WOOD MATURATION OF DISTILLED BEVERAGES

A wide range of distilled beverages, including whisky and cognac, cont inue to be matured for many years in oak barrels. During maturation a range of physical and chemical interactions take place between the bar rel, the surrounding atmosphere and the maturing spirit which transfor m both the flavour and composition of the drink. The effects and time required for maturation are highly variable and are influenced by a wi de range of factors, particularly the type of barrel used. As our unde rstanding of the process has improved there has been increasing intere st in methods of predicting, controlling and simulating the effects of maturation. (C) 1998 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.