🥃 Blending

Blending is the combining of two or more spirits of the same kind that differ by cask, age, still or place of distillation, in order to produce a drink with a consistent flavour. Most whisky, cognac, rum and brandy is made this way. Under Regulation (EU) 2019/787, a blend stays in the same category as its components.

What the law says. Regulation (EU) 2019/787 defines blending as combining spirit drinks of the same category that differ only in details: production method, stills, length of maturation or geographical area. Mixing drinks of different categories is a different operation, and the name of the drink then changes. In the EU and in Scotland, the age on the label of a blend is the age of its youngest component.

How it is done. A master blender tastes samples from hundreds of casks, draws up a recipe and brings the spirits together in vats; the blend is then often left to rest so the flavours can marry, and reduced with water to the required strength. Some producers blend using the solera method, in which younger spirit is continually added to older. The aim is the same flavour from batch to batch, even though harvests and casks differ every year.

Blends across drinks. Scotch whisky has three blended categories: blended Scotch whisky (malt and grain, such as Johnnie Walker), blended malt (malt only, such as Monkey Shoulder) and blended grain. In cognac almost every bottle is a blend of crus and ages; Fine Champagne means a blend of Grande and Petite Champagne spirits, with Grande making up at least half.

Why this matters to you. “Blended” does not mean “inferior”: both the simplest and the oldest whiskies and cognacs are blends. It matters more to read the category and the age: the number on the label shows the youngest spirit in the blend. Blending changes nothing about the strength; it is the same strong alcohol. The WHO reminds us that there is no safe level of alcohol consumption.