Barley basics

With this in mind, breeders are constantly working to create new and improved barley varieties, all of which must be approved by the Malting Barley Committee (MBC) of the Maltsters’ Association of Great Britain before being used commercially. Current favourites are Laureate and LG Diablo, while Optic, Concerto and Propino have been other prolific recent varieties favoured for whisky-making.

Today, most of the barley required by Scottish distillers is cultivated within Scotland, and a major change in agricultural practices relating to barley came with the development of the Golden Promise variety during the 1960s.

Golden Promise was developed with a relatively short, sturdy straw, which made it suitable for cultivation in Scotland, where wet and windy conditions often prevailed, and it was ready for harvest from July onwards, an obvious advantage due to the comparative shortness of Scottish summers. During the 1970s, Golden Promise comprised up to 90 per cent of the total UK malting barley crop, and The Macallan famously used Golden Promise for many years, praising the full-bodied, oily spirit it produced.

So much for high volume producers, for whom consistency is of supreme importance, but increasingly, small-scale – and not so small-scale – distillers are exploring the use of alternative barley varieties which yield less per acre when harvested and less per tonne when distilled, but offer greater variations of flavour.

Bruichladdich on Islay has been at the forefront of barley experimentation, and single malt produced using both organic barley and bere barley are now significant components of the distillery’s portfolio.

As Amy Brownlee, global communications brand manager for malts, explains: “The distillery currently works with a number of different barley varietals and genetically diverse grains – including sustainably grown organic barley, the ancient bere barley, homegrown Islay barley and most recently, the first Islay rye.

“With no artificial input, organic barley is the purest expression of its terroir – with the grain bringing an immense clarity of flavour when distilled. Bruichladdich distillery sources bere barley specifically, a six-row landrace that fell out of use in the 20th century due to its low yield. This ancient grain is genetically very different to modern barley varietals. Bere barley grains are also much smaller and denser than conventional strains of barley, producing a rich grist and uniquely robust flavour. It imparts light and zesty notes which are bursting with fruit. It also offers an unctuous texture and has an unparalleled barley-sugar sweetness.”

The prevailing philosophy is to use varieties with higher levels of protein, which implies a sacrifice of yield, and the Thompsons note that: “A broad explanation of the differences between varieties is that the varying levels of simple sugars, dextrins, wort nitrogen and other minerals will affect the fermentation process, and thus the character of the final spirit produced. This is a highly simplified explanation, and the flavours will vary from batch to batch, however, a common thread that we see here at Dornoch is that spirit produced using the older heritage varieties is a more oily, textural mouthfeel in comparison to that produced from modern, high yielding varieties such as Laureate.”

Whatever the variety of barley to be used for malt whisky distillation, this essential raw material needs to undergo a transformation before it is able to generate alcohol. That process is malting, which produces a range of aromas and flavours that carry right through to whisky in the glass – and which we’ll look at in more detail in the next issue of Unfiltered.