How Temperature Affects Alcohol Distillation Liquid temperature plays an essential part in any distillation process. This is because liquid’s molecules vibrate with energy stored up from vibrating vibrations; when left at rest this energy dissipates as heat, allowing for relaxation of both molecules and atoms and ultimately, distillation. Distilling requires harnessing kinetic energy, which is […]

Alcohol distillation was an integral component of ancient alchemy. This technique allowed for the creation of liquid with both an ideal balance between water (for drinking) and high concentrations of ethanol – the substance responsible for giving spirits their distinctive taste and aroma. Alcohol was also popular as medicine during medieval Europe’s dark ages; becoming […]

Barrell maturation gets all of the glory, but post-distillation techniques can have just as big an effect on a spirit’s profile. They can be used to make subtle tweaks that improve consistency between batches or even create brand new spirits altogether. Distillation is an integral step to producing spirits from raw materials like grains, grapes […]

Fermentation produces 75% water and alcohol by weight – both without flavor. The remaining 25% consists of various chemical compounds like acids, aldehydes and esters (collectively known as congeners) that give alcoholic beverages their unique flavors both good and bad. Distillers use stills to separate congeners from ethanol by heating alcohol-containing liquid until it vaporizes, […]

Distillation is one of the oldest scientific processes known to humankind. Distillation dates back as far as 200 CE when alcohol distillation was first documented by Alexander of Aphrodisias; later work by medieval chemists such as Zosimus of Panopolis and Abu Bakr al-Razi demonstrated further progress. Distillation separates an alcoholic liquid from water through evaporation […]