Rare Whisky and Sediment

Are sediment, haze, and precipitate material in very old, sherry-matured whiskies unhealthy? Here are some insights about its essential effects on your body and its functions.

David 

With extremely old whisky, oxalic acid has been leached out of the barrels for a long time. This is especially true when Spanish oak sherry casks are used, which may form a white crystalline precipitate.

During the maturation stage, the oxalate ion precipitates with calcium to create calcium oxalate. This phenomenon is widely recognized and can be explained scientifically (crystal deposits). With the addition of calcium ions during the acquisition of reduction water (to lower the whisky’s ABV from natural cask strength to bottle strength) and any filtering and any other changes in pH that might occur during finishing and bottling, calcium oxalate can take up to a year to precipitate.

Whisky’s temperature and alcohol content influence the complicated nature of calcium oxalate instability, which leads to precipitation. It may be challenging to anticipate how these goods will perform since steady environmental conditions may not exist until the whisky is bottled and issued for sale. It may take months, if not years, for the crystal aggregates to grow large enough to be visible to the naked eye.

The industry knows that specific extremely old, sherry-matured single malts may produce a calcium oxalate crystal precipitate. Macallan Anniversary 25 years old, Macallan 30 years old, Dalmore 40 years old, and G&M vintage whiskies from the 1930s, 1940s, and 1950s are a few examples. It often shows that the product has been naturally sherried, gently filtered, and aged for a long time.

Customers need to know that we are dealing with a traditional product made from natural ingredients from which alcohol is distilled and then put into oak barrels without any changes that could hurt the quality of the finished product.

Therefore, aged Scotch whisky may be likened to exquisite port and some of France’s most renowned clarets when heavy precipitation occurs, for instance. Whisky may be decanted in the same manner as a good port or wine.

Ingestion of calcium oxalate crystals would not offer any toxicity risks, given that calcium oxalate is present in many foods and beverages in much larger quantities, such as 1–10 mg/liter for whisky, 1400 mg/liter for chocolate, and 330 mg/l for tea.

Andy 

So much for the why and how; does this sediment serve any other function? Indeed, it does.

I always inspect older bottles of extremely sherried whisky for the presence of sediment. The presence of sediment is a positive indicator that the whisky is authentic. Yet, it is not conclusive due to the various factors around the liquid and the storage conditions of the bottle. Or at least it is a well-aged sherry.

When evaluating an older bottle collection, the absence of “sludge-of-certainty” sets off warning bells and necessitates more investigation into the bottle’s history.