Aging Distilled Spirits

[Walter]

About a year ago, I found a bottle of standard Jose Cuervo tequila waaaaaay in the back of the old liquor cabinet. I had no idea it was there, and it had to be at least 15 years old sitting in that bottle in the back of the cabinet.

Now, ordinarily, I would never do shots of Cuervo. That's strictly margarita mix at my house. But, we tried it and it turned out to be the smoothest tasting stuff. REEEEEAAAAAALLLLYYYYY nice. So, we thought...whaddaya know, it ages well, even in the bottle!

Fast forward to last weekend. I'm at my father's. Same thing happens, only this time there are two bottles my father didn't know were there. Both are generic liquor from a grocery store from way back when there was that generic movement back in the 80s, with the blue stripes on the bottle and literally the word "generic" on the bottle. So this stuff had to be at least 20-25 years old and we know it had to be the worst of the worst in quality.


Two bottles. One was tequila. The other gin.

I told the story of the Cuervo, and thus we decided to taste test the liquor.

The tequila, even this horrible generic brand....very smooth....very nice.
The gin......OMFG was it awful. Like drinking lighter fluid.

So the question for the board is this.

I was under the impression that once liquor hit the bottle, that was it for aging of distilled spirits. Apparently, for tequila that is not true, but for gin, at least in this case, it was true.

Have you folks tasted aged in the bottle, say, JD7, or Grey Goose and noticed a difference?

[Deleted]

Walter,

    I have not studied the subject in any depth, but I know from my organic chemistry classes in college that esters are the chemicals that are the most fragrant, and often give various fruits their distinctive smell.   Most fruits have a distinctive ester that smells like the fruit-- apple, pineapple, etc.

    Distilled spirits that are aged in wooden casks, apparently, tend to form esters through chemical reactions with the wood.
    
    As you probably know, most single malt scotches-- like the Macallan-- are aged in sherry casks from Jerez de la Frontera (where "sherry" got its English moniker.)

    Not sure how to account for the improved taste of the Tequila that aged in the bottle you mentioned.


Here's something I found (about rum) on a quick Google search-- an article entitled, "Age Matters."


        The chemistry of aging isn't fully understood, but it's universally accepted that aging mellows and improves the taste of freshly distilled spirits. While the rums are sleeping in oak barrels, natural tannins in the wood impart a golden tint that yields to a rich brown cast after several years. The alcohol in the rum acts as a solvent and attracts the tannins in the porous wood as well as esters which will give rum, or any other spirit, a slight vanilla flavor as well as a smoky oak tone depending on the age of the spirit.


www.ministryofrum.com/article_age_matters.php

[cyberobb99]

Apr 6, 2015 19:36:42 GMT -5 Walter said:

About a year ago, I found a bottle of standard Jose Cuervo tequila waaaaaay in the back of the old liquor cabinet. I had no idea it was there, and it had to be at least 15 years old sitting in that bottle in the back of the cabinet.

Now, ordinarily, I would never do shots of Cuervo. That's strictly margarita mix at my house. But, we tried it and it turned out to be the smoothest tasting stuff. REEEEEAAAAAALLLLYYYYY nice. So, we thought...whaddaya know, it ages well, even in the bottle!

Fast forward to last weekend. I'm at my father's. Same thing happens, only this time there are two bottles my father didn't know were there. Both are generic liquor from a grocery store from way back when there was that generic movement back in the 80s, with the blue stripes on the bottle and literally the word "generic" on the bottle. So this stuff had to be at least 20-25 years old and we know it had to be the worst of the worst in quality.


Two bottles. One was tequila. The other gin.

I told the story of the Cuervo, and thus we decided to taste test the liquor.

The tequila, even this horrible generic brand....very smooth....very nice.
The gin......OMFG was it awful. Like drinking lighter fluid.

So the question for the board is this.

I was under the impression that once liquor hit the bottle, that was it for aging of distilled spirits. Apparently, for tequila that is not true, but for gin, at least in this case, it was true.

Have you folks tasted aged in the bottle, say, JD7, or Grey Goose and noticed a difference?

While a bottle greatly slows the molecular conversion rate of any alcoholic beverage, even distilled ones will change over time, even if they are in a sealed, inert container like glass. However, the benefits of any such changes vary greatly from one liquid to another. The Tequila is naturally higher in sugar, which makes it a great candidate for improvement with age. The gin....not so much. I have in my possession a limited amount of 65 year old Virginia Gentleman, unfiltered. It actually has charcoal in it from the cask. It is an extraordinary liquor, which I am very careful not to waste on unappreciative palates. I'm saving one bottle for my Father's passing, when I intend to open it to drink a toast with the other members of my family. A fitting end to my reserve, if I do say so myself.

[daleko]

Apr 6, 2015 19:36:42 GMT -5 Walter said:

About a year ago, I found a bottle of standard Jose Cuervo tequila waaaaaay in the back of the old liquor cabinet. I had no idea it was there, and it had to be at least 15 years old sitting in that bottle in the back of the cabinet.

Now, ordinarily, I would never do shots of Cuervo. That's strictly margarita mix at my house. But, we tried it and it turned out to be the smoothest tasting stuff. REEEEEAAAAAALLLLYYYYY nice. So, we thought...whaddaya know, it ages well, even in the bottle!

Fast forward to last weekend. I'm at my father's. Same thing happens, only this time there are two bottles my father didn't know were there. Both are generic liquor from a grocery store from way back when there was that generic movement back in the 80s, with the blue stripes on the bottle and literally the word "generic" on the bottle. So this stuff had to be at least 20-25 years old and we know it had to be the worst of the worst in quality.


Two bottles. One was tequila. The other gin.

I told the story of the Cuervo, and thus we decided to taste test the liquor.

The tequila, even this horrible generic brand....very smooth....very nice.
The gin......OMFG was it awful. Like drinking lighter fluid.

So the question for the board is this.

I was under the impression that once liquor hit the bottle, that was it for aging of distilled spirits. Apparently, for tequila that is not true, but for gin, at least in this case, it was true.

Have you folks tasted aged in the bottle, say, JD7, or Grey Goose and noticed a difference?

Over time you may get a little fading of flavor due to oxidation. In the case of "cheap stuff", less harsh. And even w glass you'll get some "evaporation". Cheap rum is another candidate.

[Lee The Locksmith]

I see, I pour, I drink ....No experience with aging

[Coaltrain]

Apr 14, 2015 9:20:02 GMT -5 Lee The Locksmith said:

I see, I pour, I drink ....No experience with aging

I beg to differ, you have been aging ........oh uh well.

[daleko]

Apr 14, 2015 20:59:58 GMT -5 Coaltrain said:

Apr 14, 2015 9:20:02 GMT -5 Lee The Locksmith said:

I see, I pour, I drink ....No experience with aging

I beg to differ, you have been aging ........oh uh well.

OK that was well done, +2, and nice duck at the end.