cloudy after aging

[Uncle Jesse]

brought over from the old message boards:

Anonymous
10/24/02 12:16 PM
subject: Cloudy


After aging my rum, it becomes a bit cloudy... is there any way to clear it up?

Dirk
10/25/02 05:08 AM
Re: Cloudy [re: Anonymous]

How was the rum made ? How is it aged ?

This cloudiness could result from essential oils going out of solution. In this case your "problem" could be resolved by adding some pure ethanol to the rum.

I read that some whiskeys have similar "problems". This cloudiness is removed by chilling and filtering. Specialists contend that this treatment is just for the looks and takes away of the taste.

[thumper123]

I have a problem that I'm hoping you guys can shed some light on. After cutting my bourbon from a barrel strength of 130 to 100, I'm getting a very stubborn cloudiness. It's clear as a bell after three years in glass with charred white oak slabs, but bringing it down to 100 brings cloudiness. I've never had this problem in decades of distilling. All the suggestions I'm reading about on this site I've pretty much tried - cold filtering, filtering through coffee filters, nada, zip, still there. I even tried a one micron buchner filter setup - still cloudy. I don't get it. Supposedly I'm at a high enough proof to keep oils and laurates in solution

[still_stirrin]

...clear as a bell after three years in glass...but bringing it down to 100 brings cloudiness.

You must’ve run a little extra tails into the aging jars. The cloudiness results from the oils in the spirit coalescing as you temper down. Higher proof keeps it dissolved, but increasing the water causes it to cloud.

Does the appearance affect the taste? You probably have a good grain flavor. The oils in the tails helps contribute to this.

If you can’t tolerate the cloudiness in your glass decanter, then add a little high proof neutral back to the whiskey. But this will dilute the rich grain flavors as the alcohol dilutes the oils back into suspension. Add a little of your cask strength whiskey and keep the flavors rich. Incidently, I bottle at 90 proof for this reason.

Some here claim chill filtering will help. But I’ve never been successful with it. My only success with reducing cloudiness is to increase the bottle proof. But once it’s in a tumbler with a couple of ice cubes, the cloudiness doesn’t bother me.

YMMV.
ss

[thumper123]

Thank you stillstirin. I do distribute tails back into the spirit run - once - I don't turn this into a neverending progression. Maybe I'm getting a little greedy and going a little deep, but still, I never take tails less than 90 proof. The only factor that I have routinely changed for many years is the oak. I buy a board once in awhile as needed. Could the oak be a factor in all this?

The bourbon is good otherwise, and I certainly don't mind the cloudiness when I'm drinking it. With Christmas coming though I get a little anal about giving clear whiskey to my family.