Whiskey and Whisky, What is the Difference?

The word originates from the Irish Gaelic uisce beathe (whiskey) or the Scottish Gaelic uisge baugh (whisky), which translates to "water of life". 

Whiskey or whisky is a spirit distilled from fermented grains and aged in wooden barrels. The only difference between the two is the spelling. 

Whisk(e)y originated in Ireland and Scotland, and later spread to Canada and Japan. Although the early distilleries in colonial America were mostly of central European origin (British settlers primarily made rum), they had a similar grain-based distilling tradition and adopted barrel aging as early as the Scots and Irish. Whiskey has been distilled in the U.S. since at least the late 1700s, with the arrival of Irish and Scottish immigrants. In the early days, both spellings of whiskey were accepted. An early ration agreement written by Alexander Hamilton spelled the spirit 'whisky.' 

It is generally speculated that Irish distillers began using the "e" as a way to distinguish their whiskeys from Scottish whisky. Due to the arrival of Irish immigrants to America in the 1800s, "whiskey" became the more common spelling. As a result, a variety of American-style whiskeys, such as corn-based bourbon, rye whiskey, charcoal-filtered Tennessee whiskey, and American single malt, all spell "whiskey" with an "e." However, there are exceptions.

Nowadays, we see that American and Irish spell whiskey with an 'e', while Scotland, Canada, and Japan, among others, spell it whisky. 

Each of these countries produces many different types of whiskies or whiskeys, but we will get to that later.

For now, remember that whisky or whiskey is a spirit distilled from fermented grains and aged in wooden barrels. The only difference between the two is the spelling!

Cheers! 🥃