Cooperage
A business or premises that produces barrels or casks. Also sometimes used to refer to casks or barrels, e.g., “aged in new cooperage.”
Glossary Terms
Cooper
One who makes barrels or casks. Also refers to the process of making the barrels/casks, as in “coopering a barrel.”
Continuous still
Refers to the column still design patented by Aeneas Coffey in 1830. A more efficient alternative to the pot still, it is capable of continuous distillation by reheating the liquid, rather than requiring distillation in
Condenser
A component in the distillation apparatus that converts the spirits from a gas to a liquid through cooling, either as a coiled tube submerged in a tub of water (worm tub) or a vertical tube
Column still
A more efficient alternative to the pot still, it is capable of continuous distillation by reheating the liquid, rather than requiring distillation in batches, and can produce higher ABV spirits than pot stills. The device
Coffey still
Refers to the column still design patented by Aeneas Coffey in 1830. A more efficient alternative to the pot still, it is capable of continuous distillation by reheating the liquid, rather than requiring distillation in
Chocolate malt
Malted barley that has been dried at higher temperatures, which darkens the color and releases cocoa flavors.
Chill filtered
Refers to whisky that has been cooled and passed through a filter in order to remove particles that would affect its cosmetic appearance. Whiskies that do not undergo this process often advertise that they are
Charring
The act of burning the inside of a barrel as part of the coopering process. The amount of char impacts the color and flavor of the resulting aged whisky. Required for bourbon and Tennessee whiskey,
Charcoal mellowing
The act of filtering unaged whiskey through maple charcoal before going into the barrel—a requirement for Tennessee whisky. See also Lincoln County Process.
Canadian whisky
Often referred to as “rye” even when no rye grain is used in the whisky-making process. Canadian whisky may be made of any cereal grain and a finished product typically blends several types of whisky—such
Campbeltown
A whisky-producing region of Scotland, or a term describing whisky from this region. Historically a major center of distillation, Campbeltown now has only three working distilleries.