Mingle Aging Experiment

[GaryT]

In anticipation of my parent's trip down to Georgia this weekend, I staged an experimental tasting to try to understand the impact of time on mingles. I had heard different things in the past ("You need to give them at least a week, maybe two, in order to fully mingle/marry"), and don't dispute the experiences of others. But recognize that my palate may be insufficient to tell the full difference - so if I can save time, yay me!

I measured out as precisely as I could 1 oz of Larceny and 1 oz of OWA 107, mingled in an empty 375 mL (plenty of air) and closed with a Vacu-Vin top (so a loose seal doesn't impact the process). I did this two weeks ago, one week ago, yesterday afternoon, and then 30 minutes prior to our tasting. We did a blind tasting of the four samples, trying to see if we could distinguish which was the youngest, and which the oldest. Some were very close to call.

The mingle that was only 30 minutes old (when we started the tasting that is) we both had pegged as being either the 30 min or the 1 day; it seemed to have more alcohol on the nose, and maybe not quite as "nice" as the others (although on the palate, the differences might have been mainly in our imagination).

The mingle that was 1 day old . . . we BOTH thought was the best, and thought was the 2 week old for that reason. The nose on it was the most full and well rounded.

The mingle that was 1 week old we had both picked as such (by luck I think). The mingle that was actually 2 weeks old is one that we both had pegged as being either the 30 min or the 1 day (as it also seemed to have more alcohol on the nose than the other two).

To summarize, the two we thought were the youngest included the youngest AND the oldest. The one we liked best was only married/mingled for one day.

My take away? If I want to experiment with a mingling - waiting more than a day isn't necessary (although waiting just 30 min seemed to be too little). YMMV, and even the components may make a big difference.

Side note - after this tasting, we did a side by side of the 50/50 OWA/Larcency to my 60 OWA/40 W12. The nose on the OWA/W12 blend was superior, but the palates were both very nice - albeit different. The W12 has more oak and complexity than the Larceny blend, but the Larceny blend was a bit more crisp and bright. May try a 60/40 with OWA/Larceny to see how it compares. Most importantly - we had a lot of fun! Cheers! :toast:

[suntour]

I may have said this before, but you really should get the current production 12-year Old Fitz to compare as well. Seems like it is intended to be direct competition.

[GaryT]

I may have said this before, but you really should get the current production 12-year Old Fitz to compare as well. Seems like it is intended to be direct competition.

You mean to compare as a component in the SB blend? Swapping the Weller 12 for this?

[Restaurant man]

Gary, don't forget that the samples all had microscopic differences in air contact while in the source vessel. After you opened it to pour the first sample, the remaining liquid started oxidizing rapidly. The only way to really "know" is to have 6 people open the source bottles at precisely the same moment then pour em and seal em in a vacuum. Otherwise you are just pissing in the wind :laugh:

[RVTsteve]

Most importantly - we had a lot of fun! Cheers! :toast:

[GaryT]

Otherwise you are just pissing in the wind :laugh:

And I thought that was just condensation on the fan

[GaryT]

preciseamundo. keep it in perspective. sounds like a lot of fun and some good drinking.

Definitely was fun. And we were excited to do away with this "wait X days/weeks for the mingle to marry" non-sense. Not saying it don't make a difference - just a difference that schlubs like us can't detect!

[Richnimrod]

Gary and I did have a GREAT Time tasting these differently 'aged' mingles, and although we didn't peg 'em all correctly, we did both decide that under an hour is a bit too little, and over a day seems to be plenty (for poorly seasoned palates such as ours, at least). The Weller 12/OWA is a bit the better of the Larceny/OWA (at least on the nose); but in a way that makes me think the idea of trying a 'Larceny blend' with a few other options would be worthwhile. Again; All FUN!!! for sure for a Father & Son.

[Danger]

Nice to know. We tried a 1:1 4R Yellow and OGD 100 at our whiskey club that totally fell flat. Maybe the problem was that we needed to let it sit longer. Although the 1:1 Russell’s 10 and Old Grand-Dad 100 went over very well. Both were mixed, but only sat a few min.

[squire]

I don't think every mix is going to work but most are worth trying.

[kickert]

It is certainly an interesting experiment. Personally, I am in the camp that mingle time doesn't have that big of a difference. However, what I believe has a huge difference is oxidation time. From what I am reading about your experiment, you are not only measuring mingle time, but also oxidation time, especially if the sample bottles had a fair proportion of air in them. To really isolate the effect of mingle time, you would need to also ensure each sample had the same amount of oxidation time, which would mean you have to pull the later samples at the same time as the first test, but only mix at the designated time.

I will tell you what though, I appreciate the time spent on experimenting on this stuff. These things really can affect the way a whiskey tastes at various times.

[GaryT]

It is certainly an interesting experiment. Personally, I am in the camp that mingle time doesn't have that big of a difference. However, what I believe has a huge difference is oxidation time. From what I am reading about your experiment, you are not only measuring mingle time, but also oxidation time, especially if the sample bottles had a fair proportion of air in them. To really isolate the effect of mingle time, you would need to also ensure each sample had the same amount of oxidation time, which would mean you have to pull the later samples at the same time as the first test, but only mix at the designated time.

I will tell you what though, I appreciate the time spent on experimenting on this stuff. These things really can affect the way a whiskey tastes at various times.