When buying whiskey, we often see the wine label Single Cask/Barrel, Cask Strength, Sherry Cask, Bourbon Cask, etc., so what do these barrels mean?
1) Single bucket
Single barrel whiskey refers to the whiskey inside the bottle from a single oak barrel, emphasizing its distinctive character.
70% of the flavor of whiskey comes from oak barrels, and the type of barrel, the degree of old and new barrels, the aging time, the microbial environment of the distillery, the placement of the whiskey will have an impact on the flavor of the whiskey. Even if it is the same batch of distillation, the type of barrel, the time and length of the barrel, but different oak barrels produced whiskey, the taste is not the same. In other words, the taste of a single barrel of whisky cannot be replicated.
The subtle influence of a single oak barrel on the flavor of whiskey, sometimes even the creator, the master bartender is not sure exactly what the wine in the barrel is achieving, and the mystery can only be appreciated after the taste. The distillery will release a single barrel of whiskey, and usually the distiller finds a single barrel that is very surprising.
Single barrel whiskey belongs to high-end boutique whiskey, because the capacity of a barrel is limited, a batch of single barrel whiskey is often only a few hundred bottles, and the barrel number and bottle number are generally marked on the bottle body. Single barrel whiskey because of limited production, unique style and personality can not be replicated, the price is relatively more expensive, but it is still loved by many whiskey lovers.
2) Double bucket
Double Cask/Barrel refers to the blending of two types of wine, or aging in one type of barrel before aging in the other.
Different casks can give different flavors to whiskey, and the mixing of the two casks is mainly used to enhance the complexity of whiskey flavor.
3) Three barrels
Triple Cask/Barrel (Triple Cask/Barrel), as the name suggests, a whiskey sharing three barrels for aging, the concept is similar to double cask, but also in order to increase the complexity of the whiskey and an aging method.
4) The original barrel/barrel is strong
Original barrel strength, referred to as the original barrel or barrel strength. Cask whiskey refers to whiskey that is bottled directly from oak barrels without diluting with water. A barrel strong whiskey must be a single barrel, but a single barrel whiskey is not necessarily a barrel strong.
Barrel whiskey is usually between 55% and 60% ABV, but depending on the conditions and barrels used for long barrel aging and aging, some barrel whiskey can even be lower than ordinary diluted products with water. For example, in a wetter cellar, the more alcohol evaporates, the lower the alcohol content; The longer the barrel is aged, the less alcoholic it will be.
The aroma and taste of whiskey are mainly caused by different combinations of organic compounds such as esters, aldehydes, phenols, etc., most of which are easily soluble in ethanol, that is, alcohol. Simply put, the higher the alcohol level, the more organic compounds that provide aroma and taste, so in taste and aroma, high alcohol whiskey is more and stronger than low alcohol whiskey. But it is not the higher the alcohol, the better, otherwise the flower fruit flavor becomes like essence, and it is easy to ignore some other delicate aromas.
Barrel whiskey is also a more popular class of products. Because this can be close to the most original wine scenery, can best reflect the taste of whiskey in the barrel and the style of the distillery, it is considered to be the most original.
5) Sherry bucket
Sherry was imported into Britain in the 1860s. Early sherry containers were oak barrels, known as Transport casks. Because this barrel is cheaper than other newly made oak barrels and resources are abundant, the practice of using sherry barrels to mature whiskey became popular and has continued to the present day.
By the 1980s, with the complete disappearance of shipping barrels, Scottish distilleries began to order directly from barrel factories in order to ensure the supply of sherry barrels. These sherry casks, which can be made according to the distillery's wishes, have a high degree of autonomy and are called Bespoke casks. Typically, these bespoke barrels are soaked in sherry for six to 12 months before being shipped to various distilleries across Scotland.
Most of the sherry barrels used in Scotch whisky are Oloroso barrels, and Fino barrels are rarely used. Whisky aged in a sherry barrel is full bodied and fruity, with flavors of pepper, caramel, dried fruit and orange, and a deep amber color.
6) Bourbon bucket
90% of the world's whiskey is now aged in bourbon barrels. What is a bourbon bucket? Got to learn about bourbon first. Bourbon whiskey from the United States must be 51% corn and aged in new American oak barrels for at least two years. This whiskey is usually full-bodied and sweet.
A bourbon barrel is a barrel in which bourbon whiskey has been aged. Because bourbon whiskey can only be aged in new American oak barrels, the used barrels are exported to Scotland as an alternative to sherry barrels, which are typically one-tenth the price of sherry barrels. However, as the global demand for bourbon barrels has increased and the number of bourbon barrels has decreased, the price of bourbon barrels has slowly begun to rise.
In general, whiskey aged in bourbon barrels will show a light golden color, a soft and delicate body, mainly light fruity and woody aromas, such as honey, almond, coconut, floral, fudge, nuts, vanilla, caramel, cream and oak aromas. In terms of color, body and taste, bourbon whiskey is not as strong as sherry whiskey.
7) Porter bucket
Port is a fortified wine produced in Portugal, which is sweet in taste and has a very intense fruit flavor, some also have a very obvious oxidation flavor.
There are very few port casks available for whiskey aging, but some distilleries will also use port casks to age whiskey for novelty or in pursuit of a specific flavor, mostly ruby red port casks. Whiskey aged in this barrel usually has a red color, rich fruit aroma, and a relatively strong body.
8) Over/change the bucket
Specifically, during the aging process of whiskey, the body of the wine that has spent most of the brewing time in the barrel is replaced by another new wine barrel. The most classic case is the whiskey that has matured in bourbon barrels for a period of time to continue aging in sherry barrels, which can increase the flavor of dried fruits and spices in the wine, known as "casking" or "casking."
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