Why are the heart cutting processes different and why are the whiskey styles of The Macallan and Glenfiddich so different
We mentioned before that Glenfiddich Distillery and Macallan Distillery are both located in the Speyside production area. The size of the stills is not much different, but due to the different processes for cutting out the spirit, the whiskey styles of the two are quite different. , Macallan whiskey is rich and full, while Glenfiddich whiskey is relatively fresh.
Why does the "wine core interception" process have such a big impact?
First of all, we need to understand why we need to perform "wine heart interception".
Distillation
Malt whiskey distilled using a pot still generally requires two distillations. The first is mash distillation, also called primary distillation. It is to distill the fermented mash to extract the ethanol and other trace components. The alcohol content is about 8 degrees. After the distillation of the mash, you will generally get a distilled wine of about 23 degrees. We know that the relevant laws and regulations of Scotch whiskey require that the alcohol content of new distilled wine should be lower than 94.8 degrees. At the same time, the alcohol content of bulk Scotch whiskey products is generally 40 degrees or 43 degrees. The first distilled wine with 23 degrees is far from these two requirements. The gap is very large, so the first distilled liquor needs to be distilled twice. This process is called spirits distillation, which means to purify the first distilled liquor and increase the alcohol content.
After the spirits distillation process, the distilled products obtained can theoretically be collected for aging. However, fermentation is a complex process. In addition to ethanol and various trace ingredients that increase flavor, the products also include some Ingredients that are harmful to the human body, such as methanol, may cause great harm to the body if collected in full. Fortunately, the boiling points and volatility of these substances are different from ethanol. Therefore, based on this characteristic, the parts with high content of harmful substances can be removed, and the parts with low content of harmful substances can be intercepted as new wine. This is the so-called "wine interception".
Generally speaking, methanol, acetone and other substances that are harmful to the human body are more volatile and have a lower boiling point, so the methanol, acetaldehyde, ethyl formate, acetone, etc. in the "head" of the wine that has just been distilled are The content is relatively high, so this part must be separated when taking the wine. When the distillation is about to end, the wine body will contain more fatty acids, fusel oils and sulfides. This part of the wine body is the "wine tail" and must be separated. The body obtained by distilling the middle part of the wine is the "heart", which is the part of the wine that contains relatively low levels of harmful substances.
Spirit head
As can be seen from the above description, "wine head", "wine heart" and "wine tail" are relative concepts, and there is no clear classification standard. The classification is mainly based on the distillery's requirements for the body and flavor of the wine. The wine body in the middle part of the distillation is relatively "cleaner", so the lower the "heart interception" ratio, the cleaner the wine body. In addition, the speed of distillation also affects the flavor of whiskey. The faster the distillation speed, the longer the time to remove the "heart" of the wine, the cleaner the wine body. The faster the steam flow rate, the shorter the time to remove the "heart" of the wine. The body becomes more complex.
Going back to the original question, an important reason why Macallan whiskey is rich and full, while Glenfiddich whiskey is refreshing is the difference in the time it takes to remove the heart of the wine due to the speed of distillation. The time it takes for Macallan to remove the heart of the wine is about 70 minutes, Glenfiddich takes about more than two hours to get the "heart" of the wine.
How to distinguish the "head", "heart" and "tail" in actual distillation? An obvious and easy-to-distinguish difference between the "head", "heart" and "tail" is the different alcohol content. The alcohol content of the "head" is about 72 degrees or more, and the alcohol content of the "heart" is about 68~72 degrees. Between degrees, the alcohol content of the "wine tail" is about below 60 degrees, which can be measured and calculated using a wine meter.
On the middle cabinet is the safe
How did you tell the difference before there was a alcohol meter? The Chinese liquor industry has a technique of "looking at the flowers and picking the wine", which is to judge the "head", "heart" and "tail" of the wine based on the hops when picking up the wine. In the whiskey industry, the "defog test" is used to judge the "head". There are more lipid substances in the "head". Add water to the safe to dilute the liquor to 45.7 degrees. At this time, the liquor will become Turbid, when the "head" is over, the wine will slowly become clear. It is said that the "wine tail" will turn blue when water is added (the author has not observed this. The general principle is that the sulfur in the wine mash reacts with the copper on the still pot during distillation to form copper sulfate. After adding water, the copper sulfate will be in the aqueous solution. Crystallizes to produce blue copper sulfate pentahydrate. Previously, when we experimented with distilled malt whiskey, we could see blue copper sulfate pentahydrate blocks in the "tail".)
Tails
By the way, although only the "heart" is taken from the new whiskey, it does not mean that the "heads" and "tails" will be discarded. The distillation process is basically not wasted. The intercepted "heads" and "tails" The "tails" are added to the next batch of mash and distilled again.
