Researchers will test 200-year-old barley varieties to see how they react to modern processing.
Dr Calum Holmes of Heriot Watt University says there is a growing interest in "heritage" barley varietiesResearchers at Heriot-Watt University in Edinburgh are testing how the crops that were common back then respond to modern processing methods.They want to find out whether old species of barley could create distinctive new whiskies.One of the varieties they will be testing is a 200-year-old Chevallier, said to be the most popular barley in Britain for 100 years.
Another is Golden Promise, best known as the barley behind the iconic Macallan bottlings from the 1960s.Flavours and aromas "However, there's increasing interest within the malting and distilling industries to explore a role for older barley varieties.