Capn Jimbo's Rum Project Forum

[Capn Jimbo]

The answer is not what you think...


Idiots in the mold of the Artic Wolf tend to believe that it is the sherry entrapped in used sherry barrels that accounts for what they call "sherry effects". Of course this assumes the sherry barrels are shipped empty, with leftover sherry - still magically fresh - sloshing around the bottom of the barrel and mixing with the new rum or whisky fill.

Horseshit.

First of all most barrels are disassembled, cleaned and often recharred. This is done to actually eliminate sherry. Sour or moldy barrels are discarded. Still think it's possible?


Let's consider Macallan Single Malt Whisky

Macallan is one of the major and most respected distillers of fine single malt whisky. They are known for their used of ex-sherry barrels and their famous "sherry profile", consisting of overtones of apricot and orange. As a result Macallan has purchased many, many thousands of used sherry barrels over the years.

But a problem, actually several, arose.

Due to demand the Spanish sherry producers ran out of barrels to sell. So Macallan then grew and coopered their own Spanish oak, and rented their new barrels to the sherry producers, who then returned these seasoned sherry barrels to Macallan.

But this too failed when the producers, en masse, suddenly decided they preferred American oak (very different from Macallan's Spanish oak preference). Oops!


What Macallan Discovered!

In desperation Macallan then contracted for Spanish oak (Quercus robur) and used it plain - without sherry seasoning! Amazing! And the result: they discovered that the wood - Spanish oak - was far more important than the sherry in maintaining their well known "sherry profile".

How 'bout dat!


*******
Source: Liquorpress.com
_________________


Go to Save Caribbean Rum Petition!