Editing Whisky (section)

==History==
=== Early distilling ===
It is possible that [[distillation]] was practised by the [[Babylonia]]ns in [[Mesopotamia]] in the [[2nd millennium BC]], with perfumes and aromatics being distilled,<ref>Martin Levey (1956). "Babylonian Chemistry: A Study of Arabic and Second Millennium B.C. Perfumery", ''Osiris'' '''12''', p. 376-389.</ref> but this is subject to uncertain and disputed interpretations of evidence.<ref name="Forbes1970" />

The earliest certain chemical distillations were by Greeks in [[Alexandria]] in the 1st century AD,<ref name="Forbes1970">{{Cite book |last=Forbes |first=Robert James |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=XeqWOkKYn28C |title=A short history of the art of distillation: from the beginnings up to the death of Cellier Blumenthal |publisher=BRILL |year=1970 |isbn=978-90-04-00617-1 |access-date=29 June 2010}}</ref> but these were not distillations of alcohol. The medieval Arabs adopted the distillation technique of the Alexandrian Greeks, and written records in Arabic begin in the 9th century, but again these were not distillations of alcohol.<ref name="Forbes1970" /> Distilling technology passed from the medieval Arabs to the medieval Latins, with the earliest records in Latin in the early 12th century.<ref name="Forbes1970" /><ref>{{Cite book |last=Russell |first=Inge |url=https://archive.org/details/whiskytechnology00russ_601 |title=Whisky: technology, production and marketing |publisher=Academic Press |year=2003 |isbn=978-0-12-669202-0 |page=[https://archive.org/details/whiskytechnology00russ_601/page/n20 14] |url-access=limited}}</ref>

The earliest records of the distillation of alcohol are in Italy in the 13th century, where alcohol was distilled from wine.<ref name="Forbes1970" /> An early description of the technique was given by [[Ramon Llull]] (1232–1315).<ref name="Forbes1970" /> Its use spread through medieval [[monasteries]],<ref>{{Cite web|date=2020-07-27|title=The History of Whisky – The Whisky Guide|url=https://thewhiskyguide.com/the-history-of-whisky/|access-date=2022-12-29|website=thewhiskyguide.com|language=en-gb}}</ref> largely for medicinal purposes, such as the treatment of [[colic]] and [[smallpox]].<ref name="dotcom">{{Cite web |title=History of Scotch Whisky |url=http://whisky.com/history.html |access-date=6 January 2010}}</ref>

=== Ireland and Scotland ===
The practice of distillation spread to Ireland and Scotland no later than the 15th century, as did the common European practice of distilling "[[aqua vitae]]", spirit alcohol, primarily for medicinal purposes.<ref name="whisky tech">Whiskey: Technology, Production and Marketing: Handbook of Alcoholic Beverages Series p2 Academic Press 2003</ref> The practice of medicinal distillation eventually passed from a monastic setting to the secular via professional medical practitioners of the time, The [[Royal College of Surgeons of Edinburgh#History|Guild of Barber Surgeons]].<ref name="whisky tech" /> The earliest mention of whiskey in Ireland comes from the ''[[Annals of Clonmacnoise]]'', which attributes the death of a chieftain in 1405 to "taking a surfeit of aqua vitae" at Christmas.<ref>{{cite journal | url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/25508737 | jstor=25508737 | title=Guesting and Feasting in Gaelic Ireland | last1=Simms | first1=Katharine | journal=The Journal of the Royal Society of Antiquaries of Ireland | date=22 January 1978 | volume=108 | pages=67–100 }}</ref><ref name="Annals">{{Cite book|last1=O'Clery|first1=Michael|url=http://archive.org/details/annalsofkingdomo04ocleuoft|title=Annals of the kingdom of Ireland|last2=O'Clery|first2=Cucogry|last3=O'Mulconry|first3=Ferfeasa|last4=O'Duigenan|first4=Cucogry|last5=O'Clery|first5=Conary|last6=O'Donovan|first6=John|date=1856|publisher=Dublin, Hodges, Smith, and co.|others=PIMS – University of Toronto}}</ref> In Scotland, the first evidence of whisky production comes from an entry in the ''Exchequer Rolls'' for 1495 where malt is sent "To Friar [[John Cor]], by order of the king, to make aquavitae", enough to make about 500 bottles.<ref>{{Cite book|last1=Great Britain. Public Record Office|url=http://archive.org/details/rotuliscaccariir10grea|title=Rotuli scaccarii regum Scotorum = The Exchequer rolls of Scotland|last2=Stuart|first2=John|last3=Burnett|first3=George|last4=Scotland. Court of Exchequer|date=1878|publisher=Edinburgh : H.M. General Register House|others=PIMS – University of Toronto}}</ref>

[[James IV of Scotland]] (r. 1488–1513) reportedly had a great liking for Scotch whisky, and in 1506 the town of [[Dundee]] purchased a large amount of whisky from the Guild of Barber-Surgeons, which held the monopoly on production at the time. 

[[File:Distillerie OldBushmills.jpg|thumb|[[Old Bushmills Distillery]], [[County Antrim]]]]

The distillation process was still in its infancy; whisky itself was not allowed to age, and as a result tasted very raw and brutal compared to today's versions. [[Renaissance]]-era whisky was also very potent and not diluted. Over time whisky evolved into a much smoother drink.

=== 18th century ===
In 1707, the [[Acts of Union 1707|Acts of Union]] merged England and Scotland into the [[Kingdom of Great Britain]], and thereafter taxes on distilled spirits rose dramatically.<ref name="guide">{{Cite web |title=The History of Whisky |url=http://www.thewhiskyguide.com/Facts/History.html |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100125105734/http://www.thewhiskyguide.com/Facts/History.html |archive-date=25 January 2010}}</ref> Following parliament's divisive [[malt tax]] of 1725, most of Scotland's distillation was either shut down or forced underground. Scotch whisky was hidden under altars, in coffins, and in any available space to avoid the governmental [[tax collector|excisemen]] or revenuers.<ref name="dotcom" /> Scottish distillers, operating out of homemade stills, took to distilling whisky at night when the darkness hid the smoke from the stills.<ref name="ReferenceA">{{Cite web|title=What Is Whiskey?|url=https://www.thespruceeats.com/history-of-whisky-1807685|access-date=2022-12-29|website=The Spruce Eats|language=en}}</ref> At one point, it was estimated that over half of Scotland's whisky output was illegal.<ref name="guide" />

In America, whisky was used as currency during the [[American Revolution]]; [[George Washington]] operated [[George Washington's Gristmill#Distillery|a large distillery]] at [[Mount Vernon]]. Given the distances and primitive transportation network of colonial America, farmers often found it easier and more profitable to convert corn to whisky and transport it to market in that form. It also was a highly coveted trade good, and when an additional excise tax was levied against it in 1791, the [[Whiskey Rebellion]] erupted.<ref>{{Cite web |date=12 November 2010 |title=Kevin R. Kosar, "What the Tea Party Could Learn from the Whiskey Rebellion", adapted from Kevin R. Kosar, Whiskey: A Global History (London: Reaktion Books, 2010) |url=http://alcoholreviews.com/wp/?p=1237 |access-date=15 April 2013 |publisher=Alcoholreviews.com}}</ref>

=== 19th century ===

[[File:Erskine Nicol, A Nip against the Cold (1869).jpg|thumb|right|upright|A man pours some whisky into a flask in this 1869 oil painting by Scottish artist [[Erskine Nicol]].]]

The drinking of Scotch whisky was introduced to India in the nineteenth century. The first distillery in India was built by Edward Dyer at [[Kasauli]] in the late 1820s. The operation was soon shifted to nearby [[Solan]] (close to the British [[summer capital]] [[Shimla]]), as there was an abundant supply of fresh spring water there.<ref>{{Cite web|last=Harrison|first=Joel|date=2011-12-29|title=Whisky in India|url=https://www.livemint.com/Companies/ny0g0a6Vo9Xz7DlB2TGcYI/Whisky-in-India.html|access-date=2022-12-29|website=mint|language=en}}</ref>

In 1823, the UK passed the Excise Act, legalizing distillation (for a fee), and this put a practical end to the large-scale production of Scottish moonshine.<ref name="dotcom" />

In 1831, [[Aeneas Coffey]] patented the [[column still|Coffey still]], allowing for a cheaper and more efficient distillation of whisky. In 1850, Andrew Usher began producing a [[blended whisky]] that mixed traditional [[pot still]] whisky with that from the new Coffey still. The new distillation method was scoffed at by some Irish distillers, who clung to their traditional [[pot still]]s. Many Irish contended that the new product was, in fact, not whisky at all.<ref name="Irish 1000">{{Cite book |last=Magee |first=Malachy |title=Irish Whiskey – A 1000 year tradition |publisher=[[O'Brien press]] |year=2001 |isbn=978-0-86278-228-3 |page=144}}</ref>

By the 1880s, the French [[brandy]] industry was devastated by the [[phylloxera]] pest that ruined much of the grape crop; as a result, whisky became the primary liquor in many markets.<ref name="dotcom" />

=== 20th century ===

During the [[Prohibition in the United States|Prohibition]] era in the United States lasting from 1920 to 1933, all alcohol sales were banned in the country. The federal government made an exemption for whisky prescribed by a doctor and sold through licensed pharmacies, such as Walgreens.