New ageing test could be gold standard for whisky producers

Researchers at a Scottish university have found a way to use tiny particles of gold to measure the maturity of whisky, which could help distillers with one of the key challenges in the production process. Chemists and bioscientists from the University of Glasgow developed the test, which harnesses a unique property of cask-aged whisky to measure its maturity. Each variety of whisky gains some of its colour flavour profile from being stored in wooden casks while it matures over a period of months or years. The flavour of the final product is created by a complex mix of factors known as 'congeners' - chemicals left in the spirit after it is distilled and other chemicals absorbed from the wood casks, which react with oxygen over time. The unpredictable interactions of congeners, along with other factors like the size and shape of the cask and the number of times it has been used before, mean that each cask matures in its own way, and in its own time. To ensure the consistency of their products, distillers employ highly experienced master blenders. They regularly sample the casks to check the whisky's readiness for blending, bottling and sale as either a single malt or a mixed blend - a laborious and expensive task.