Whiskey is a distilled alcoholic beverage made from fermented grain mash. Different varieties of whiskey call for different grains, such as barley, corn, rye, or wheat. After fermentation, the alcohol is typically aged in charred oak wooden casks. The first whiskey dates back to the late 1400s in Scotland, and was thus a variety of Scotch Whiskey. Nowadays, there are many kinds of whiskey that range from single malt whiskey to blended malt whiskey to blended whiskey, to cask strength to single cask. Within those varieties, there is also American whiskey – usually bourbon, corn whiskey, or rye – Australian whiskey, Canadian whiskey, Irish whiskey, Japanese whiskey, and many others. The range of whiskeys is vast – some are made strictly for sipping while others lend themselves better to the world of cocktails.