The most common style of warehousing seen in the production of American whiskeys is called traditional rick storage. In this type of storage, barrels are stored in tall racks known as ricks. One rick is typically between ten to twenty-five barrels deep and can reach up to nine stories, with three tiers of barrels on each story. Each level has its own micro-climate and experiences different temperature and humidity fluctuations that are unique to that level. The difference in temperature and humidity can have a significant effect on the flavor development in barrel-aged spirits.

Using different oak species can have significant effects on the flavor development of spirits aged in barrel. One such effect is due to the varying amounts of the whiskey lactones found in each species of oak. If present in high enough concentrations, lactones can be a major contributor to the overall flavor profile.

Wood seasoning is a crucial part of the barrel making process. The benefit most often associated with wood seasoning is the reduction of tannin. While this is indeed an important result of wood seasoning, a lesser-known benefit is the boost in extractive potential.

The first few years of maturation are the most active for the influx of barrel- derived flavor compounds into the aging spirit. Normally, producers have the choice of four different char levels for new barrels. The degree of char can alter the rate of extraction in new oak maturation.

This experiment explores the impact of different char levels on the flavor development of barrel-aged spirits.

The Boswell Family Warehouse represents the intersection of tradition, education, and innovation. It’s a place where students, researchers, and industry professionals come together to advance the science of barrel aging while preserving the rich heritage of Kentucky spirits.

Over the next four years, students at the University of Kentucky will be able to monitor the progress of eight barrels resting inside the Boswell Family Warehouse and learn about the complexities of oak maturation from the liquid that they themselves will gather and then analyze

The James B. Beam Institute at the University of Kentucky hosted their 5th annual industry conference last week.

Oak staves and heading should be seasoned for a minimum of 3-to-6-months, but the real differences begin to manifest when you go beyond that timeframe.

Esters are fascinating little compounds in the sense that they are responsible for some of the more distinguishable and potent aromas that most of us run into on a frequent basis, not just in our glass of favorite whiskey or wine.

Update on our 2019 warehouse maturation experiment

Read about how ISC Barrels helped one company bring a new luxury American Single Malt Whiskey to life

Visit a distillery anywhere in the world and you’ll likely hear your tour guide talk about the influence climate has on whiskey maturation. While there has been much speculation on the effects, I was not able to find any hard data or documentation of a proper barrel experiment aimed at studying this variable, so we decided it was time to lay the groundwork and begin our own barrel experiment.