Rapid Deterioration of Poured Bourbon

[robbyvirus]

I'm not sure if this is the same phenomenon others have discussed in this thread, but tonight I opened a newly purchased bottle of Elmer T. Lee. I poured a glass and held it up to the light and immediately noticed there was a precipitate in it, like pulp in orange juice. I then held the bottle up to the light and noticed this material was floating around in the bourbon, and thus did not come from my glass. Is this "flock"? Can flock form in an unopened bottle of bourbon (or can it form in a few minutes after opening)? Has anyone else seen this with new bottles of bourbon? I wondered if some of the material could have come from the cork, but the cork looked intact upon inspection. Anyway, I hated to waste good bourbon, so I drank it anyway, and it was quite good.

[boone]

Flock makes the bourbon look a little milky...just a nasty, nasty look...

Without seeing it myself I really don't know for sure what is in your bottle...Most folks don't bother to look...I bet, that this is the first time you have made a point to check out what's floating is in your bourbon?

I could be filtrate...Tim can explain that one to ya...

It's more that likely just plain old "cardboard"...Little bits of cardboard get left in the bottle...They float around like orange juice pulp...

Blame the mechanic...The cleaner needed a new straw...They (straws) get broken all the time due to slightly bent necks on the bottle etc...Check it out...sometimes you will find black "stuff" floating in your bourbon also...This is the charcoal from the barrel char...It will not harm ya...just lets me know that I need to change the sock on the filters...

I have often wonder why some products are in colored bottles...Like tequila is put in brown and green glass bottles...but "ALL" of the Bourbon that I have seen is in "Clear" glass bottles...Probably for the clarity check point? I have a really good trained eye for knowin' what selected bourbons should look like...I have stopped the lines on several occasions because it just did not look right to me ...Next time you go to the store ta buy bourbon take note of the different colors there are...the easiest one to tell the difference is the "Bottled in Bond"....It's always darker than the rest of the lower proof stuff...

Shoot far...I check the bottom of my "soft drink" bottles...You would be surprised to see what I have found in the bottom of them I make it a point to buy "bottles" that way I can see what's in there...It does not happen often but 2 times is two time more than I want ...

Bettye Jo

[robbyvirus]

I went back into the liquor store today where I bought the Elmer T. Lee containing the "pulp", so I decided to check out the remaining bottles on the shelf to see if any of them had any gunk floating around in them. Sure enough, 3 of the 4 remaining bottles also had some sort of sediment or something floating around, although none of them were as bad as the bottle I bought. Interestingly, I checked out the bottles of Weller Centennial, right next to the Elmer T. Lee, and several of these had a sediment-like substance in the bottom as well. Jeez!! I will be more careful from now on about inspecting my bourbon before I buy it! But if it really is only pieces of cardboard that's floating around in the bottle, then I guess that's not so bad...I mean, cardboard's high in fiber, right?

[MurphyDawg]

Interesting you mention it happened in both ETL and Weller Centennial. . . .they both use the same bottle don't they??


TomC

[robbyvirus]

You're right, the bottles are the same. Coincidence...or not??

[MurphyDawg]

Maybe. . . .if only because if it really is cardboard, than you know that it is residual from the company than manufactures the bottles. . . . .hmmmm. . .


TomC

[bluesbassdad]

Today once again I experienced the clouding of a small amount of bourbon in a glass. The temperature and the elapsed time were much different this time.

The bourbon was EC 18. The ambient temperature is between 75 and 80 deg. F. I had been sipping at a scant shot in an EWSB rocks glass for about a half hour. I went away from the computer for not more than 20 minutes. When I returned the one or two swallows of bourbon still in the glass had changed to the color and translucence of over-creamed, weak coffee.

I have drunk other bourbons in a similar way recently without experiencing any clouding. Could it be that EC18 is one HH bourbon that is not chill-filtered? Do EC18 and Corner Creek have anything in common that could account for their clouding while others do not?

Yours truly,
Dave Morefield

[drew_kulsveen]

The "flock" is actually a fatty acid. It has no effect on taste. If you put the bottle in your freezer for approx. 24 hrs. and take the bottle out you can see if it flocks. It is more common in old whiskies 10+ yrs.

[Dave_in_Canada]

DSOB,

I did something last weekend I'm not proud of, but prompted me to reply to this post. I was heading out on a fishing trip with some Knob (or is that Knobs?) and since I usually add a splash of water, I added some water to the bottle so I wouldn't have to do so during the evening while pouring myself a shot or two. The contents clouded within a day and stayed cloudy until the bottle was gone. Maybe it's just something that happens in October?

[bluesbassdad]

Can you comment on the purity of the water you added?

Yours truly,
Dave Morefield