Where does a whisky’s flavour come from? Conventional wisdom places a vast weight of emphasis on the cask. And often that’s true. But what if the very building blocks of whisky could offer new avenues when it comes to engineering aroma and flavour? Instead of directing flavour once the spirit has been distilled, intrepid makers – often new, innovative creators – are going back to basics.

A new movement, inspired by craft beer, is now putting barley in the spotlight, with the malting process itself a niche but increasingly common focus. ‘From a beer background, it’s all about the malt,’ says Isla Mercer, a marketing consultant and writer who has worked in beer for more than a decade. That critical moment of processing, when heat is applied to stop germination before it goes on to be milled, has always been a huge consideration in brewing. Similarly for whisky, heat is applied to all barley as part of the malting process: it has to be kilned to stop it developing into full-grown barley plants. But we’re now seeing increased variation in how long the barley is kilned for, to what temperature and with what moisture content.

The intensity of heat can have a profound impact on the spirit’s eventual character; the results tend to vary by colour, which relates directly to flavour. This is due to Maillard and caramelisation reactions. In the same way that steak can be served rare, medium or well done – and with vast differences in the taste of the meat – kilning also drives flavour.

By borrowing from beer in this way, distillers can tap into myriad new flavour possibilities. For example, Vienna malts typically offer nutty flavours, while crystal malts are known for bringing a toffee-caramel sweetness to the proceedings. Chocolate malt imparts – you guessed it – chocolate, while roasted barley, usually used for heavy stouts, can give a coffee note. Play around with kilning, and whisky too can take on a whole new dimension.