It can be made elsewhere, but it reaps its highest honors when made in Scotland.

Scotland is host to the greatest concentration of malt whisky distilleries in the world. Their beloved beverage is made from distilling a kind of beer made from grain. Water and barley (often malted with a dash of peat) are used.

Whisky (spelled whiskey when made in the US) is usually classified in one of four main classifications - Highland, Lowland, Speyside, and Islay - according to the location of the distillery from which it is made. Strangely, it is geese, as opposed to dogs, that are often used in guarding these distilleries.

There are two categories of whisky:

Grain Whisky: Made primarily from unmalted wheat or corn and a small amount of unpeated, malted barley, crafted in column stills.

Malt Whisky:The original - the Stuff of Myth. Aged in wood for a minimum of three years, although five to ten years is more the general practice. These are double or triple distilled in pot still.

Historically, whisky and Scottish freedom go hand in hand. Scotland gained their independence from England and centralized authority; independence of mind and spirit. It is considered the lifeblood of Scotland.

As an important social beverage with great symbolic value, whisky has made its presence in welcoming rituals - Scotch whisky that is brought to another's home is a symbol of wishing the host good cheer and wealth. Upon guests' departure, a dram of Scotch is often offered; one for the road, in modern terms. It is present in celebration of new births, and weddings, in sealing business agreements (sealed with a dram,) to ring in the New Year, in easing teething children and other minor ailments. A traditional drink served with haggis, it has become and has remained as "right as rain" since the beginning.