Scotch Malt Whisky industry predominantly uses lightly kilned pale malt, as it provides distillers with high extract values. ​ Speciality malts are already used extensively within the brewing industry to develop product aroma, mouthfeel and color, but these malts have rarely been utilised by malt whisky distillers. However, distillers at all scales are increasingly exploring whether there is a role for roasted malt use within malt whisky production as a tool to manipulate product aroma profile, despite apparent consequences for ethanol yield.​ Prior research has demonstrated that aroma compounds developed during malt roasting can be extracted and recovered into whisky new make spirit, ​but the impact of using such malts on fermentation has not yet been described.  The present research highlights the consequences for use of roasted malts on aroma volatile production and fermentation efficiency during production of a malt whisky wash.

Roasted Malt for Whisky Production

Scotch Malt Whisky industry predominantly uses lightly kilned pale malt, as it provides distillers with high extract values. ​ Speciality malts are already used extensively within the brewing industry to develop product aroma, mouthfeel and color, but these malts have rarely been utilised by malt whisky distillers. However, distillers at all scales are increasingly exploring whether there is a role for roasted malt use within malt whisky production as a tool to manipulate product aroma profile, despite apparent consequences for ethanol yield.​ Prior research has demonstrated that aroma compounds developed during malt roasting can be extracted and recovered into whisky new make spirit, ​but the impact of using such malts on fermentation has not yet been described.  The present research highlights the consequences for use of roasted malts on aroma volatile production and fermentation efficiency during production of a malt whisky wash.

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Rutele Marciulionyte
Rutele Marciulionyte holds a BSc degree in Medicinal and Biological Chemistry from The University of Edinburgh. For several years she worked at Thermo Fisher Scientific, developing, validating and utilising analytical methods for product quality control. Currently Rutele is a PhD student at Heriot-Watt University, where she combines her passion for both chemistry and Scotch whisky. Although she is fascinated about every stage of whisky flavour development, her research is focused on barley malt. She is studying malt roasting as a new way of introducing flavour volatiles to the spirit through Maillard and caramelisation reactions.

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