Alcohol distillation’s relationship to art is strikingly intriguing. Both art and alcohol distillation aim to stir emotions within us – from delight to disgust depending on each viewer. Three people may view a single painting but have drastically different reactions based on individual interpretation of its features.
Distillation is a method to isolate and concentrate alcohol (ethanol) from fermented liquids like fruit juice, wine or beer using different boiling points for water and alcohol (ethanol boils at lower temperature than water) so by heating fermented liquid (known as “wash”) and collecting its vapors containing alcohol vapors you can concentrate its alcohol content and isolate its source.
Once the vapors have been captured and condensed, you are left with a spirit which can then be packaged for sale or put into wood casks for maturation (ageing) before macerating fruit or herbs for modification. Your type of still and distillation technique also have a profound influence over its taste and character – as will how the spirit was refined during distillation.
Distillation stills come in various shapes and sizes to meet the specific needs of producers and spirit styles, and material choice plays an integral part in shaping taste profiles. Sophisticated cocktails enthusiasts will note that we haven’t discussed column distillation methods which involve huge gleaming columns that reach up to stories high for column distillation – something advanced cocktail enthusiasts might find interesting to explore further.
