1 / 11

Distillation

Distillation. Philip Meaden. Part 1: Malting, Mashing and Fermentation Part 2: Distillation of Malt Spirit Part 3: Distillation of Grain Spirit Part 4: Distilled Beverages other than Scotch Whisky Part 5: Flavour and Maturation Part 6: Cooperage Part 7: Blending and Packaging.

shaun
Download Presentation

Distillation

An Image/Link below is provided (as is) to download presentation Download Policy: Content on the Website is provided to you AS IS for your information and personal use and may not be sold / licensed / shared on other websites without getting consent from its author. Content is provided to you AS IS for your information and personal use only. Download presentation by click this link. While downloading, if for some reason you are not able to download a presentation, the publisher may have deleted the file from their server. During download, if you can't get a presentation, the file might be deleted by the publisher.

E N D

Presentation Transcript

  1. Distillation Philip Meaden • Part 1: Malting, Mashing and Fermentation • Part 2: Distillation of Malt Spirit • Part 3: Distillation of Grain Spirit • Part 4: Distilled Beverages other than Scotch Whisky • Part 5: Flavour and Maturation • Part 6: Cooperage • Part 7: Blending and Packaging

  2. Scotch Whisky Blends • Secondary blend • 25-30% malt; whiskies 3 to 4 years old • Standard blend • 35-40% malt; whiskies 3 to 8 years old • De luxe blend • 45-50% malt, occasionally more; whiskies 8 to 12 years old, occasionally more • Vatted malt • blends of two or more malt whiskies

  3. Principal Components of Scotch Whisky Blends • Grain whisky • light-bodied, provides “background”, tones down stronger notes of some malt whiskies • Lowland malt whisky • light-bodied (compared to other malts), provides “weight”, can be used in large proportion without excessive character • Highland malt whisky • full, heavy, fragrant, fruity; provides character • Islay (and Skye) malt whisky • smoky, peaty, powerful, rich; very influential and normally used in small proportions

  4. Preparing for the Blend • Blended Scotch whisky typically contains 20 to 30 malts, but can be as many as 50 • Using a large number of individual whiskies • allows for greater consistency in the blend • protects the blend if there is a supply problem • prevents any one whisky dominating the blend • Cross-trading (between competitors) may be used to obtain the desired whiskies for blending

  5. Blending of Other Whiskies • Japan • relatively few malt distilleries, so malt whiskies for blending are sometimes imported • United States • blended whiskey uses at least 20% by volume “straight whiskey” (usually bourbon, rye or corn) with light whiskies, grain neutral spirits or grain spirits; up to 2.5% by volume can be “blenders” (such as sherries) • Canada • “blenders” (wines, sherries, whiskies, other spirits) may be used to a maximum of 9% by volume; “pre-blending” is sometimes used

  6. Scotch Whisky: the Blending Process • Casks sampled and nosed • Disgorge malt and grain whiskies separately into troughs (to give vatted malts and vatted grain whiskies) • Filter to remove char and other solids • Transfer to wooden blending vessel, and aerate for 30 to 60 minutes to mix contents • Return to cask for 3 to 6 months (optional) • Mix vatted malt and grain whiskies, with minor adjustments as necessary • Return to cask for 3 to 6 months

  7. Scotch Whisky: the Reduction Process • Casks are disgorged into the reducing vat • Deionized water is added to reduce ethanol to bottling strength (water containing Ca2+ will lead to a precipitate) • Water must be added in the correct way • if too quick, localised weaker solutions will give rise to rapid precipitation • if too cold, rapid precipitation will also occur • rapid precipitation produces smaller particles, which may block the filter • Spirit caramel is added (if necessary) to adjust for colour • Whisky is allowed to rest for 24 hours to allow for precipitation (mainly lipids and fatty acid esters)

  8. Scotch Whisky: the Chill Filtration Process • Chill filtration uses a plate and frame system operated under pressure - easy to maintain, gives consistent performance but expensive to install and operate • Filters are constructed from cellulose or cellulose impregnated or pre-coated with diatomaceous earth; particle retention is about 5 µm • “Body-feeding” with diatomaceous earth may be used prior to filtration, especially with filters made only of cellulse

  9. Scanning Electron Micrographs of Diatoms

  10. A Typical Whisky Blending, Chilling and Filtration System 5 mm mesh cask disgorging trough blending vat 1 mm mesh 1 mm mesh chilling plant reducing vat tanker (guard filter) 100 µm filter filter press bright spirit vat filler 10 µm guard filter 5 µm filter sheets and filter aid

  11. Filling, Capping and Labelling • Filling • vacuum systems are normally used • Capping • roll-on pilfer proof (ROPP): metal sheath is applied using top pressure and rollers • corks: now used predominantly for premium products • Labelling • labels may be be self-adhesive or applied using a wet adhesive • brushes ensure that label is evenly applied

More Related