Barrel Aging content

[lswanson1]

I know you can age low wines in barrels and then do a finishing run once its aged appropriately however does anyone ever age just the hearts cut from a finishing run and then bottle straight from the barrel? I am trying to think of a downside to doing that and apart from some possible sediment issues I cant think of any. I cant think of any real upside either other then you might preserve some of the finer notes from the aging process if you didnt distill after aging. Just a open ended question.

[will]

Lukas,

Spirits are generally not matured in barrels before a finishing run. Where did you get that?

What you suggest is exactly what's done. All the fermenting happens first, then all the distilling, then all the maturation, then the optional step of dilution to a desired proof (often done by taste to the blender's preference).

When bottled at cask strength, spirits are often labeled as such.

Keep reading,

Will

p.s. I use the term "generally" above simply to hedge my bets - I never - make that rarely - speak in absolutes, but I can't think of a single instance where a product is barreled and then distilled again as a matter of course...like it's part of the recipe. That would do exactly as you suspect - remove most of the nice things that the barrel did for the product.

[Jonathan Forester]

I agree with what Will said. Low wines, which are the first distillation, are around 25-35% alcohol, and I have never heard of them being aged. They may be collected for several runs, and then run through the still as one batch, the finishing run, to get the high wines, the actual spirit. It sounds like you may have misunderstood some information that you have read.

I know you can age low wines in barrels and then do a finishing run once its aged appropriately however does anyone ever age just the hearts cut from a finishing run and then bottle straight from the barrel? I am trying to think of a downside to doing that and apart from some possible sediment issues I cant think of any. I cant think of any real upside either other then you might preserve some of the finer notes from the aging process if you didnt distill after aging. Just a open ended question.

[bradocaster]

well put will...as always. keep it coming.

Brad.

[JohnD]

If you age low wines in a barrel and then distill, you will remove all of the phenolics and colors you have spent time extracting from the barrel. For the most part their boiling points are too high to make it through a distillation system. Additionally the 116-130 proof range has been found to be ideal for the kind of extraction you're looking for in your spirit. Low wines are too low. Stripping run, finishing run, then the barrel, then the fun!

[lswanson1]

Thank you for the clarification guys.

[natbouman]

I cannot speak from experience here, but there may be something to storing low wines in barrels before the spirit run--but only if you then age the distillate from the finishing run in those same barrels that you used to age the low wines. The low wines will probably leave something behind in the wood which will then re-enter your finished spirit as it ages (might not be anything you'd want to re-enter your spirit though). Of course, if the barrels started out new then they won't be so when you refill them--which has its pros and cons. Of course, you will lose some of your low wine volume through the wood.