Name: Whiskey literally means: "water of life" (aqua vitae)... I
can't argue with that! Origins: Distillation of fruit goes back
to the 2nd century BC. Distillation was brought from Africa to
Europe by the Moors and around 1100 and 1300, distillation
spread in Ireland and Scotland. Because grapes don't grow well
that far north, barley (the 4th most produced cereal grain in
the world) was used to make beer, resulting in the development
of whisky. These 1st whiskeys would have been harsh, strong and
dangerous due to the fact they they were not diluted. It wasn't
until someone had the bright idea to store these spirits in
wooden barrels did we start down the path of modern day whiskey.
- 1405 was the first written record of whisky appears describing
a death at Christmas from "taking a surfeit of aqua vitae". - A
licence to distill in Northern Ireland was granted to Sir Thomas
Phillipps in 1608 by King James I, and the 1608 date is printed
on the labels of the Bushmills brand whiskey making it the
oldest brand of