What were you sippin’ on last year? Vodka, Tequila, Gin? I’m a whiskey girl myself, (Jameson to be exact,) so imagine my excitement when I learned that Whiskey was most popular in Business Insider’s list of Most Sought After Bottles of Liquor in 2014.

These nine noteworthy Bourbons, Ryes and Irish blends are not readily found on the shelves of your liquor store, and therefore will impress even the most knowledgeable of liquor connoisseurs if you pick up a bottle.

But if you’re anything like me, you may not know the difference. I’ve had many tipsy talks at bars around the country trying to figure out the difference, and some very passionate characters have imparted their wisdom. I’m about to put you on game, so pull up a seat and take notes. Here’s what I’ve learned:

Overview

RealMenDrinkWhiskey.com oversimplifies the answer to the age old question, What is Whiskey? Whiskey is any booze distilled from fermented grain mash. The difference between the various whiskeys relies mostly on the type of grain used for the mash.

Scotch

It’s made from malted Barley and made is only produced 100 percent in Scotland. Otherwise, it’s something else.

Bourbon

It’s made from a mixture mostly consisting of Corn. Much like Scotch can only be produced in Scotland, Bourbon is only made in the United States.

Tennessee Whiskey

The long and short? Tennessee Whiskey is straight bourbon (meaning, it must be aged for no less than two years, and can have no added coloring, flavor or other spirits added,) and made exclusively in the state of Tennessee.

Rye

This one’s a doozy. The name throws you off, because if you’re like me you’d assume this blend is made from rye, right? Well, that’s not exactly the case and we can thank Canada for this confusion. #BlameCanada 

See, in Canada, they don’t regulate how the liquor is produced for naming purposes, so as long as the whiskey contains any rye at all you can call it rye. (some blends have a corn to rye ratio as high as 9:1– which probably isn’t rye any more, but I digress.)

Meanwhile, here in America in order to call your whiskey rye, it must be made from a mash of at least 51 percent rye; the way God and lumberjacks (or hipsters who resemble lumberjacks) intended.

Irish Whiskey

If it was aged anywhere in the Republic or Ireland or Northern Ireland, it’s considered Irish Whiskey. My favorite falls under this category. Wikipedia puts it this way, “It must be made from yeast-fermented grain mash in such a way that the distillate has an aroma and flavor derived from the materials used.”

Now, when you visit the bar you can understand the difference between any “common” or “fancy pants” whiskey bottles on the shelf! Go ahead, flex for your friends and impress that someone special with your extensive knowledge of booze.