Have you ever wondered what the heck goes into making bourbon?
What’s the process behind those rich notes of vanilla, caramel, oak or cedar?
Bourbon lovers everywhere, keep watching!
“...Let’s open that bottle of liquor!
Hey bourbon, take me home!”
Before you can make bourbon, it's important to understand what a bourbon is and what a
bourbon is not.
A whiskey must meet very strict guidelines in order to be considered a bourbon and, yes,
those guidelines go beyond merely being made in Kentucky – though you'll find a lot of
bourbon experts will fight on that rule, with the Bluegrass State residents remaining firmly
on the side of all-bourbon-must-be-made-in-Kentucky, whereas everyone else takes a broader approach
to the definition.
Smithsonian Magazine says, according to the experts, bourbon distilling isn't technically
limited to Kentucky.
Instead, a bourbon must fall under six guidelines.
First, it has to be made in the United States — anywhere in the United States.
Secondly, it must be aged in new, charred, white oak barrels.
Third, it must be at least 51 percent corn.
Fourth and fifth, it must be distilled at less than 160 proof and barreled at less than
125 proof.
Lastly, there cannot be any additional coloring or flavoring added.
"For a relaxing time, make it Suntory time."
Each whiskey, including bourbons, starts with a mash bill, which is basically the master
distiller's recipe for that particular whiskey.
It tells the distiller exactly what grains need to go into the whiskey from the start,
in what ratios.
However, remember that in order for a whiskey to be a bourbon, at least 51 percent of that
grain ratio must be made up of corn.
Other grains that can be used include malted barley, rye, and wheat.
The ratios of each impact the taste of the final product.
As Southern Distilling Company notes, a whiskey with more corn will have almost a syrupy flavor,
while rye-heavy whiskeys are more savory.
Bourbons with a heavy portion of malted barley will typically taste maltier and toffee-esque,
while bourbons with a heavy amount of wheat will taste clean, with a soft, sweet undertone.
The final ratio and mash bill depend entirely on the individual distiller.
The only rule, again, is that they include at least 51 percent corn.
So then how do you go about actually creating the bourbon mash?
According to MasterClass, the correct portions of grain are combined and then added to water
and yeast, typically in a very large vat.
The mixture is heated and stirred, creating the bourbon mash.
But even at this point in the process, careful consideration is taken when choosing the yeast
and even the water, as both impact the final product.
According to VinePair, distillers will either use their own proprietary strain of live-culture
yeasts that they've been growing at their distillery for decades, or they'll purchase
yeast from a dedicated producer.
In other words, they're not going to the grocery store and picking up a packet of dried yeast
like you'd use for baking.
Many distillers also say that limestone water is necessary for bourbon making — and it
just so happens that limestone water is abundant in Kentucky.
"Then again, turning a 'What if?'
into a 'That's it" be pretty tasty.
Yes, sir."
After the bourbon mash is created via the perfect quantities of grains, as well as the
right yeast and water, it's left to ferment.
The fermentation process doesn't take long; MasterClass says from one to two weeks, but
other distillers are finished with fermentation in as little as three days.
The fermentation process allows for all of the ingredients to break down on a chemical
level, creating alcohol.
Often, the distiller will add more yeast and sour mash around this time.
The sour mash is a mash liquid that's been leftover from a previous batch of bourbon
mash and helps the new mash reach the correct pH levels.
Think of it as similar to a sourdough starter or kombucha scoby.
You need a little bit of something old, to make something new.
The tradition of using sour mash came about in the 1800s, to help distillers produce a
consistent product over multiple batches.
Today, every major U.S. whiskey distillery uses the sour mash process, but it's not entirely
necessary to create a bourbon and it is possible to find some micro-distillers who do not,
according to Whisky Magazine.
As The Whiskey Professor explains, there are two separate distilling processes that the
fermented mixture must go through before barreling.
The first distillation process happens before the liquids and solids are separated.
Once the mash is fermented and has a low-alcohol content, it's known as distillers' beer.
It's sent into a still, where it's heated, making the alcohol vapors rise.
These vapors travel through a tube that condenses the vapors, turning them back into liquid.
This higher-proof liquid is reserved and sent on to the second distillation process in a
"doubler," and the proof increases even further.
This liquid is almost ready for barreling and can be held in a retention tank until
that time.
But what about all those liquids and solids that the vaporized alcohol left behind?
After fermentation and one round of distillation are complete, the remaining mixture is strained,
separating the liquids and solids.
The liquid can be used as that sour mash that's added to new mash later, but the solids have
a very different destination.
While some distillers may toss the solids, known as distillers' grain, others will ship
the grain to farms, where it's used as livestock feed.
While that may seem a little odd and possibly harmful to the chicken and cows for which
the feed is intended — after all, this grain mixture has been soaking in a bourbon-adjacent
liquid for days — research says the mixture is actually a very healthy and low-cost option
for farms.
The Iowa Corn Growers Association notes that distillers' grains are filled with protein,
fat, minerals, and vitamins, and, since about 90,000 tons of distiller's grains are produced
in the United States each week, the mixture is readily — and affordably — available.
But back to the alcohol.
At this point, the bourbon is waiting in the retention tank for barreling.
However, before a distiller can add the bourbon to just any ol' barrel, they must choose the
perfect barrel, which is a whole task in and of itself.
Barrels are produced by coopers – just a fancy name for a barrel maker – and the
barrel-making process is just as important to the end bourbon as any other part of the
whiskey's creation.
One Eater article looked into the barrel-making process by interviewing the owners of the
Adirondack Barrel Cooperage.
There, coopers purchase Missouri American oak wood, which is known for being impervious
to water and relatively low on tannins thanks to the growing area's heavy rain and snow.
The wood is aged two to five years, then mechanically shaped into the recognizable barrel curvature.
After all the wood slats are the right size and shape, a ring is attached, which keeps
it all together.
Then, the new barrel is heated and charred – some coopers use steam for this, while
others use fire.
After the barrel cools, it's cauterized, sealed, sanded, and shipped.
And only then is the barrel ready to be filled with bourbon.
"Good man.
You set 'em up and I'll knock 'em back, Lloyd.
One by one."
After the bourbon is in the barrel, it sits there.
For a while.
And just like there are a lot of rules regarding what goes into a bourbon, there are a lot
of rules regarding how long a bourbon is aged.
As Southern Kitchen states, a bourbon must be aged for at least two years but no more
than four years if it's to be called a straight bourbon whiskey.
If a bourbon is going to be called a bottled-in-bond bourbon, it must be aged for at least four
years.
If a bourbon is a mixture of multiple bourbons aged for multiple timespans, the number on
the bottle should reflect the youngest bourbon's age.
Typically, the longer the bourbon stays in the barrel, the more flavor it develops.
However, that's not always the case.
Most bourbons hit peak flavor around five to 10 years and other factors, such as environment,
also play a role in developing the flavor once the bourbon is in the barrel.
Beyond just knowing how long a barrel of bourbon has been sitting in the rick house, how does
a distiller know the bourbon is done?
By tasting it, of course.
The master distiller at a distillery will sample bourbons directly from the barrel and
decide which are ready to be bottled.
Master distiller Marianne Barnes said she must be able to identify the nuances of flavor
profiles of each of her distillery's brands, as well as be able to identify a barrel's
proof and any defects upon tasting.
"So it's my job at the end of the day to make sure that what's going into the barrel is
high quality as we can make."
But tasting all that bourbon isn't as fun as it may sound.
Barnes said she's not allowed to smoke, can't wear perfume on the job, and does, quote,
"a lot of spitting."
She also has to recalibrate her senses every once in a while, using scent jars to ensure
she's accurately picking up on flavor notes like oak, cedar, and pepper.
She can reportedly do 50 tastings of a 140-proof bourbon before her mouth goes numb, compared
to the average drinker's six tastings.
Once a master distiller approves a barrel of bourbon for bottling, it can either be
chilled for further development.
Difford's Guide says this can remove any molecular proteins that might make the bourbon hazy
or diluted after bottling.
Or it can be directly bottled.
To bottle a whiskey, Whisky Advocate explains, barrels will be mechanically dumped into a
trough.
The whiskey is transported into a holding tank and then through an automated bottling
process, though sometimes employees are used for special parts of the process, such as
dipping each Maker's Mark bottle into its iconic red wax.
The process is quick; Heaven Hill Distillery can reportedly fill as many as 21,000 bottles
per hour.
Any leftover items from the process are, in many cases, used in a new or inventive way,
such as the distiller's grain which, as mentioned, feeds livestock, or the leftover fusel alcohol
from distillation that's sometimes used in perfumes.
Some distillers even use the fusel alcohol as a power source.
From there, the bottled bourbon is shipped to your favorite local liquor store and then
it's up to you to properly store your bourbon at home, so that all of that hard work on
behalf of the distillers, coopers, and others doesn't go to waste.
"Saddest thing in life is wasted talent.
You could have all the talent in the world, but if you don't do the right thing then nothing
happens."
Heaven Hill Distillery recommends that you store your bourbon in a cool, dark spot, away
from heat and sunlight.
Additionally, always store your bourbon bottles vertically, never horizontally, and make sure
to use a sturdy shelf, where bottles won't be in direct contact with a floor or wall.
Likewise, don't store your bourbon bottle near an oven, in the attic, or in the back
of a car.
You want to keep the bottle somewhere between the upper 60s and lower 70s Fahrenheit.
If you're collecting whiskey that you aren't putting on display immediately, consider storing
it on industrial-style shelving in a clean, dry basement — though we also totally understand
if you don't want to wait to drink that whiskey long enough to start a collection!
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