Bottle Ageing Cocktails - Part 4 : The 6 Month Batch

A lot has happen in 6 months, countries have been invaded, governments have fallen, streets have been flooded, cats and dogs living together – mass hysteria.

Alongside all of this bottled cocktails have been ageing, resting quietly in my dark laboratory (or as some people call it my under stairs cupboard) waiting, no plotting, their unleashing upon an unsuspecting world.

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For those of you who haven’t been keeping up - last year I started a little experiment to see if the latest trend of bottle ageing cocktails is better than the freshly squeezed. The short answer is yes, if you have the patience. If that answer is enough for you thanks for reading so far, you may continue your day undisturbed and go back to watching cats on youtube. For the more curious follow me for the final tasting, the feint scent of rohypnol is purely coincidence.

For those of you who want a little revision the previous pieces are here –
Part 1 : Preparation
Part 2 : 1 Month
Part 3 : 3 Months

So here we are, my final batch of 6 month old Manhattan’s. As I’ve stated previously there was a big jump in flavour with the 1 month batch, whereas the 3 month batch hadn’t really moved on much further. Stop procrastinating I hear you say, and get on with the 6 month.

The final batch retains the subtle sweetness of the vermouth that has permeated the concoction, but now in the background a subtle smokey flavour is coming through from the lingering bourbon. All in all this is not a massive improvement over the 3 month batch but there are some subtle new flavour mixes here.

So where does that leave us ? Yes bottle ageing certain cocktails can enhance their attributes, a month is a good minimum and you will notice results. Somewhere between 4 – 6 months and more subtle changes begin to develop, so in conclusion it’s all about how much time and patience you have. So what’s next ? The world is your oyster, why not make yourself a bottle on your birthday and age it for next year ? Who now what could happen with an extra 6 months ? Gaining superpowers from aged spirits ? Unlikely, have a damn fine cocktail – most definitely.

​The SilverFox

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