What's Difference Between Single Malt and Blended Whisky?

What’s the Difference Between Single Malt and Blended Whisky?

Which is better, single malt or blended whisky?

That’s a question that can start a debate which rumbles on and on. There’s often a perception that single malt whisky is superior to blends, and I’ll admit, it’s a perception I personally held.

Why is that?

My understanding was that blends were inferior for a number of reasons: they were just a mix of leftover whiskies, they were blended with ‘lesser’ grain whisky, they were cheaper, and why would you go for a blend when you could have a ‘pure’ single malt?

What is blended whisky?

Firstly, pretty much all whisky that isn’t single cask is blended together. Even a single malt. If you take the whisky from one cask within a distillery and mix it with another from the same distillery, then you’re blending.

However, what we see bottled as ‘Blended Scotch Whisky’ is a mix of single malts from different distilleries as well as single grain, all blended together and bottled.

There are three main types of blends:

Blended Scotch Whisky: This is a mix of at least two single malts from different distilleries and single grain, blended together.
Blended Malt Scotch Whisky: This is a mix of at least two single malts blended together. There is no inclusion of grain whisky in this—it’s purely malt whisky.
Blended Grain Whisky: This isn’t as common, but it’s a mix of different single grain whiskies from single grain distilleries, blended together.

There are no strict rules on how the blends are to be made up; it could be 90% single grain whisky and 10% single malt, or it could be a 50-50 split. As long as there are whiskies from different distilleries mixed together, it must legally be called a ‘blend’.

Why do people think single malt is better than blends?

There are a couple of likely reasons for this. First of all, when single malt was first advertised, it was marketed as ‘Pure Malt’ and sold to people as the premium choice.

An advertising campaign in 1963 for Glenfiddich Pure Malt which included slogans like ‘Sit when you drink Glenfiddich, you may never stand for a blend again.’

seemed like a bold move from William Grant & Sons considering they also owned Grants Blended Scotch which was (and still is) one of the largest selling blends around the world.

This created a sense of prestige around single malts over blends. You were seen as a ‘connoisseur’ if you drank single malt, it was the real stuff, not the average drinker’s blend.

Another reason people would possibly look down their noses at a blend is the cost and accessibility.

Blended whisky is often mass-produced, and a lot of brands are made available across the world as a pouring whisky. It’s in supermarkets and it’s at a price point often lower than single malts.

Is single malt better?

No, is the short answer.

When we spoke to Ali Reynolds on the podcast, who had previously worked as the Brand Ambassador for Johnnie Walker, he said that when the majority of whisky blenders in Scotland were asked what product they would choose, it was Johnnie Walker Black Label.

The whisky industry is built on blending whisky; it’s the core product. There are some amazing and incredible single malt whiskies, but there are equally some amazing blends. Johnnie Walker Black would be an example of a blend that is recognised and consumed all over the world. Its consistency, price point, and global reach surely make it one of the ‘best whiskies’ in the world.

But then, as well as something as accessible as JW Black, there are blends made up of some of the finest single malt available to blenders. A blender’s canvas is an empty bottle. They have the opportunity to create a whisky flavour based on mixing the single malts and grain whiskies they have at their disposal. If you think there’s an incredible variety of single malts to choose from, then the opportunity for flavour is endless when it comes to blending.

Variety is the spice of life.

Just like single malts, single casks, and global whiskies, there are so many blends to try and enjoy. We have blended whisky to thank for the Scotch Whisky Industry we know today.

The first dram we had on Episode One of the podcast was a Grant’s 25 Year Old Blend, and our first bottling was a Rare Find 25 Year Old Blend. We’re big fans of all things whisky, single malts, single grains, and blends. Don’t worry about whether one’s better than the other; enjoy the process of trying so many variations of what’s available to drink.