European Stars And Stripes (Newspaper) - August 14, 1977, Darmstadt, Hesse                                A asking the water of life in in its the malt swell Ltd Dulux null secrecy shrouds scotch blending formulas Here a worker checks a vat of by George Eberl staff writer a steady rain Falls on the a series of scottish Highland tiny rivulets swell into streams that pour Down the slopes toward the Village of due some Miles away in new York three american businessmen Complete a multimillion Dollar transaction and head for a Swank downtown lounge to celebrate the All three order scotch All three specify blended Scotland peasant drink once illicit has come a Long but there Are purists around who Are con Vinced the scotch drinking Public has been the Why of the alleged Hood winking is easy to understand the How is a bit More the explanation lies in but the heart of the matter is rooted in the familiar word on the Label of a bottle of As the argument blended whiskies include Grain spirits and malt by gradually increasing the percentage of cheaper Grain spirits in blends Over the Consumers Are being Short changed the original since world War its scotch whisky has risen to preeminence among the commercial High proof America is the 1 in a total of proof Gallons equivalent to about 260 million enough for fifths per year for every woman and child in the were exported to the exports ran to proof or almost three quarters of a billion fifths of scotch whisky which should have gone a Long Way toward temporarily solving some of the worlds mailing scotch is one of Britain Scot lands major it is by the americans and the it is a Standard item in virtually everyone liquor cab Many thousands of people make their livings in one Way or another through its production and yet the Industry remains a minor Grade mystery to most of the people who keep the business Prosper ing those who buy and drink the water of which is the translation of the gaelic a Isle from which the word whisky derived with the is usually used for Irish and american Whis the scottish clans who have made scotch whisky what it is today Are largely responsible for the Aura of mys there is a widespread fear within the Industry that the secrets underlying the scottish elixir would be stolen if too much Candor exists Between the Trade and the outside consumer not All share this Duncan distilleries manager for the Glen Riddich division of William Grant and sons in our View is that whatever secrets underlie scotch whisky Are not our be but rather those of like Many of those living in much of Stu arts life has revolved around the booze in his unassuming he makes it Clear thai today scotch is not the same brew it was during its Scot Tish Moon shining when it was often distilled on the sly rather than paying taxes to London for the scots right to drink their own native Are there grounds for a Brouhaha about modern scotch most scotch whiskies bought today Are percentages will vary from one Brand to the but Gener a blend includes approximately 65 per cent netral Grain spirits and 35 per cent mall much surrounds each producers blending for Grain whisky is usually Light in color and lacking in character what character exists in scotch is contributed chiefly by malt malt is the source of the drinks flavor and Grain spirits Are readily produced in Large amounts so Large in fact that a few years ago huge quantities of surplus Grain whisky were there Are several Good reasons for stressing the Grain whisky Side of the scotch business Grain spirits Are much cheaper to its lightness of color a Dufftown scotsman might even use the pallid is readily converted to a plus feature through the magic of where Light Ness is adroitly stressed in a scotch whisky association Booklet tactfully com ments that blending contributed to the spread of the beverages popularity As pure malt whisky is inclined to be Luu strongly Flavoured for everyday special to by people in sedentary occupations and warm dubious virtue is borrowed from the More drab element of the but it was malt More risky to produce through its More Complex pot distillation Stuart said whole batches May be lost if something goes that was the basis for the peasants drink which kept the country Folk of the Highlands and Western islands cheery and Stuart explained that the production of malt whisky is one of the most inefficient operations in any in Large because it is the very transient inconsistencies in the product which must be preserved if the end product is to meet the expectations of its even though there Are about 100 companies producing malt whisky and Only is or so conjuring Grain said the Grain is the chief component by sheer this is the profit producer by virtue of us very cheapness to some indication was last years figures for pure malt whisky exports to the Only proof Gallons equating about fifths were sent to or roughly of a per cent of the total scotch whisky blends made up the other 99h per at the malt exports represented a 33 per cent in crease for malt whisky Over the i97s the real connoisseur of Likely As will turn to malt whisky if he or she is genuinely interested in sipping with with malt the thought of mixing it with water or soda or even putting it on the rocks is a form of for All of malt whisky is not Only but often Tough to come by consider yourself Lucky if your local class i carries a Glen Riddich or to name two of the More popular but in the scots themselves will Tell anyone that unless you drink you Arent drinking real regardless of which you prefer and regardless what the advertising hucksters a eyes Light up in pleas ant Seaside town North of when customer voices a fondness for malt forgetting the Cash he insists the Patron must try each of the four primary varieties of malt saving the exquisitely Smoky Islay pronounced Eyela malt for Pride in product is in a say a number of it May be just As Well that americans in particular Are happily settling for the blended product it leaves More of the rare Quality drink for the who contrive it lovingly out of their pea purified water and Barley of Campbel the lowlands and Page 12 the stars and stripes Augi