The Disappearing Artwork Of Creating Whisky Casks

Casks contribute as much as 80% of a whisky’s eventual character and this makes them disproportionately essential to all whisky makers. Coopering is the normal function of making and repairing picket barrels but in right this moment’s whisky business it’s a vanishing artwork.

The variety of expert coopers is dwindling quickly, changed by machine coopering. And but for these distilleries that also take the time to make use of one, a talented cooper can carry a number of advantages. As Grasp Cooper for The Glasgow distillery I’ll run you thru the whole lot a very good cooper can carry to a distillery.

Balancing Custom And Effectivity

I had skilled as a cooper since I used to be 16, taking 5 years to change into an apprentice and greater than 20 years working for numerous distilleries after that. Ultimately I used to be requested to retrain in mechanical coopering, but it surely was not for me. I spent 14 years pondering my coopering days had been completed, earlier than a name from an outdated boss led me finally to The Glasgow distillery.

I’ve been working with The Glasgow Distillery since 2015 and I’m assured in saying it’s very useful for a distillery to have an on-site cooper. Sadly it is usually very uncommon.

Today in bigger cooperages the whole lot is far more mechanical. After I was studying it was 100% handbook however as of late it does appear that it may be amount over high quality from a number of the bigger cask producers.

The Advantages Of An On-Website Cooper

As an experimental distillery The Glasgow Distillery prefer to fill a big selection of casks—from customary bourbon barrels to sherry butts in addition to a variety of wine casks from all all over the world: Hungarian Tokaji, tequila, and a big array of fortified wines equivalent to marsala, madeira, and ports. The advantages of getting a cooper on-site embrace the power to take away and substitute any defective casks with any damaged staves or ends. I’m additionally capable of make new and hybrid casks from scratch; resize present casks as required and provide my experience in the case of filling and managing cask storage too.

Every cask is inspected visually and by nosing when it arrives, earlier than it’s stuffed, and earlier than it’s emptied. My many years of expertise means I can detect any cracks or imperfections inside a stave. I can take away and substitute this earlier than filling to make sure there isn’t a leakage over time.

Casks can look shiny and new and to the untrained eye the whole lot can look advantageous – but when you realize your wooden and also you look slightly deeper you possibly can detect flaws and issues that can quickly go improper. When initially checking a cask I’m searching for many issues: unhealthy staves, cracks, any staves that appear porous (any seen historical past of leaks from unhealthy grain or pinholes), any weak spots the place the staves might shift as soon as stuffed, unhealthy hoops, ends that don’t match correctly, and extra.

The Glasgow Distillery use a number of costly casks, together with virgin oak and sherry casks. To have the ability to make it possible for the cask is in the very best situation doable while it matures our single malt is important in producing a very good remaining product.

A Day In The Life Of A Cooper

We have now an important distilling staff at The Glasgow Distillery who produce an distinctive new make spirit. I in flip do my greatest to make sure all the time and effort that has gone into making the spirit is replicated in the case of the casks themselves.

No day is ever the identical! Some days begin with deliveries of recent casks arriving on web site which is able to imply directing the logistics of discovering a spot to retailer these casks and inspecting them as they arrive off the wagon. Any cask that has a stave that must be changed is marked with an ‘X’ after which I’ll work on these casks all through the day earlier than they’re scheduled to be stuffed.

Some days I’m re-racking (shifting the contents from one cask into one other for a ending interval). Different days I’m filling casks with new make spirit direct from our spirit tank. I can be discovered working within the workplace on the administration aspect of issues to make sure each cask is appropriately logged into our database.

Outdoors of this I could also be working alongside Mike, The Glasgow Distillery Co-Founder, to satisfy potential new cask suppliers. Or working with our Head Distiller, Alex, to make sure cask administration and the filling schedule is working in tandem with the spirit creation from the distillers.

I additionally draw samples from casks in order that the whisky mixing staff can nostril and style them and plan future releases.

Typically I can discover myself with the staff on the street. I assist with deliveries or showcasing our vary of merchandise at a whisky competition or spirits present. Folks like to satisfy the personalities behind the whisky and it’s a pleasure to share data in regards to the casks and the administration of the maturation for our totally different releases.

“You Look After The Cask, And The Cask Will Look After The Whisky”

My Journeyman Cooper as soon as instructed me “you take care of the cask, and the cask will take care of the whisky”. It’s such an essential a part of the whisky making course of and is integral in producing the ultimate taste.

At The Glasgow Distillery we give attention to making a really fruity and candy new make spirit, enabled by lengthy fermentation, sluggish distillation, and the usage of choose yeast strains. The kinds of casks I assist choose and create should praise the spirit we’re making and never over shadow it.

We’re lucky that it’s newer casks we fill at The Glasgow Distillery. These new casks add a number of taste and are normally pretty effectively made, so they’re simpler to handle and preserve over time.

Maintaining An Historical Ability Alive

Passing on the talents I’ve discovered over the yr with the younger staff we’ve on the distillery is an actual pleasure. For me, it’s all in regards to the individuals.

Seeing a cask that has been maturing for 20 years introduced out, and to see that it hasn’t leaked one bit because of your personal talent set can also be very satisfying. In fact, the opposite aspect of that’s seeing one which has gone away for 20 years and are available again empty! These moments are all a part of studying to be higher at my commerce.

It’s a giant accountability to fill casks. The individuals round me have invested closely in each the spirit creation and wooden itself. It’s a pleasure to have their belief and to supply a service which is able to take care of their funding over time.