What do you mean by single barrel, strong barrel, Sherry barrel and Bourbon barrel in whisky?

When purchasing whisky, we often see single cask/barrel, cask strength, Sherry cask, Bourbon cask, etc. on the label. What do these casks mean and what are their functions?

Single barrel

Single barrel whisky, as the name suggests, means that the whisky in the bottle comes from a single oak barrel, emphasizing its distinctive personality.

70% of the flavor of whisky comes from oak barrels. The type of barrels, the degree of newness of barrels, the length of aging, the microbial environment of the distillery, and the placement position will all have an impact on the flavor of whisky. Even if it is the same distillation batch, barrel type, barrel filling time and duration, the taste of whisky brewed in different oak barrels is different. In other words, the taste of a single barrel of whisky cannot be duplicated.

The subtle influence of a single oak barrel on the flavor of whisky sometimes even the creators and wine blending masters can't figure out what the flavor of the wine in the barrel is. The mystery can only be appreciated after tasting it personally. Wineries will launch single barrels of whisky, usually when the winemaker finds a very surprised single barrel.

Single barrel whisky belongs to high-end boutique whisky. Because the capacity of a barrel is limited, there are often only a few hundred bottles of single barrel whisky in a batch. Generally, the barrel number and bottle number are marked on the bottle. Single barrel whisky is loved by many whisky drinkers because of its limited output, distinct and unique style, non replicability and relatively higher price.

Double barrel

Double cask/barrel refers to mixing liquor in two barrels, or aging in one barrel before aging in another barrel.

Different barrels can give whisky different flavor. The mixing of the two barrels is mainly to improve the complexity of whisky flavor.

Three barrels

Triple cask/barrel, as the name suggests, a whisky uses three kinds of barrels for aging. The concept is similar to that of double barrels. It is also an aging method used to increase the complexity of whisky.

Original barrel / barrel strength

Original barrel strength, referred to as original barrel or barrel strength. Barrel strong whisky refers to whisky that is bottled directly from oak barrels without water dilution. A barrel of strong whisky is not necessarily a single barrel, and a barrel of whisky is not necessarily a barrel of strong whisky.

The precision of the original strong whisky is usually between 55%-60% abv. However, with the difference between the barrel used for long-term barrel aging and the environment, the alcohol content of some barrel strong whisky is even lower than that of ordinary water diluted products. For example, in a wetter cellar, the more alcohol volatilizes, the lower the alcohol content will be; The longer the barrel is aged, the lower the alcohol level will be.

The aroma and taste of whisky are mainly caused by different combinations of organic substances such as esters, aldehydes, phenols, etc. most of them are easily soluble in ethanol, that is, alcohol. Simply put, the higher the alcohol content, the more organic substances that provide aroma and taste can be brought. Therefore, in terms of taste and aroma, whiskies with high alcohol precision are more and stronger than those with low alcohol precision. But it is not that the higher the alcohol level, the better. Otherwise, the flower and fruit fragrance becomes like essence flavor, and it is easy to ignore some other delicate fragrance.

In general, Keqiang whisky is also a popular product. Because it can be close to the most primitive wine scenery, and can reflect the taste of whisky in the barrel and the style of the distillery to the greatest extent, it is considered to be the most original.

Sherry bucket

In the 1860s, Britain began to import sherry. The early container for transporting Sherry was oak barrel, which was called transport cask. As this kind of barrel is cheaper than other newly made oak barrels and has sufficient resources, the practice of using Sherry barrels to ripen whisky has become popular and continues to this day.

In the 1980s, with the complete disappearance of transport barrels, Scottish distilleries began to directly customize barrels to ensure the supply of sherry barrels. These Sherry barrels can be well made according to the wishes of the winery and have a high degree of autonomy. They are called bespoke casks. Generally, these custom barrels will be soaked in sherry liquor for 6 to 12 months, and then transported to various wineries in Scotland.

Most of the sherry barrels used for Scotch Whisky are olorso barrels, and very few are fino barrels. Whisky cooked in sherry barrels is full-bodied and fruity. It has the flavor of pepper, caramel, dried fruit and orange, and has a deep amber color.

Bourbon barrel

Now 90% of whisky in the world is aged in Bourbon barrels. What is a Bourbon bucket? You have to learn about Bourbon first. Bourbon Whisky from the United States requires at least 51% corn in the raw material and is aged in brand-new oak barrels. This kind of whisky is usually rich, mellow and sweet.

A Bourbon barrel is a barrel in which Bourbon Whisky has been aged. Because Bourbon Whisky can only be aged in brand-new oak barrels, the used barrels are exported to Scotland and become a substitute for Sherry barrels. The price of Bourbon barrels is much cheaper than that of Shirley barrels because the old barrels that have been used continuously are empty. However, with the increase of global demand for Bourbon barrels and the decrease of the number of Bourbon barrels, the price of Bourbon barrels also began to rise slowly.

Gran Carden whisky matured in Bourbon barrels has a very soft taste

Generally speaking, the whisky matured in Bourbon barrels will show a light golden yellow color, and the wine is soft and delicate. It is mainly composed of elegant flower and fruit aroma and woody aroma, such as honey, almond, coconut, flower aroma, soft sugar, nuts, vanilla, caramel, cream and oak. In terms of color, body and taste, Bourbon aged whisky is not as rich as sherry aged whisky.

Porter barrel

Port is a kind of fortified wine produced in Portugal. It tastes sweet and has a very rich fruit flavor. Some also have a very obvious oxidation flavor.

There are very few Potter barrels available for whisky aging, but some wineries will also use Potter barrels to age whisky in order to innovate or pursue a specific flavor, mostly ruby red Potter barrels. The Whisky Aged in this barrel usually has red color, rich aroma of ripe red fruit, caramel, cinnamon and chocolate, and the wine is full and powerful.

European barrels

Scots originally aged whisky in European barrels made of Quercus robur. At the beginning, the oak barrels came from England or Scotland, but the oak texture and texture were not very good and easy to leak. Later, the appearance of Russian oak barrels made things better, because this kind of oak grew faster and the texture was more fine and straight.

In the end, due to the popularity of sherry barrels and Bourbon barrels, it is rare to use newly made European oak barrels to age whisky alone (after all, the price of a new European oak barrel can reach 600-800 euros, which is too expensive). It usually appears in two barrels and three barrels of whisky.

The flavors that European barrels can bring to whisky include roasted, cinnamon, cardamom and other delicate spices and wood.

American barrel

The use of Quercus alba in the whisky industry began after World War II. At that time, in order to promote the development of American barrel industry, the American authorities stipulated that all American whiskies must be aged in brand-new American oak barrels.

In addition to American whisky, few whiskies in other regions will be aged in brand-new American oak barrels. It usually appears in two barrels or three barrels of whisky.

Lilac

American oak grows faster, so its tannin content is less than that of European oak, and its wood density is larger. It is rich in single molecule gallic acid glucose, which can give whisky a typical vanilla flavor.

Japanese water drum

Most Japanese whiskies are aged in a few mizunara barrels. This kind of oak is only produced in the frigid Hokkaido region, and it takes 170-200 years or more to grow into usable wood. This kind of oak is rich in vanillin (phenolic substances) and has a high water content, so it is called Shuixi.

Japanese shuitaitong whisky is very famous for its unique flavor. Japanese oak, rich in internal fat, mainly presents the flavor of ancient Oriental wood spices such as sandalwood and aloes. In addition, Japanese oak can give the liquor coconut flavor, sometimes even citrus fruit flavor. In recent years, this Oriental style has been sought after by European and American drinkers. Bartenders believe that it is full of the flavor of Japanese shrines, full of the aroma of Gallo and the flavor of Japanese incense.

The use of Japanese water barrels began in the 1930s. At that time, the United States and Japan were hostile. Naturally, they could not obtain American oak barrels and European oak barrels to age whisky. They had to look for Japanese oak instead. However, Japanese oak has high water content, so it is very difficult to make oak barrels. Moreover, it is very rare to make barrels with a tree age of more than 170 years. The famous Suntory can only produce 100 water barrels a year. In addition, it has a wide texture and large pores, and it is easy to seep wine. This kind of Japanese oak barrel is not popular.

After World War II, most Japanese whiskies were aged in European barrels (Sherry barrels) or American barrels (Bourbon barrels). Nowadays, most of the water barrels are used as barrels to add some special flavor. There are few wines that have been kept in the water barrels for many years, and Japanese whisky in the water barrels of high years is even more precious and rare.