Finished Product (add bought flavour) Maturation

[Frank]

When bottling HBS-purchased, flavoured spirit (as per instructions of course ;) ) I'm keen to know all experiences regarding improvement over time; ie for leaving in the bottle 'untouched' until .......

[maheel]

i reckon it does improve over time, the store bought stuff IMO still needs time to "blend" into the spirit.
it just sort of mellows

i would often use essence then add oak as well and leave it on as long as possible....

[MacStill]

When I used the Essencia bourbon chunks I would try let it age a while, the older it got the better it was but I never found an essence that came close to having the authentic bourbon flavor as the chunks.

An ol' bloke up the road swears by Edwards Scrub Turkey, He loves the stuff and has some fairly old stuff that isnt too bad........ bit rough for me but he swears by it.

[Frank]

Hey Maheel/Mc Still and M others, yep now I realise I should put the flavour in BEFORE oaking (ahh just a keen beginner I am and don't know sh#t :oops: ) but really, how long, re duration before quaffing, is long enough before being 'good enough to drink/share? I mean, it cant keep iproving exponentially forever (can it?)...

[MacStill]

how long, re duration before quaffing, is long enough before being 'good enough to drink/share? I mean, it cant keep iproving exponentially forever (can it?)...

Trick question that one Frank, I've never had the pleasure of tasting stuff that I've aged for any length of time, three months is about it at this stage..... I'll even top up a can of coke straight from the still when doing rum :oops:

Ol mate up the road reckons it's all good and he's never made a bad batch and reckons some just taste better than others :lol: , the aging process is only there cuz he cant drink it quick enough....

He's only ever used turbo's and essence, reckons I'm an idjut going to so much trouble with my stuff...... he was my inspiration in my early days doing this.

[reknaw]

I'll even top up a can of coke straight from the still when doing rum :oops:

LOL you don't do you?

A fella I sold a still to told me yesterday he was running the still at 3am and was pissed (No offence if you read this Boss)

[Frank]

Just between all of us....I can't believe ANYONE would put coke (or any massproduced fizzy sugar substitiute stuff ) in their hard-earned spirit :shock: yuk!

[MacStill]

Just between all of us....I can't believe ANYONE would put coke (or any massproduced fizzy sugar substitiute stuff ) in their hard-earned spirit :shock: yuk!

Well I get too pissed drinking it straight :o

[QLD.Andy]

I tell everybody thats just starting out to leave it for at least 2 week before tasting.
I have enough stock on hand now to be drinking 3 month old stuff.
I also have a hard time keeping it any longer.
But my barrel has been sitting now for 4 months and all I do is take a taste every now and then in a hope that I can leave it for a year.

[maheel]

sadly my whiskey stocks ran out but i was drinking some stuff i had made in 2008 last year. i also had some that was from 2004 (ish) that i had squirreled away :).
the 08 vintage :D was one of m best, i think i figured out the cuts idea when prior i would let all the stuff come off the still into a 5L glass bottle, water it all down and mix it up... i used a lot of turbos and carbons a few years ago...

I used to mix up 5l of 40% add still spirts whiskey (blue bottle?) and add some port maybe a bit of dark brown sugaz or even steep a few raisins / sultanas (only for a few days).
then i would pour it into XXXX tallies and add some store bought oak chips.
cap it and put it in milk crates with the year on the lid. Leave it sit around....
i also have a 10L keg i would drink from, and top up continually from the stock to always have a "standard" blend
to the keg i would often tip a bit of port in, or the last nip of any store bought scotch or bourbon i might have floating around

the trick is to put some away each batch and get stocks up, at one point i know i had more than 100 tallies full.
i dont know how much you all drink but i only drink about 1 bottle a week as i also make beer....
100 was around 2 years + in advance, so any new stuff got on the back of the que and was going to be about 2 years old before i got to it.
one year i was lucky to have "free" power and water and really built up some stock
i stopped brewing for a while as i did not have the shed and moved 7 houses across 4 states in 3 years....

i put 8L of neutral on oak on the weekend but am tossing up the idea of putting essence in it?
so can start building stocks again no turbo or carbon and very heavy cuts keeping only the hearts really.

[Frank]

Bl##dy hell Maheel 100 tallies!! :o Good for you! Anyway there seems to be consensus that flavouring/oaking and aging for as long as possible is worth the effort. Now I shall have to learn how to start 'putting one away' :cry: for, say, 3 months to begin with. Hey QLD.Andy, is the 4 month old stuff you 'sampled' from the barrel noticeably better/different from your 4 month old stuff in bottles?

[QLD.Andy]

I dont have any 4 month old bottled bourbon only 3 month.
But yes, its much better, smoother and not as bitey if that makes sense.

[Gagginforit]

Hi guys, i might add my 2 cents if it can help others. This is how i make my jack daniels knock off, using the essence at the end.

I first take my chips, i halve them, then i turn on the grill maybe 180'? 200'? on the oven and lay that 1/2 in a tray and take out a pan, a largeish pan and turn on a ring about 1/2 way maybe 3/4 depending on your cooktop.

So you now have your oven grill on and your stove top on with the pan on the heat and hot your demi john ready and your alcohol at 50% or whaterver you have it at ready also.

Load up your chips and set them charring, you will need to check it continuosly untill it charrs nicely. Now chuck in to that pot on the stove top your maple syrup, it will bubble and steam, the idea is to burn it, then add some brown sugar, it should go gluggy and syrupy, now add your charred chips to it, it will turn black, stur it up with a speen, crunch them chips if you can then let it cool back down for an hour or so. It wont smell too good.

After an hour heat it back up, add a cup of water to thin things out again and funnel the mix into your demijohn/container? and add your alcohol ontop, mix her up and then add theremaining 50% of the chip, let it sit for a fortnight or more.

Filter out the chunks and have a go. This is where i add my essence