Oaking at a higher ABV then diluting

[Dancing4dan]

Thought some might find this interesting. A while ago I made a mistake. New distillate was put on oak and it never got watered down to aging ABV. It was 80 % ABV. I don't know why...

When it came time to do some taste testing said whisky had a very nice flavour although it was obviously hot as hell. But it was quite enjoyable when it was diluted with water to a reasonable ABV of 62 ish % and left on oak for some more time it improved. Mellowed and smoothed out as well as becoming More enjoyable to drink. Don't ask for a description because my noggin does not have any flowery words to describe tastes and flavours. OK there is vanilla, tobacco and spice. These results got me wondering.

Fast forward to March and February of 2026 and in the spirit of exploring this I did two ferments of 30 pounds cornmeal, 1.3 pounds of rolled oats and 4 pounds of Hammer Malts 272 Chocolate malt. (this is a different recipe than the last paragraph) Fermented with YLY. stripped separately and combined for spirit run. After cuts I blended the remainder into 4 full one gallon jars with dark toasted oak at 80 % ABV for two weeks... ish, at which time it was diluted to 61% ABV. I used distilled water because water in my area is strongly flavoured with Chloramine due to spring run off from farmland...

Today that whisky is done aging as far as oaking and probably needs bottling. At 61 % ABV it is smooth and has the mouth feel and flavours of a whisky that I like. The nose still detects the higher ABV but the mouth feel is much smoother that expected.

The results were not what I expected.

[Yummyrum]

Rum is done that way .

[Dancing4dan]

Rum is done that way .

Huh!

I did not know that..

[Copperhead road]

Sounds like your final distillate was something well worth the effort. I always proof my spirits down using store bought springwater….

[Username]

This is interesting, I was under the impression that higher abv extracted lots of tannin, I'm sure I've read it more than once.
Are you using new oak or previously used?

[Yummyrum]

Rum is done that way .

Huh!

I did not know that..

Well it certainly is at the two big major Rum distilleries in Australia and those Jamaican dual thumpers are putting out in the low 80’s .

I think Username hit a good point . Rum industries use second use oak .

[BigSwede]

I think Username hit a good point . Rum industries use second use oak .

Slightly off topic but fun... There is a Grand Cayman rum distillery that ages Rum in barrels under the ocean in a reef. Called "Seven Fathoms" rum.

I don't know if the barrels are 2nd use or not, but we were scuba diving in the Cayman reef and discovered their "secret" barrel cave. Inside the cave were I think 2 barrels of rum, chained to the rocks. The barrels wanted to float, so they were hovering a bit, and as the waves and surge moved in and out of the cave, the barrels were agitated constantly.

What this would do to the rum flavor wise, no idea. I suspect it would accelerate aging a bit. Temperature was a constant 78 f.

[Corn Cracker]

Seems that would cheat the angels out of their share also

[Username]

Slightly off topic but fun... There is a Grand Cayman rum distillery that ages Rum in barrels under the ocean in a reef. Called "Seven Fathoms" rum.

They are mentioned in this article https://www.insidehook.com/drinks/under ... rits-aging among others, it's surely a gimmick??

[PalCabral]

Seems that would cheat the angels out of their share also

It's called the Seahorse's share

[BigSwede]

Slightly off topic but fun... There is a Grand Cayman rum distillery that ages Rum in barrels under the ocean in a reef. Called "Seven Fathoms" rum.

They are mentioned in this article https://www.insidehook.com/drinks/under ... rits-aging among others, it's surely a gimmick??

I have a bottle or two put away. It is a fine rum, but I've had better at a lower price. Some Belize rums come to mind. But rums are like whiskeys, 10,000 varieties and everybody has differing favorites, so my opinion means jack.

[Dancing4dan]

This is interesting, I was under the impression that higher abv extracted lots of tannin, I'm sure I've read it more than once.
Are you using new oak or previously used?

I have heard the same thing many times

The oak is first use that I toasted on a hot plate.

[IAmPistolPete]

I think Username hit a good point . Rum industries use second use oak .

Slightly off topic but fun... There is a Grand Cayman rum distillery that ages Rum in barrels under the ocean in a reef. Called "Seven Fathoms" rum.

I don't know if the barrels are 2nd use or not, but we were scuba diving in the Cayman reef and discovered their "secret" barrel cave. Inside the cave were I think 2 barrels of rum, chained to the rocks. The barrels wanted to float, so they were hovering a bit, and as the waves and surge moved in and out of the cave, the barrels were agitated constantly.

What this would do to the rum flavor wise, no idea. I suspect it would accelerate aging a bit. Temperature was a constant 78 f.

I would think it would inhibit proper maturation considering a lack of any oxygen ingress, preventing oxidization of aldehydes & phenols and esterification. Like aging in a full jar with no airing.

Also i wonder if atmospheric pressure affects it in any way, good or bad.

[greggn]

What this would do to the rum flavor wise, no idea. I suspect it would accelerate aging a bit. Temperature was a constant 78 f.

What was the depth ? Greater than 33 feet/1 atm ?

[BigSwede]

What this would do to the rum flavor wise, no idea. I suspect it would accelerate aging a bit. Temperature was a constant 78 f.

What was the depth ? Greater than 33 feet/1 atm ?

It was legit 7 fathoms, 42 feet. If there was any air in the barrels, that could cause sea water to seep in under pressure. Hell maybe a touch of reef water is part of the flavor!

[tommysb]

Couple of real-world higher abv examples -

I have a barrel-aged gin that I would typically barrel around 45% in 30l barrels.. As the barrel I had been processing in grew tired, I decided to put in at higher proof - around 60.

Of course, when I take the gin out, I still need to proof down to bottling strength. That proofing liquid has no oak influence, and the colour of the gin is a bit washed-out in comparison.

IN another barreling experiment, I currently have about 30litres of WHISKEY HEADS in a barrel, with abv of around 70%. It's not been in there long, maybe 2 to 3 weeks. I opened it up the other day - there's definitely a rum-like quality to the spirit. THis is going to mature in there for some years, and be used to dose in extra character in other whiskies.

This heads barreling concept comes from a discussion on the StillDragon forum, there's a pro there who filled a barrel with rum heads, and says it's one of the best things he's ever made (a few years later)

[MooseMan]

This heads barreling concept comes from a discussion on the StillDragon forum, there's a pro there who filled a barrel with rum heads, and says it's one of the best things he's ever made (a few years later)

I also read that discussion and it rang a bell with me too.

I've begun to take less and less of a heads cut with my Rums, and now I habitually take fores at a painful speed to compress them, then take a small heads cut (Which gets recycled in the next batch without fail) then most of the lighter heads goes into the aging cut.

[Copperhead road]

I don’t make rum so can not comment, my findings with whiskey is it doesn’t matter how long it sits in the barrel You’ll always taste it.
Heads always go to faints in my shed,