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Vatting Tools


ChainWhip
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Chatting with Nivto the other night about blending experiments got me thinking about trying some more vattings of my own. What's your list of tools for your vatting/blending? Are there any good recipes out there (aside from SB Blend) or resources (E.G. see The Whisky Distilleries of the United Kingdom) you go to for reference?

I'd imagine some sort of measuring container (kitchen measuring cup, graduated cylinder), funnels, empty bottles, pipettes, droppers, notebook, bottle of E150, etc.,

;-)

Edit:

Here's a vid by Ralfy that goes into this subject...

I've posted this before, but here's a link to another video by Compass Box's John Glaser that goes into how they came up with the recipe for Flaming Heart 4th Edition:

Edited by ChainWhip
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Pyrex measuring cups of various sizes when getting samples ready and the cap of a 1 liter bottle of Ozarka for dropping water into a pour until desired taste is achieved.

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I had a feeling you were going to bust out your "big one"...

=]b

Ha , that is not the "big one" i have a 5L graduated cylinder at work... Figured that was overkill

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  • 3 weeks later...

Started the night with an OWA 7year from '08 then had some WTR101. For the 3rd drink I thought what the hell lets mix one. I didn't expect much from it but was very surprised. So good I had A second healthy pour of the mix. Was pretty close to a 50/59 mix the first time and 60 (OWA)/ 40 (wtr101). Highly recommend

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Started the night with an OWA 7year from '08 then had some WTR101. For the 3rd drink I thought what the hell lets mix one. I didn't expect much from it but was very surprised. So good I had A second healthy pour of the mix. Was pretty close to a 50/59 mix the first time and 60 (OWA)/ 40 (wtr101). Highly recommend

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

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I usually just use a jigger and a mason jar. I would also consider using a digital scale for measuring. I assume there are some variances in density in different bourbons, but for the amounts I am mixing I doubt the volume difference will be substantial. After letting everything mingle for awhile, I pour into an empty bottle. I use the mason jar because it doesn't pour well so it deters me from sampling too often and too early. Also if I am vatting cocktails sometimes I might add a charred barrel stave and the wide mouth is nice for that.

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I usually start with two mediocre to undrinkable whiskies. I will then dump them into a 5 gallon bucket (use a stainless pail here so the plastic does not leech) and mix thoroughly for 15 minutes with a handheld blender to ensure they are properly married. I then let the concoction rest a half hour in an industrial freezer; I find this helps to add a strong chill that will knockdown any of that annoying taste. I like to finish the vatting by mixing 1 part whiskey with 5 parts sweet red vermouth and a cup of bitters. Sometimes, I get extra fancy and will do the vatted whiskey coup de grace. That is, I take 2 or more vatted batches and re-vat them. Mostly though, I just buy decent bottles :lol:

Edited by LostBottle
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I usually start with two mediocre to undrinkable whiskies. I will then dump them into a 5 gallon bucket (use a stainless pail here so the plastic does not leech) and mix thoroughly for 15 minutes with a handheld blender to ensure they are properly married. I then let the concoction rest a half hour in an industrial freezer; I find this helps to add a strong chill that will knockdown any of that annoying taste. I like to finish the vatting by mixing 1 part whiskey with 5 parts sweet red vermouth and a cup of bitters. Sometimes, I get extra fancy and will do the vatted whiskey coup de grace. That is, I take 2 or more vatted batches and re-vat them. Mostly though, I just buy decent bottles :lol:

All that talk about "industrial" this and "stainless" that had me visualizing you with a goatee & glasses doing your best Walter White impersonation =]b

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All that talk about "industrial" this and "stainless" that had me visualizing you with a goatee & glasses doing your best Walter White impersonation =]b

Oh yes, I'll add large bathtub to the list of essential vatting tools ;)

Edited by LostBottle
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We shouldn't forget the most important one, perhaps - a good palate. :)

Gary

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I was thinking Dr. Bunsen Honeydew.

Where's Beaker? ;)

We shouldn't forget the most important one, perhaps - a good palate. :)

Gary

That's always the prime challenge isn't it?

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No industrial vatting for me, I just use a 25ml graduated pipette. No need for funnels or any other equipment. Well, a distilled water bottle for clean-up.

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I've seen you do that at the gazebo and had always wondered where your inspiration came from. Perhaps some GBS cloth napkins are in order?
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  • 4 months later...

An area I'm already looking into acquiring a few overpriced 375 bottles and tools for vatting. Being a newb only a month into my love of whiskey, I'm sure I'll have many more bottles in the future that turned out like the disappointment that Devils Cut did for me. I don't think anything will make me Enjoy that pour...just below average. I look forward to trying this in the future with likes instead of just letdowns.

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  • 1 month later...

I've been playing around with a couple different recipes lately, and have wondered why more homegrown bourbon/rye blends haven't been born from the wellspring of knowledge that is SB.com. I've been to two different bars in the last month that had a bottle of SB Blend (aka "Poor Man's Pappy") behind the bar. Anyone that has been bitten by the bourbon bug in the last 2 years knows about that one. Is that it? I know vatting experiments can seem like alchemy sometimes, but I also have to believe that Weller Centennial isn't the only dusty that's been approximated in the last 10 years. Are we just a bunch of uninspired drunks? Or are we too precious with the raw ingredients to experiment?

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Tons of info, recipes, etc on here. I think it's closed so you'll have to request to join: https://www.facebook.com/groups/607393885994954/

I personally don't mess with volume measurements and do everything by weight on a digital scale. I assume all grams of whiskey are the same volume. That is probably not true, but far more accurate for what I do.

Every vat for me is done at least in 3 different ratios, typically 75/25%, 50/50% and 25/75%. If I feel the gradient should be steeper I throw a forth and fifth in at 60/40 and 40/60, but usually not until I've done the others.

Don't make the mistake of mixing up 750 ml of something cause you read someone else say how "amazing" it is. I personally do 60 ml test samples for the first run of a new vat and let them sit for about a month. Wait time is up to you, but there is some science behind it {kinda} if you care to look into it.

The ability to taste is NOT SUBJECTIVE. It is objective, just like hearing or sight. You can rely on your nose and taste buds, not on someone else's preference or anecdote. One's personal preference for taste should bear zero baring on what you actually taste.

Distilled spirits will change flavor over time. That's a fact. If you drink enough and pay attention, you know this already.

Take it easy on the wheated stuff. It's too "soft" and doesn't have the backbone and balls to really carry it's weight in a vat. Just what I've learned. I realize everyone MUST mix up some OWA 107 and W12 at some point, and yes it's "better" than Lot B, but I honestly believe that the only people that should be messing with wheated bourbon are the Van Winkles (who don't produce a single drop of the stuff anyway).

Most of all, have fun and learn via trial and error. Out of all the vats I've tried, only about 10% are actually worth sitting down and drinking to be honest. I really don't think most who "vat" are honest with their opinion no do I think they can taste very well based on their always-impressed and forever-suprised response. I mean, are you kidding me??

Edited by BootsOnTheGround
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