long ageing of spirits

[wine_junkie]

21 minutes ago, BrightonCorgi said:

Inert gas added to a wine bottles will slow oxidation, but will negatively impact aromatics. 

Not disagreeing with that. Just sharing what some people do

[BrightonCorgi]

5 hours ago, wine_junkie said:

Not disagreeing with that. Just sharing what some people do

As much as some bottles of whiskey cost, I don't think they were intended to ever be sitting around for long after opening. The freshness only last so long. 

[ayepatz]

As with anything, the higher the standard of craft that goes into making Scotch, the better the final product.

We have some terrific master distillers and blenders at work today who have become household names (Richard Paterson of Dalmore to give but one example) but many of the master distillers of the past are long forgotten.

We often forget that aged single malt Scotch whisky was a pretty rare and exclusive thing between the 1850s and 1960s, the vast majority of whisky produced in that period being used in the then far more popular blended Scotch. Therefore, aged single malts from that period are extremely rare beasts these days.

It’s also worth mentioning that all single malt Scotch whisky must spend a minimum of 3 years in oak barrels in order to qualify as just that. Oak is inseparably linked with Scotch, as with so many wines and spirits, and even “finishing” casks like sherry, bourbon, madeira, and others will, for the most part, be made from oak.

In many ways, the dominance of oak flavour is much as it is with wine. Fresh new casks impart large amounts of oak, older casks less so. With the recent swing to NAS (no age statement) Single Malts, many master distillers today are experimenting widely with different types and ages of barrel, where their predecessors generally favoured older barrels and stuck to single casks.

From my personal experience of Single Malts, I have enjoyed immensely 40-year-old Craigduff, 32yo Teaninich in both bottle and cask strength, and, best of all, a 40yo Port Ellen (just two drams, but magical and unforgettable).

None of them exhibited an excess of oak flavour.

 

 

[Ken Gargett]

5 minutes ago, ayepatz said:

As with anything, the higher the standard of craft that goes into making Scotch, the better the final product.

We have some terrific master distillers and blenders at work today who have become household names (Richard Paterson of Dalmore to give but one example) but many of the master distillers of the past are long forgotten.

We often forget that aged single malt Scotch whisky was a pretty rare and exclusive thing between the 1850s and 1960s, the vast majority of whisky produced in that period being used in the then far more popular blended Scotch. Therefore, aged single malts from that period are extremely rare beasts these days.

It’s also worth mentioning that all single malt Scotch whisky must spend a minimum of 3 years in oak barrels in order to qualify as just that. Oak is inseparably linked with Scotch, as with so many wines and spirits, and even “finishing” casks like sherry, bourbon, madeira, and others will, for the most part, be made from oak.

In many ways, the dominance of oak flavour is much as it is with wine. Fresh new casks impart large amounts of oak, older casks less so. With the recent swing to NAS (no age statement) Single Malts, many master distillers today are experimenting widely with different types and ages of barrel, where their predecessors generally favoured older barrels and stuck to single casks.

From my personal experience of Single Malts, I have enjoyed immensely 40-year-old Craigduff, 32yo Teaninich in both bottle and cask strength, and, best of all, a 40yo Port Ellen (just two drams, but magical and unforgettable).

None of them exhibited an excess of oak flavour.

excellent post. you are spot on that single malts are a fairly recent innovation, as a broad generalisation. one of the reasons that we do get these wonderful old whiskies is simply that there are barrels left over from that period. they may have been intended for blending at the time but got missed, for whatever reason, and hence can now be bottled as a wonderful old malt. 

also agree re oak. glenfiddich have released their (excellent) Grand Cru, which was apparently finished in champagne casks. but you can bet that these casks were old ones. the last thing champagne makers want is oak sticking its nose in. a lot of wineries, from the barossa to bordeaux, want new oak. others avoid it. visited vieux telegraph some years ago. they had brand new casks. they used them for the wine they made for the workers until they felt them sufficiently aged for their top wines. 

also, a big difference between a 50 year old malt and a young malt that has been in bottle for 50 years. if the bottle has been kept in a cool dark spot and remains unopened then it will probably be fine (or at least reflect what the distillery was offering), but it will continue to evolve and mature if in oak and not yet bottled. that does not mean it will be a great whisky but gives it a great chance.

those old ghost whiskies from port ellen are becoming legendary. 

got a small sample of the glenglassaugh 50 year old malt from cask 3510, bottled in 1965. as soon as this hated flu/virus/bronchitis/crap is gone, can't wait to try it. 

[ayepatz]

24 minutes ago, Ken Gargett said:

those old ghost whiskies from port ellen are becoming legendary. 

got a small sample of the glenglassaugh 50 year old malt from cask 3510, bottled in 1965. as soon as this hated flu/virus/bronchitis/crap is gone, can't wait to try it. 

Cheers Ken. Interesting you mention the Glenfiddich Grand Cru. Bruichladdich did a 16yo “First Growth” series a while back, of which I had a bottle each of the Margaux and the Sauternes. Both were very good, but the Sauternes was particularly moreish.

Totally agree with you re- PortEllen, and I can’t wait for your report on that GG50!

And I hope you feel better soon!