What It Actually Means When A Scotch Is 'Single Malt'

Linette Lopez, Business Insider

It's important to learn as much as you possibly can about the things you put into your body - especially the things you put in your body as much as scotch.

So in that spirit, when Marc Ecko invited Business Insider to a tasting of his favorite whiskeys to celebrate the launch of his new fashion line, Marc Ecko Cut and Sew, we were only too happy to accept.

Ecko served up a bunch of spirits, our favorites being an awesome Highland Park 18 Year - a single malt scotch of the highest quality.

'Single malt' is not a term that you can just throw around. Our whiskey guide for the evening, Heather Greene of the Flatiron Room's Whiskey School in NYC, explained that a single malt scotch must be made with 51% barley (the rest can be any grain you like). It must come from a single distillery and go through one single distillation.

The spirit is then aged in old Bourbon or Spanish sherry casks - these casks give the spirit its color.

Knowledge is power.