Tracing whisky’s roots back to Scotland and Ireland, the original names for water of life, “uisge beatha” and “uisce beatha” respectively, were remarkably similar. As the Gaelic languages were Anglicized, the phrase was eventually shortened to simply the word for water: “whisky” in Scotland and “whiskey” in Ireland.
The Irish immigrants who traveled to the new world brought not only the knowledge of how to make whiskey with them, they also brought their spelling. For the rest of the world, and many American distilleries who trace their roots back to Scotland or intended to maintain a more global spelling, whisky is their spelling of choice.
In a nod to a more universal spelling and for simplicity’s sake, this guide will use whisky as the spelling for all instances apart from specific brand names. While Ireland and many American distilleries include an “e” in their spelling, even Maker’s Mark, George Dickel, Old Forester and Balcones are among the ranks of those who leave out the “e.”