Redbreast is heavy on fruit essences, figs, dates, and apples, and is unusually complex and big as Irish whiskies go, and is the one most likely to be confused with Scotch in a blind tasting.

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The proposed group's vodka-to-scotch-to-brandy range was one reason why analysts acclaimed the deal.

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Mr. Possokhov's desperately sexy but hardly mysterious rite, which closes one of the programs, stands in stark contrast to "Scotch Symphony, " George Balanchine's 1952 Mendelssohn-motivated reverie on Scotland's highlands, which opens the other.

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Although Scotch whisky must be made in Scotland, only about one fifth of the total output is made by distilling companies which are based in Scotland.

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One major reason is that they are usually triple distilled, while most Scotch is double distilled, making them smoother and easier to drink.

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Preferred Hotels and Johnnie Walker have made customized buys: One sends hotel guides to subscribers, the other a bottle of Black Label scotch to lawyers who make partner.

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That's being very closed watched by the Scotch whisky industry, aware that this is the world's largest whisky market, but one protected by 150% tariffs on imported liquor.

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