If the liquor is “the older the better”, why doesn’t the liquor age longer in the barrel?

Because most whiskies should not be stored in barrels indefinitely. The result of aging can be regarded as the balance of flavor. When whisky becomes “too old”, it is difficult to save it. A bottle of over-aged whisky will have a slightly burnt sawdust smell and leave thick tannins in the mouth, just like chewing a tea bag.

Bryson said, “If whisky is placed in the barrel for a long time, in addition to the economic burden on the distillery, the liquor itself will have a negative impact: whisky is likely to evaporate mostly, or become fragile, and lose its structure.” said Harlen Wheatley, distiller of Buffalo Trace, “With the aging of whisky, the liquor will absorb more oak flavor. Sometimes, too old whisky may be too heavy to bake. My personal favorite is the range of 8-10 years.”

Brands such as Wild Turkey, Maker’s Mark and Jim Beam also have this view. Most distillers in Kentucky believe that the ideal age of an excellent Kentucky whisky is between 5 and 10 years. At this time, the impact of oak barrels on whisky has reached an interesting balance. In Scotland, due to the lower temperature, the aging speed of whisky will be slower, so the popular year of Scottish whisky distillery is slightly longer than that of American whisky, about 20 to 30 years.

In the whole historical development process of whisky, it is difficult to take a shortcut in the aging of whisky. Over the centuries, people have practiced many methods to accelerate the aging of whisky. Some people try to increase the surface area of wood contacted by the liquid and try to speed up the extraction of flavor substances. For example, use a smaller barrel or add oak chips, but the result is not ideal
In fact, the year mark is only a number. This number may be a guideline for finding more favorite whiskies, but it is not absolute. Whitley said that bourbon has no perfect year, because “everyone has different tastes, and the taste that is too old for me may be perfect for you. In addition, there are many variables that affect the flavor of whisky, such as the type of grain, the moistening barrel of oak barrel, the location of warehouse, and so on.”

Take out your favorite whisky and think about what they have in common. Maybe there will be some new discoveries that have never been tried before. Use this to find new love and explore the vast world of whisky without any burden.