Straight whiskey (or straight whisky), as defined in United States law, is

whiskey Whisky or whiskey is a type of liquor made from Fermentation in food processing, fermented grain mashing, mash. Various grains (which may be Malting, malted) are used for different varieties, including barley, Maize, corn, rye, and wheat. Whisky ...

that is distilled from a

fermented Fermentation is a type of anaerobic metabolism which harnesses the redox potential of the reactants to make adenosine triphosphate (ATP) and organic end products. Organic compound, Organic molecules, such as glucose or other sugars, are Catabo ...

(

malt Malt is any cereal grain that has been made to germinate by soaking in water and then stopped from germinating further by drying with hot air, a process known as "malting". Malted grain is used to make beer, whisky, malted milk, malt vinegar, ...

ed or unmalted) cereal grain mash to a concentration not exceeding 80%

alcohol by volume Alcohol by volume (abbreviated as alc/vol or ABV) is a common measure of the amount of Alcohol (drug), alcohol contained in a given alcoholic beverage. It is defined as the volume the ethanol in the liquid would take if separated from the rest ...

(abv) and aged in new

charred Charring is a chemical process of incomplete combustion of certain solids when subjected to high heat. Heat distillation removes water vapour and volatile organic compounds (syngas) from the matrix. The residual black carbon material is char, as d ...

oak An oak is a hardwood tree or shrub in the genus ''Quercus'' of the beech family. They have spirally arranged leaves, often with lobed edges, and a nut called an acorn, borne within a cup. The genus is widely distributed in the Northern Hemisp ...

barrel A barrel or cask is a hollow cylindrical container with a bulging center, longer than it is wide. They are traditionally made of wooden stave (wood), staves and bound by wooden or metal hoops. The word vat is often used for large containers ...

s for at least two years at a concentration not exceeding 62.5% at the start of the aging process. Domestic sales of straight whiskey surpassed 27 million 9-liter cases in 2021. The only allowed modifications to straight whiskey prior to its bottling consist of batching whiskey from different barrels (and sometimes from different distilleries, although only from within the same state),

chill filtering Chill filtering is a method in whisky making for removing residue. In chill filtering, whisky is cooled to between and passed through a fine adsorption filter. This is done mostly for cosmetic reasons — to remove cloudiness — howeve ...

the whiskey, and adding water to reduce proof while retaining at least a 40% abv concentration. This definition is established for production of American whiskey for consumption within the United States as per the U.S federal ''Standards of Identity for Distilled Spirits''. The regulations do not necessarily apply to American whiskey made for export. Alternatively, ''

straight Straight may refer to: Slang * Straight, slang for heterosexual ** Straight-acting, normal person * Straight, a member of the straight edge subculture Sport and games * Straight, an alternative name for the cross, a type of punch in boxing * Str ...

'' can be regarded as a synonym for ordering or serving whiskey ''

neat Neat may refer to: * Neat (bartending), a single, unmixed liquor served in a rocks glass * Neat, an old term for horned oxen * Neat Records, a British record label * Neuroevolution of augmenting topologies (NEAT), a genetic algorithm (GA) for t ...

'', without any water, ice, mixers, or other liquors.

Aging and labeling requirements

A ''straight'' whiskey must spend at least two years stored in charred new oak barrels, except

corn whiskey Corn whiskey is an American liquor made principally from corn. Distinct from the stereotypical American moonshine, in which sugar is normally added to the mash, corn whiskey uses a traditional mash process, and is subject to the tax and identity ...

, which must use uncharred or used oak barrels. The spirit penetrates the wood, extracting many flavor compounds and caramelized wood sugars, and oxidizing during this aging. A straight whiskey that has been aged less than four years is required to be labeled with an age statement describing the actual age of the product.Statements of Age
, U.S.

Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau The Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau, statutorily named the Tax and Trade Bureau and frequently shortened to TTB, is a bureau of the United States Department of the Treasury, which regulates and collects taxes on trade and imports of alc ...

, April 2007, page 8-15. Other than an age statement, which lists the age of the youngest spirit in a bottle, the only other special labeling dealing with the age of a straight whiskey in the U.S. is

bottled in bond Bottled in bond (BIB) is a label for an American-produced distilled beverage that has been aged and bottled according to a set of legal regulations contained in the United States government's Standards of Identity for Distilled Spirits, as origin ...

. All bonded whiskeys are required to be straight whiskeys, and are additionally required to be aged for at least four years. Bonded whiskeys must also fulfill several other requirements.

Ingredients

When at least 51% of the content of the mash used in the production of a straight whiskey consists of

corn Maize (; ''Zea mays''), also known as corn in North American English, is a tall stout Poaceae, grass that produces cereal grain. It was domesticated by indigenous peoples of Mexico, indigenous peoples in southern Mexico about 9,000 years ago ...

rye Rye (''Secale cereale'') is a grass grown extensively as a grain, a cover crop and a forage crop. It is grown principally in an area from Eastern and Northern Europe into Russia. It is much more tolerant of cold weather and poor soil than o ...

barley Barley (), a member of the grass family, is a major cereal grain grown in temperate climates globally. It was one of the first cultivated grains; it was domesticated in the Fertile Crescent around 9000 BC, giving it nonshattering spikele ...

, or

wheat Wheat is a group of wild and crop domestication, domesticated Poaceae, grasses of the genus ''Triticum'' (). They are Agriculture, cultivated for their cereal grains, which are staple foods around the world. Well-known Taxonomy of wheat, whe ...

, the designation can be coupled with a special name associated with the type of grain and whether the grain was

ed. For example, a straight whiskey may be a

bourbon whiskey Bourbon whiskey (; also simply bourbon) is a Aging (food), barrel-aged American whiskey made primarily from corn (maize). The name derives from the Kingdom of France, French House of Bourbon, although the precise source of inspiration is uncerta ...

(using a mash of

malt whiskey Malt whisky is whisky made from a fermented mash consisting of malted barley. If the product is made exclusively at a single distillery (along with other restrictions), it is typically called a single malt whisky. Although malt whisky can be mad ...

(using a mash of malted

rye whiskey Rye whiskey can refer to two different, but related, types of whiskey: * American rye whiskey, which is similar to bourbon whiskey, but must be distilled from at least 51 percent rye grain * Canadian whisky, which is often referred to as (and of ...

, rye malt whiskey, or

wheat whiskey Wheat whiskey is a style of whiskey defined by having a grain bill which consists primarily of wheat. The United States government only allows a product to be labeled "wheat whiskey" when the mash is composed of at least 51% wheat. Like other Amer ...

. An especially prominent variation is the labeling "Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey", used to indicate a straight whiskey made in

Kentucky Kentucky (, ), officially the Commonwealth of Kentucky, is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio to the north, West Virginia to the ...

from a mash of at least 51% corn. For a straight whiskey to be called

, it must use a mash with at least 80% corn and be aged in used or uncharred barrels. Extra ingredients, such as caramel coloring, are forbidden in straight whiskey. In contrast, even the regulations governing

single malt whiskey Single malt whisky is malt whisky from a single Distillation, distillery. Single malts are typically associated with single malt Scotch, though they are also produced in various other countries. Under the United Kingdom's Scotch Whisky Regulat ...

production in some countries allow the addition of

caramel coloring Caramel color or caramel coloring is a water-soluble food coloring. It is made by heat treatment of carbohydrates (sugars), in general in the presence of acids, alkalis, or salts, in a process called caramelization. It is more fully oxidized than ...

to enhance appearance.

ABV limit

The limit of 80% maximum abv concentration for the distillation is a key element of the definition of ''straight whiskey''. At alcohol concentrations exceeding this amount, most of the flavor from the original fermented mash that was used in the distillation process will be removed, resulting in a more

neutral grain spirit Rectified spirit, also known as neutral spirits, rectified alcohol or ethyl alcohol of agricultural origin, is highly concentrated ethanol that has been purified by means of repeated distillation in a process called rectification. In some countr ...

. In other countries, whiskey may be produced from a spirit that is much higher in

alcoholic proof Alcohol proof (usually termed simply "proof" in relation to a beverage) is a measure of the content of ethanol (alcohol) in an alcoholic beverage. The term was originally used in England and from 1816 was equal to about 1.75 times the percentage ...

, which generally reduces the flavor derived from the original mash that was used in its production.

Relationship to blended whiskey

Straight whiskey is a distinctly different product from ''

blended whiskey A blended whiskey (or blended whisky) is the product of blending different types of whiskeys and sometimes also neutral spirits, colorings, and flavorings. It is generally the product of mixing one or more higher-quality straight or single malt ...

''. Most premium-category brands of American whiskey are straight whiskey, while the economy category is primarily blended whiskey. However, straight whiskey is also an important component of American blended whiskey. Blended whiskey made in the United States must contain at least 20% straight whiskey. The remaining portion is higher-proof spirit, often unaged

neutral grain spirits Rectified spirit, also known as neutral spirits, rectified alcohol or ethyl alcohol of agricultural origin, is highly concentrated ethanol that has been purified by means of repeated distillation in a process called rectification. In some countri ...

, which are less expensive to produce. The straight whiskey component adds characteristic whiskey flavor to the blend, as the higher proof spirit loses most flavoring compounds during the distillation process, and does not gain flavors from barrel aging. Blended whiskey may also contain additives for coloring and flavoring. Canadian whiskey, which is typically a blend, also uses straight-whiskey-style spirits as a major flavor component, though Canada does require at least three years of aging (usually in used barrels) to qualify any product as Canadian whiskey."Canadian Food and Drug Regulations (C.R.C., c. 870) - Canadian Whisky, Canadian Rye Whisky or Rye Whisky (B.02.020)"
. (Access date December 15, 2010.)

References

{{Whisky Whisky

Aging and labeling requirements

Ingredients

ABV limit

Relationship to blended whiskey

See also

References