How is scotch served

For a long time, the biggest names in Scotch game were the Glens—Glenlivet and Glenfiddich. But during the last decade, The Macallan has finessed its way into the conversation, and by some estimates is now the second ranked single-malt Scotch in terms of sales volume behind only Glenlivet. Nick Savage was appointed master distiller at The Macallan just last year.

While that may seem like an odd degree for a Scotch distiller, Savage used his mechanical engineering expertise early in his career to design a more structurally sound whisky cask. Traditional Scottish ales are served somewhere around 55 degrees—much warmer than Americans tend to drink beer.

Similarly, Scotch whisky is best enjoyed at room temp, Savage says. Fruit and flower notes in particular seem to pop up when you add a little H2O—emphasis on little. The wide bowl allows air to reach your Scotch and draw out its aroma, while the narrower opening concentrates those scents while still allowing room for your nose.

Bourbon is big right now in the U. Learning to truly appreciate Scotch is the work of a lifetime. But the hallmark flavors may best be described as smoky, woody, earthy, and leathery. Savage, like most distillers, is quick to say you should drink his stuff however you like it. Drinking Scotch is an art in itself, and there are methods that seasoned Scotch drinkers have used for years to really appreciate the unique flavor characteristics of a given dram.

Some even recommend wrapping your hand around the whisky glass before you drink it, allowing those flavors to volatilize even further. So, in summary, refrigeration of your Scotch is a definite no-no. Room temperature is the way to go to get the most out of your tipple. A standard whisky tumbler might seem like the glass of choice for any self-respecting Scotch drinker. But, Scotch aficionados tend to disagree. In fact, the recommended receptacle for your dram is a tulip-shaped glass.

Once your whisky is at room temperature and poured into an appropriate glass, there are a few steps to drinking your chosen dram that will help you appreciate it fully.

Hold your glass up to the light and check the color of the whisky. Some people believe doing this helps you determine the age of your malt, but this is a misconception.

Checking the color will give you an indication of how your drink was matured. Golden colored single malts typically come from sherry oak casks, paler whiskies from bourbon casks. Checking the legs on your whisky involves holding your glass by the stem, tilting it and then rotating it briskly, so that the walls of the glass are coated with the Scotch.

Why do this? Checking the legs helps you determine the age of your whisky. The slower the legs, the more unguent the liquid and the older the whisky. Why is Scotch whisky so intimidating? There's something about this spirit—which is really nothing more than malt or grain-based whisky made in Scotland—that's got an intimidating rep. Well, once you know how to drink Scotch—and learn that it's not so scary after all—you'll be that cool, breezy bar-goer sipping Scotch like it's no biggie. First, the basics: all Scotch whisky has to meet certain legal standards to be granted it's name.

Chiefly, it must be aged in oak barrels for at least three years. Naturally, within these two categories there are a million potential distinctions—they vary in their peaty-ness smokiness , brininess, and heaviness.

But before you start arguing about the merits of one blend over another, you've got to know how to drink Scotch the right way.

Here's how it's done.