So I’ve been exploring the world of whisky, especially malt whisky
for a couple of years now. I was drawn to this category of spirits by its aura
of refinement, sophistication and mysticism. I don’t have a personal favorite,
I’m still exploring the world of scotch, but I’m also interested in what the
other major whisky producing countries are doing, like Ireland, Canada, and the
US.
On a separate note, as I was researching scotch whisky in
particular, I discovered that they use what is called a copper-pot “gooseneck”
still. It directly had a lightbulb light up in my mind, those stills bear a
striking resemblance to the still that my grandfather bought in the late 60’s
or early 70’s, which he used for distilling grappa, brandy and arak. Also,
earlier this year, my father started producing beer for export, so I stole a
batch and distilled it for whisky experimentation purposes with the still that
we had. I also started experimenting with different kinds of wood for aging.
So far, it looks promising, but I don’t want to work with imported
malt, so I’m also experimenting with malting some domestic “Lebanese” feed
barley, and honestly its easier than I thought it would be. I still don’t know
beer breweries aren’t malting Lebanese barley, It’s more accessible and more
relevant than imported ones to the beer that they brew.
In any case, I am brewing,
distilling and maturing something interesting for you guys. Let’s see how much
time it will take to have something that I think is worthy of releasing into
the market.
