Single Malt vs Blend: What's The Difference?
Duncan Reid, Master Curator · 6 min read
A single malt is not automatically better than a blend. Here is what each term really means.
Single malt defined
Single malt means malted barley only, from a single distillery, distilled in pot stills. Most single malts are married from dozens or hundreds of casks.
What a blend brings
Blended whisky combines malt whiskies with lighter grain whiskies. Done well — Hibiki, Johnnie Walker Blue — blending is a high art that delivers consistency and silkiness no single distillery can match.
Single cask and small batch
Single cask bottlings come from one barrel only and are typically numbered. Small batch means a handful of casks married together. Both offer intensity and individuality.
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Bottles to put the theory into practice
Speyside · Scotland
The Macallan 18 Year Old Sherry Oak
18 Years · 43% ABV · 700ml
Kentucky · USA
Buffalo Trace Kentucky Straight Bourbon
8 Years · 45% ABV · 750ml
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