Whisky vs Whiskey. Regardless of how you spell it, whiskey and whisky are the same spirit, created from a mash of fermented grains. However, the spelling is more than personal preference, copyeditor favourite or typing mistake. It has to do where the spirit originates. Traditionally, Whisky denotes Scottish heritage, and Whiskey indicates Irish. Obviously, many other countries also produce the spirit. Canadian and Japanese producers tend to favour Whisky, and American producers use Whiskey. Not confusing at all (if you drink enough, that is). Here’s an easy way to remember which to use - Countries that have E’s in their names (United States and Ireland) tend to spell it whiskey (plural whiskeys). Countries without E’s in their names (Canada, Scotland, and Japan) spell it whisky (plural whiskies).
Whisky (or whiskey) is an Anglicization of the Goidelic name (Irish: uisce beatha and Scottish Gaelic: uisge beatha) literally meaning "water of life". Earlier Anglicization’s include usquebaugh /ˈʌskwɨbɔː/, usquebea (1706) and iskie bae (1583). It meant the same thing as the Latin aqua vītae, which had been applied to distilled drinks since the early 14th century. Though Whisky's exact origins are unknown, its existence was first documented in Ireland in 1405 and the first record of distilled spirit in Scotland is found on an Exchequer Roll of 1494. The first mention of a Scottish distillery is in 1670s – the Ferintosh distillery
