Is it whiskey or whisky?

A quick and short post today.  This is a common question people have, and everyone seems to think they're right about it.  Well, in this particular case, everyone is actually right.

The dark, distilled-from-grain alcoholic beverage can be spelled either way.

In Scotland, Japan, and Canada, it is most commonly spelled whisky.

In Ireland and the United States, it is generally spelled whiskey.

A seemingly ridiculous, but useful way of remembering that is that, at least as far as the 5 major whiskey producing countries go, if there is an "e" in the country, there is an "e" in the whiskey.  If there's no "e" in the country, there's no "e" in the whisky either.

This question is further complicated by the locavore and craft spirits movements, particularly in the United States.  In particular, there are some whisky producers who produce Scotch or Canadian style whiskies (heavy on the rye or the malted barley), who choose to spell the word without an "e," to reflect the style of the whiskey.

But long story short, both whisky and whiskey are correct spellings for the word.