1494

First written record of Scotch Whisky appears in Exchequer Rolls of Scotland

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The earliest documented record of distilling in Scotland, occurred on the 1st June 1494, in the tax records of the day, the Exchequer Rolls.

An entry lists ~

“Eight bolls of malt to Friar John Cor wherewith to make aqua vitae.”

The increasing popularity of Scotch attracted the attention of the Scottish Parliament, looking to profit from the fledgling industry.

The first taxes on Scotch were introduced in 1644, which led to an increase in illicit whisky distilling across Scotland.

Smuggling became standard practice for the next 150 years.

The excisemen and the illicit distillers, began a game of cat and mouse, with canny Scots coming up with increasingly ingenious ways of shielding the spirit from taxation.

Even usually honest members of the clergy would hide Scotch under the pulpit, and the illicit spirit was even transported by coffin to avoid the taxman!

By the 1820s, as many as 14,000 illicit stills were being confiscated every year, and more than half the whisky consumed in Scotland was being enjoyed without the taxman taking his cut.

During the 19th century, titans of the whisky world like James Buchanan, Tommy Dewar, Johnnie Walker & James Chivas, took Scotch out of Scotland for the first time.

Using their entrepreneurial spirit, they took whisky out to the British empire and far beyond, creating an enduring love of Scotch from Hong Kong to Hanoi, Sydney to San Francisco, Montreal to Mumbai, Bogota to Berlin, Cape Town to the Cape Verde islands.

The export markets they built, are the foundation stone of Scotch whisky’s success today.

A spot of luck also helped global expansion.

In the 1880s, the phylloxera beetle devastated French vineyards, and within a few years, wine and brandy had virtually disappeared from cellars everywhere.

Once again canny Scots were quick to take advantage.

By the time the French industry recovered, Scotch Whisky had replaced brandy as the preferred spirit of choice.

Five centuries after it all started, in 1994 the Scotch Whisky industry celebrated the 500th anniversary of whisky production in Scotland – and did it in style!

For the first time, global exports of Scotch Whisky broke through the £2 billion mark.

Scotch Whisky must, by law, be distilled and matured in Scotland in oak casks for at least three years and bottled at a minimum alcoholic strength of 40% abv.

The robust legal protection of Scotch – vital to safeguard a spirit globally renowned for its quality – has grown over time.

The first definition of Scotch in UK law was secured by 1933, with a dedicated Scotch Whisky Act in 1988, and new Scotch Whisky Regulations in 2009.

Bottoms up!

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https://www.scotch-whisky.org.uk/discover/story-of-scotch/

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https://ko-fi.com/thetudorintruders

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Learned men: Monks making and sampling wines, spirits and medicines (Photo: Wellcome Collection)