The chemistry of casks – Part 2 _ Production _ bourbon, chemistry, cognac, Oak maturation, rum, whiskey, whisky

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  • 7/27/2019 The chemistry of casks Part 2 _ Production _ bourbon, chemistry, cognac, Oak maturation, rum, whiskey, whisky

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    ww.liquorpress.com/2011/03/01/the-chemistry-of-casks--part-2/

    The first part of this series of articles covered oak casks and their central role in the

    development of a spirits taste. This article will take a closer look at the compounds and

    substances that determine the character and the aroma of spirit s.

    If taste and scent of spirits such as whisky, cognac, rum, etc. are to be described, a distinction

    can be made between smoky and fruity, floral and woody as well as between sweet or salty, justto give a few examples. T his wide v ariety of different tastes is due to, in the case of whiskies for

    example, more than 300 volatile chemical substances. Although some of these substances differ

    substantially in their chemical makeup, the majority of them can be classified as members of the

    known groups of chemicals. It can be shown that compounds belonging to the phenols or

    lactones play an especially vital role in developing the aroma and taste of whiskies. But

    aldehydes, organic acids and their salts significantly contribute as well. As the final taste of a

    spirits is influenced by almost every step of its production process, it is not always possible to

    determine exactlywhich step introduces a given substance to be analysed. But it has been

    shown that storage in wooden casks is by far the most important process for developing the

    taste of spirits by imparting the distillatewith important and characteristic f lavour-carriers. In

    this process, several substances in the wood of the cask are dissolved, the most notable of those

    being decomposition products of polysaccharides, triglycerides and lignin. Sensoryexamination and various chromatographic tests are employed to differentiate between these

    chemical substances. These assays showed the concentration of flavour-carrying phenolic

    compounds to be higher in the spirits that matured a longer time in wooden casks than in those

    that had only been in brief contact with the wood. The following list contains some of the

    substances that have been proven to be the most significant for a whiskeys taste. The whiskey

    analysed was bourbon whiskey. The most important flavour-carriers of Scotch and Irish

    whiskies are with some variat ions in concentration the same as in bourbon whiskies,

    however, as all three spirits mature in

    oak casks. (Image: sashafatcat/Flickr )

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    The substances listed are part of the regular chemical groups. Among these, the most significant

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    are the lactones, a group that also includes a substance called whisky-lactone or quercus-

    lactone. This lactone received its non-scientific name based on the fact that it had only been

    discovered when cask-matured spirits were

    analysed; larger quantities of this component

    were first discov ered in whiskey. During

    sensory examination, it is characterised by

    coconut aromas. Another vital lactone is -

    nonalactone, imparting the distillate with

    apricot, lavender and orchid aromas.

    Among the aldehydes, the substance with the most profound influence on the taste is syringa

    aldehyde, which is ascribed with tangy and smoky notes. These are complemented by distinct

    aromas and a taste of smouldering wood. In addition to this substances contribution to scent

    and taste of the distillate, it also exhibits antibacterial and antioxidant properties. Other notable

    aldehydes are vanillin, eugenoland guaiacol. Vanillin gives spirits and many other foodstuffs

    v anilla flavours, whereas eugenol adds typical clover aromas to the distillate and guaiacol is

    primarily characterised as having a smoky and sweet taste.

    The final major group of substances influencing the taste of whiskies are rose ketones. This is an

    umbrella term for several substances that belong to the damascenones , damascones or

    ionones. The non-scientific name rose ketones is due to the high concentration of these

    compounds in Damask roses (Rosa damascena). Although the combined concentration of rose

    ketones in rose oils is only 0.1 5%, these substances nevertheless have a profound influence onthe general scent of these oils. In general, these substances are among the most odoriferous

    organic compounds in the world. A common sensory property of rose ketones is a tangy scent

    of exotic flowers, blackcurrant as well as green and black tea. In whiskeys, however, this aroma

    predominantly creates a sensation of baked apples.

    The third part of the series The Chemistry of Casks will show why oak chips cannot replace

    oak casks in the maturing of spirits and how the taste of the final product would be altered, even

    though casks and chips are of the same material.

    9

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    1. The chemistry of c asks Part 1

    2. The chemistry of c asks Part 3: Wood chips vs. Casks

    3. Aromatic substances of whisky : Syringaldehy de and Syringa acid

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    Tagged with: bourbon chemistry cognac Oak maturation rum whiskey whisky

    3 Responses to the chemistry of casks part 2

    Dg says:0 3 /0 1 / 20 1 1 a t 9 : 3 5 P M

    Thanks Phillip for writing on my favorite subjec t

    REPLY

    Philip Reim says:0 3 /0 2/ 20 1 1 a t 1 : 4 7 P M

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    Y oure welc ome! There a re a lot of th ese art icles y et t o c ome.

    REPLY

    The chemistry of casks Part 1 says:04/04/201 1 at 5 :49 PM

    [...] second part of The chemistry of casks will describe and analyse these

    compounds more closely. It will show that all the notable [...]

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