Smoke in whiskey almost always calls to mind scotch and its use of peat, a native fuel source that imparts pungent flavors on malted barley and, thus, single malt. But Scotland isn’t the last word in smoky sips these days. There’s a burgeoning crop of American distillers using a swath of fuel sources, from hardwood to seaweed, to add the tantalizing tang of smoke to their whiskies.

The concept may have started in Scotland—and expanded well beyond it—but these United States have their own smoking traditions to draw on. Think of our many regional barbecue styles, the smoked fish of the Pacific Northwest (or the New York deli), smoky bacon and country hams—or, hell, the all-American pastime of wielding tongs and spatula at a hot grill. We’re a nation of smoked food fiends. Smoky whiskey was always a logical next step.

If not peat, what are distillers using to smoke whiskey?

Peat is being used for American whiskey! Sometimes it’s from Scotland, but it’s increasingly sourced locally. Look at Westland, Thornton, and Maine Craft Distilling for examples.

More commonly, distillers are using local fruit woods and hardwoods like pecan, hickory, apple, and cherry. Balcones burns Texas scrub oak to create the punchy smoke of its Brimstone.

In the Southwest, native mesquite has become a popular option, pioneered by Whiskey Del Bac and Santa Fe Spirits, and now found in the whiskies of Andalusia.

And some distillers are getting downright experimental. M.B. Roland borrows from the tobacco curing industry to make a smoke-kissed whiskey of “dark-fired” corn. Frey Ranch crafted its own “peat” using corn husks and the leftovers from milling, compressing it into bricks that it burned while malting barley.

What kinds of whiskey are getting the smoke treatment?

Most commonly, American single malt. This is because the process of malting barley requires a period of drying the grain over heat. Usually the heat is smokeless, but it’s easy enough to add a fuel that will impart some of its flavors during the process.

There are smoky bourbons too, typically made with smoked malted barley, but occasionally featuring smoked corn. Warbringer—a brand now under the direction of Laphroaig veteran John Campbell—uses mesquite-smoked corn in its mashbill. Kings County Distillery makes a peat-smoked bourbon, as do Liberty Pole, Two James, and Grand Traverse. Even Buffalo Trace got in on peaty bourbon a few years ago.

How does it taste?

Not like scotch, that’s for sure. Even the whiskey that uses American peat has wildly different flavors, because the peat’s base plant matter is so different from what’s found on Islay, for example.

Some smoked American whiskies pack a wallop, and really hit your palate full on. Others are far more subtle. So even if you think you don’t like smoky flavors, it’s worth trying a few before writing off the whole category.

The Smoked American Whiskey Taste Test

Even whiskies smoked with the same kind of wood can taste extremely different. Try comparing two mesquited single malts, Del Bac and Santa Fe Spirits.

Del Bac Dorado is a big, beefy whiskey; a sip is almost akin to biting into a hunk of sweet barbecue. But Santa Fe Spirits’ single malt has a much less overt smokiness, and its mesquite is interwoven with other flavors from the grain and barrel.

Add another layer to this comparison by trying Andalusia Stryker, a single malt whose smoke recipe includes mesquite, oak, and applewood.

Recommended Smoky American Whiskies

Andalusia Stryker ($59)

Three kinds of fuel—oak, mesquite, and apple wood—create complex layers of smoke. 

Balcones Brimstone ($44)

The distillery uses a proprietary smoking process to infuse its blue corn whiskey with the flavors of Texas scrub oak. 

Del Bac Dorado ($60)

Malted in-house with Southwest mesquite, this is a powerful, mouth-filling whiskey. 

Corsair Triple Smoke ($45)

One of the OG American smoked whiskies, made with beech, cherry wood, and Scottish peated malt. 

Deerhammer Hickory-Smoked ($40)

Heirloom yellow corn is smoked over sweet hickory smoke before distillation and aging in used barrels, yielding a totally unique whiskey.

Kings County Peated Bourbon ($69)

A mind-bending innovation when it first appeared in 2014, it has become a beloved standby of the Brooklyn distillery.

Liberty Pole Barrel-Proof Peated Rye ($67)

A smoky spin on traditional Pennsylvania rye, bottled at cask strength for a punchier flavor.

Santa Fe Spirits Single Malt ($56)

Elegant and subtle, the whiskey is matured in both new and used barrels, which helps balance its weight and power.

Two James J. Riddle Peated Bourbon ($40)

A sweet and muscular whiskey, made with 79 percent Michigan-grown corn and 21 percent peated malt from the UK.

Westland Solum ($150)

Truly ground-breaking: American single malt made with Pacific Northwest peat, which has a softer and more herbal character than its Scottish counterparts.