Negative Effects Of Heat & Cold On Alcohol - Tiki Drinks and Food

M martiki Official Mixologist http://www.smugglerscovesf.com Joined: Mar 29, 2002 Posts: 3059	M martiki Posted posted on Sun, Jun 8, 2008 3:55 PM Freezing a wood-aged spirit can lead to some cloudiness in the product, which is why some whiskeys are chill-filtered. Not likely to make any difference in a vodka. Appleton bottles certain products in their range at 43% to avoid this, as they sell a lot to chilly Canada. Wikipedia: Chill filtration Many whiskies are bottled after being "chill-filtered". This is a process in which the whisky is chilled to near 0°C (32°F) and passed through a fine filter. This removes some of the compounds produced during distillation or extracted from the wood of the cask, and prevents the whisky from becoming hazy when chilled, or when water or ice is added. Chill filtration also removes some of the flavour and body from the whisky, which is why some consider chill-filtered whiskies to be inferior. From Whisky Magazine Forums: The stuff you take care of with chill-filtering are higher alcohols, molecular chains that are far longer than the drinkable C2O5OH, ethanol. They come into the whisky during the distillation process because the heat is enough to vaporize them along with the desired ethanol. During the distillation the still man cuts of the foreshots, collects the wanted middle cut, the heart of the run and cuts of the feints, the unsavoury bitter alcohols, too. But distilling is an art, not a science therefore you have an amount of higher alcohols in your middle cut as well. That can not be helped and should not because with these longer molecules along go flavours and aromas. In fact these chains of molecules carry taste, aroma and flavour in themselves. But: If your whisky gets cold and has a abv beneath 46% abv, these longer molecules fall out of the fluid because below 46% abv they can not be held in solution within the whisky with this relatively low alcohol content. And the clouds are here to stay. At 46% abv and above the whisky when getting cold clouds over nicely but when temperatures go up it goes back to normal because with the help of the warmth the higher alcohol content dissolves the waxy alcohols again. The industry does not believe that customers want to drink a cloudy whisky and to be honest, it does not look too well even when you know why it turned cloudy. Therefore the bottlers chill the whisky before bottling, the higher alcohols turn waxy and can easily be removed with mechanical filtres. Along go elements of taste, flavour and aroma, though.

Freezing a wood-aged spirit can lead to some cloudiness in the product, which is why some whiskeys are chill-filtered. Not likely to make any difference in a vodka. Appleton bottles certain products in their range at 43% to avoid this, as they sell a lot to chilly Canada.

Wikipedia:

Chill filtration

Many whiskies are bottled after being "chill-filtered". This is a process in which the whisky is chilled to near 0°C (32°F) and passed through a fine filter. This removes some of the compounds produced during distillation or extracted from the wood of the cask, and prevents the whisky from becoming hazy when chilled, or when water or ice is added.

Chill filtration also removes some of the flavour and body from the whisky, which is why some consider chill-filtered whiskies to be inferior.

From Whisky Magazine Forums:

The stuff you take care of with chill-filtering are higher alcohols, molecular chains that are far longer than the drinkable C2O5OH, ethanol. They come into the whisky during the distillation process because the heat is enough to vaporize them along with the desired ethanol. During the distillation the still man cuts of the foreshots, collects the wanted middle cut, the heart of the run and cuts of the feints, the unsavoury bitter alcohols, too. But distilling is an art, not a science therefore you have an amount of higher alcohols in your middle cut as well. That can not be helped and should not because with these longer molecules along go flavours and aromas. In fact these chains of molecules carry taste, aroma and flavour in themselves.
But: If your whisky gets cold and has a abv beneath 46% abv, these longer molecules fall out of the fluid because below 46% abv they can not be held in solution within the whisky with this relatively low alcohol content. And the clouds are here to stay. At 46% abv and above the whisky when getting cold clouds over nicely but when temperatures go up it goes back to normal because with the help of the warmth the higher alcohol content dissolves the waxy alcohols again.
The industry does not believe that customers want to drink a cloudy whisky and to be honest, it does not look too well even when you know why it turned cloudy. Therefore the bottlers chill the whisky before bottling, the higher alcohols turn waxy and can easily be removed with mechanical filtres.
Along go elements of taste, flavour and aroma, though.

Post #385520 by martiki on Sun, Jun 8, 2008 3:55 PM