Adding Copper in the aging process

[swpeddle]

I was reading the section on aging in the Artisan Distilling Book, and in it, they describe the oxidation as an essential part of the aging process. I have no problem with that part, but then they continue on and describe adding a catalyst in the form of a clean copper sheet to aging brandies for a period of time to help accelerate the oxidization of the acetaldehydes and the ethyl alcohols. Anyone know of/try this? Is there any point for our level of equipment/experience/volume of production?

thanks

[The Chemist]

I've tried colloidal copper and silver, and solid copper. No improvement over about a year. People will try anything (I'm one of them ).

[USarmy21]

for those who know their chemicals........ would hydrogen peroxide help oxidize the product??? from what i hear it should break down into water and oxygen over time. i know the kind that you get at the drug store has other chemicals in it to increase the shelf life but if you got foodgrade hydrogen peroxide it might work.

[The Chemist]

These threads just keep getting more interesting!! First thermodynamics, now free radical chemistry. You're right, Army. Hydrogen peroxide does work. Unfortunately, due to confidentiality agreements I have entered into, that's about all I can say. Sorry .

[swpeddle]

personally, I would prefer to stick with copper....seemns to me that it would be cheaper and much easier to control.....Form what I remember of my high school chemistry, it would seem to me that if you were to use peroxide, you'd have to determine the molar concentration of the aldehydes and ethyl alcohols in your distillate, and then determine how much perxoide you;d have to use to neutralize them and it's been a LONG time since I've done stoichometery.

Plus you'd have no way that I know of ensuring that the peroxide wouldn't react with everything else in the distillate....since peroxide is so highly reactive I would think that it would start going nuts on pretty well all of the other congers in the mix....and which conger it had a perference for would be hard to determine. Mind you, I am approaching this from a layperson's perspective. I would think that if you could throw a mas spec at your distillate you;d be half way there, but then why not just use copper? It's a sure thing in comparison.

Steve
PS not that it's not an interesting suggestion.

[Uncle Jesse]

what is hydrogen peroxide? water with an extra oxygen molecule, right? off-flavors, perhaps...

i know of people adding peroxide to water to boost o2 content.

[DBM]

I've tried all kinds of ageing, the one i like best is to put the whiskey in a used 1 gallon wine jug ( put it in at 100 proof) stop up the jug with a corn cob and put it out behind the garage mostly covered with pinestraw. I keep a jug in the house to be drinking on, when its about half gone i refille it with some from the oldist jug behind the garage. I keep a quart or two in quart jars in a bucket on the back of my pickup for social occasions. Sometime's they ride for months before getting used. To me that shouckup whiskey taste different than that in the house jug even though the they both came from the same place.