix of at least one single malt and one single grain whiskies, but whiskies but will usually contain considerably more to offer a wider variety of styles.

Single barrel
Sometimes also called single cask, this whisky is bottled from one individual cask. Limiting the whisky to a single cask helps preserve the whisky’s unique flavour, as taste will differ within every cask - even while produced by the same distillery.

Cask Strength
Cask strength (or barrel proof) is a whisky that skips the dilution process and is instead bottled straight from the cask.