Had ta mixture peen
Only half Glenlivet”?
It was such a famous place that, according to the Ordnance Gazetteer of Scotland, there were as many as 200 illicit stills there, in brisk work, at the beginning of the present century.
“Small still” whiskey is undoubtedly the best, for only good materials can be used, as the distillation carries over the flavour of the malt. Hear what Dr. Thudicum says[68]:—
“The product of the patent still derives its name from the fact that it is mere alcohol and water, having no distinctive qualities, telling no tales to nose or palate of the source from which it was obtained, and hence, in the almost poetic spirit of the trade, it is commonly called ‘silent spirit.’ The owner of a patent still, instead of being confined, like a whiskey distiller, to the use of the best materials, is able to make his spirit from any, even spoiled and waste, materials, and with little reference to any other quality than cheapness. The worst of the spirit thus produced is fit only for methylation, preparatory for being used for trade purposes, exclusive of consumption as a beverage. When intended for a beverage, it must be rectified and flavoured. It thus serves as a basis for the implanting of artificial flavours, which may be those of sham whiskey, sham brandy, or sham rum....
“The presence of grain ethers is the condition of the genuineness of whiskey. Silent spirit, on the other hand, undergoes no change by keeping, and must be flavoured to become drinkable. For that purpose it is either made smoky, to become like Scotch, or it is mixed with Irish pot whiskey, to become like Irish whiskey.”
There is yet another and a newer way of altering whiskey, which was shown in the Brewers’ Exhibition at Islington, October, 1890, and described in an advertisement in a morning paper as “A Transformation Scene; no Pantomime.” This new process of maturing spirits is by subjecting them to the action of compressed air confined in a close chamber. Nothing but atmospheric air is used, which is filtered through pure water before being compressed. The air chamber shown was a cylindrical vessel, which, in practice, would be some twelve feet high or more. It is supplied with a finely perforated floor, at a convenient distance below the top, and it has, besides, one or two lower floors of metallic gauze. The cylinder is charged with the liquor to be treated, and the compressed air is then let into it. The taps having been closed on the completion of this operation, a rotary pump keeps the liquor in continuous circulation as it passes through the floors in the form of a fine shower. As soon as it reaches the gauze floor it breaks up into spray, and, in this minute state of sub-division, it is acted on by the condensed air. This air, rising through a pipe, collects at the top of the cylinder, and in that way it is prevented from interfering with the steady flow of the shower. A slight circulation of the air is at the same time promoted. On the process being completed, the liquor is run into casks, and the air which remains in the vessel is allowed to escape, the quantity of alcohol in combination with it not being worth saving.
The object of this process is to bring about the oxidation of the essential oils contained in the whiskey or other spirit, and to promote their conversion into ethers. It is claimed that this transformation does take place, and that the spirit is changed from a new spirit, and has all the character, mellowness, and flavour of that matured by time. This change is said to be effected in twenty-four hours, and that the spirit has, in that period, put on a maturity of ten years.
J. A.
