Viagra Dept: Softening with Bottle Aging

[Capn Jimbo]

Another reason to store your bottles vertically, lol...


From a recent post at the Shillery...

Joey: "(I recently got) a bottle of Dictador 20 some months ago... The rum however was far from what expectations the bottle raised.

The first whiff .. almost rubbery... and lots of alcohol. The first sip... rubbery anise... plenty of after burn... pretty dry and... lacked the typical vanilla aroma of an old casked rum. It wasn't what I was hoping for, so it sat on the shelf untouched for quite a while.

Recently I gave it another try, and I'm almost certain that oxidation made it bloom in some strange way, because now it's completely different. (It's now) much softer and the rubbery anise body seem to have subsided... more of a sweet nature... lots of vanilla and rich honey tones. Biased by my first opinion I offered some to a couple of my fellow rumheads, and they just loved it."

"Joey", here's the deal. While brighter minds than mine feel that some changes actually occur in the bottle, it is only after many years (think 20 years on your shelf). So that's out. On the other hand - and just like wine - a bit of airing really does make a difference.

We have frequently cited this in our reviews and have noted that the first drams out of the bottle usually fall short. Our rule: until the level of rum reaches the shoulders of the bottle, you really don't know what that rum tastes like.


So what's happening?

We believe this is a combination of cork effect, and certain unpleasant volatiles airing out. Whatever the reason, it's true. Your experiences?

[da'rum]

Completely agree. You can get a general idea on the quality of the rum on opening, it's not until it's breathed a little that it's true potential is realised. True of nearly every spirit.

[bearmark]

I've had two significant experiences with this.

The first was a bottle of Flor de Caña 18 that I was so excited to have finally purchased. I opened it up immediately after returning home and was extremely disappointed. It had a leathery, overly-wooded flavor that just overpowered the rum, so I (very dejectedly) placed it up on the shelf and moved on to other stuff, disappointed for having landed a "great deal" at $41 (my most expensive rum to date). Two weeks later, I opened it up again to give it another try and I was shocked at the dramatic improvement in flavor. The wood was now very much under control and wonderfully complemented the subtle sweet flavors that just seemed to blossom in my mouth. It's one of my favorite rums now!

The second was a very different experience, but still significant. I had finally arrived at the last of the rum styles on my list... rhum agricole. I purchased a bottle of Barbancourt 5-Star and again was disappointed in the overly-oaked flavor, while appreciating the uniqueness of the rhum agricole style. It wasn't as overpowering as with the FdC18 above, but still mildly disappointing. Over the past several months I've continued to periodically return to this bottle and sample it again and again. The change has been subtle and slow, but still significant. Now that I'm half-way through the bottle, the oak flavor is now nicely in balance and I'm becoming a (mild) rhum agricole fan. I still plan on trying the 3-Star next, but I've come to really appreciate the 5-Star in the meantime. I'm sure that I'll settle on one of them as my rhum agricole reference.

[Uisge]

I know that Ralfy has often mentioned this in his whisky vlogs, and I recently experienced this with a blended Scotch which I had purchased at the Whisky Experience next to Edinburgh Castle on New Year's Eve '06-'07.

The blend is Bailie Nicol Jarvie, from Glenmorangie, and upon sampling it when I got back home I was kind of nonplussed, even a little put-off by it's bouquet and flavor. Cardboardy and nutty are the things that came to mind, and something camphor-ish that didn't agree with me.

Several years later I tried it again after seeing his vlog about B-N-J and I let him know how his review helped me appreciate it.

Then this past week I poured another dram of it, and the level is below the shoulder of the bottle by now, and it was wonderful, Lemon scented Pledge! And a nice waxiness, too.

[Capn Jimbo]

Stolen from Straight Bourbon...

Gillman
08-10-2005, 02:12
"I agree that the more air in the bottle, the more (or faster) the changes will take place. But it is evident to me that most liquors will change in the bottle.

All bottles admit air, this can be seen in many of the photos Doug has been posting where there is a slight dip often in the fill level (e.g. look at the duo of Old Forester he recently put up). This means liquor has gotten out and air gotten in. A bottle is a small container. I believe the air in the neck penetrates through the spirit and if moved (as most will be at some time or other in their history) the effect of the air will be greater. Recall many barrels also have differing head spaces depending on their age. One difference is in a barrel air gets in through the wood pores; in a bottle it gets in through the seal at the top. So the volume and entry points are different. Also of course, the wood will stop exerting any effect (e.g. no more tannin enters the spirit) from time of dumping. But oxygen still will do its work, and of course there is tannin already in the bottle and other compounds from the wood from before, interracting with present and new oxygen entering the bottle.

But certainly the changes will be lesser with a full bottle. And they are slow to occur in any case. Still, some air will get in. I believe in most cases, small but beneficial changes will result. So e.g., take those lovely Yellowstones Doug found - I would think they will taste similar to what they did upon release many years ago but possibly better due to some ongoing maturation. Ditto those Old Foresters and most of those other bottles. I don't think any of them (unless mishandled or badly stored before purchase) will get worse and that is because they were full when purchased. The problem of bottles one-quarter full deteriorating is well known. It occurs because too much air is "going at" the volume in the bottle over too long a period (short as it may seem). But think about it: if a bottle 3/4 empty is liable to such changes over a short time, it stands to reason the contents when full will evolve in taste as well, just over a longer period.

Another reason I say this is that my bottle was tightly closed. I am "famous" in my household for tightly closing bottles and I think 30 years of twisting and turning and lugging heavy bottles too has given me arthritis in my hands but that is another story. The rum in that bottle did not "oxidise" in conventional terms, it did not that is get that spoiled metallic taste many people have noticed with bottles in which a small amount of spirit is left for a certain time. The rum tastes perfect, it just doesn't taste like Wray Overproof. It tastes like it has been rectified, like a good brand of white rum tastes upon release (soft, mildly fruity). I believe this is simply the effect of air maturation for many years: just as air in a barrel will soften the spirit and change the congeners into esters and other compounds the same thing happens in the bottle, evidently.

This conclusion was reached by the way by Professor J.S. McDowell, a Scots authority on whisky who wrote a book on the subject in the 1960's. He thought that spirits can be "laid away" just as vintage port and some wines are for maturation benefits. He had tasted bottles of the same brand (of whisky) sold some 35 years apart - an experiment not dissimilar to the one I conducted, and concluded bottle age improved the contents. I learned this information in a charming book called "Drinks and Drinking" by the Englishman Frederic Martin. Martin was an old school type, a former army officer with later experience in the drinks trade who knew his subject well. I would think he has passed on by now since the book is from the late 1960's. Martin's comment on McDowell's theory: "Sorry I can't wait".

The good news, for those of you who have bottles not to your taste, is patience will (may) be more than its own reward.

The good news for those who have whiskey which is good or too young is, it may get better. Those bunkers in the bungalows and frame houses of the American heartland can stand as the U.S. equivalent of the deep stone cellars of England (or toney Connecticut or the Hamptons) holding priceless vintages getting better and better.

Chuck Cowdery here has said, "whiskey doesn't keep". Chuck, it does and it doesn't.

Gary"

FWIW I've researched and posted on this before, but for the life of me I can't find it here or at the Malt Maniacs whose well-qualified opinion was that a few very old spirits (think 20+ years) did change.