United States of America

At the beginning of the 1600s, Europe was not at its peak; famines and repression led many of its citizens to emigrate to other countries, and the New World was seen as the best destination—a place rich in opportunities. Among the migrants were Scots and Irish, who, in addition to their luggage, brought with them their precious stills and the skill of distilling spirits.

The First Settlers

Initially, the Scots and Irish settled on the eastern coast of the New World, founding the states of Maryland, Virginia, North Carolina, and Pennsylvania. Unlike the Old World, the United States was not rich in malt, and the new settlers adapted by cultivating rye and corn. By 1771, there were already several whiskey producers, although not at an industrial level, so much so that the federal government decided to tax distilled spirits. However, in what has gone down in history as the "Whiskey Rebellion," the distillers in Pennsylvania responded to the government by massacring federal agents, and only thanks to the intervention of George Washington was order restored through negotiations with the rebels.

George Washington, the First President of the United States of America

This is not a well-known story, and you surely won't find it in history books, or maybe even on Wikipedia: in 1797, George Washington left politics and pursued one of his passions by investing his savings in the construction of a distillery near Mount Vernon. The distillery was equipped with five stills, and the unique recipe for the whiskey, made from rye and barley, was created by Washington himself; in the first year alone, 4,000 liters of the spirit were produced and sold. However, just two years later, in December 1799, the president died, and the distillery was passed on to his nephew, who managed it until its final closure (1815). But the original recipe of the "Father of the Nation" was not lost. In 2003, the distilleries Maker's Mark and Jim Beam joined forces to produce a new whiskey following Washington's original recipe and rebuilt the distillery.

The Start of an Industry and the Civil War

In 1802, newly elected Thomas Jefferson abolished all taxes on whiskey, and from 1840, Bourbon was recognized and marketed as a distinctive type of American whiskey. The Americans used the still designed by Aeneas Coffey (a former Irish customs officer), which had already brought success to Scottish producers and ruined the fortunes of the Irish. The spirit was now being produced in Kentucky, Tennessee, Indiana, Illinois, Ohio, Missouri, Pennsylvania, North Carolina, and Georgia.

In 1861, the outbreak of the Civil War and the introduction of new taxes to fund the war halted the development of the American distilling industry. It was then that bootleggers made their appearance, hiding contraband whiskey in the legs (leggers) of their boots (boots) to sell to both Union and Confederate soldiers.

The 1920s and Prohibition

After the war, distilleries resumed growth with renewed vigor until January 17, 1920, when the 18th Amendment, which established Prohibition, came into effect. It seemed like a victory for the proponents of the measure (religious groups, women, and temperance leagues), but while most distilleries were dismantled, it also fostered the development of a genuine underground industry. The United States was flooded with illegal alcohol, coming both from Europe (mainly from Scotland via Canada) and produced domestically. The quality was poor, not to mention that the United States lost about 14% of its revenue from alcohol taxation. The production and distribution of bootleg alcohol quickly came under the control of organized crime, which made enormous profits. To combat these activities, the U.S. government had to invest large sums of money to expand the staff of its Bureaus. Some believe that modern American organized crime was born out of the profits generated by Prohibition.

The American Challenge

Even with the end of Prohibition, decreed by the 21st Amendment, many of the old distilleries did not reopen, but the American whiskey industry began a slow consolidation. After World War II, production returned to normal, and today American whiskey seems to have won its challenge. For some years now, distilleries like Jim Beam, Maker's Mark, and Buffalo Trace have been offering high-quality Bourbon, capable of competing with the best single malts.