Barrel Aging Gins: A Chemical and Kinetic Analysis of Flavor and Color Development

Abstract Barrel aging has long been used to alter the flavors of spirits. For gins, however, barrel aging is a relatively new process. While spirit aging has been studied in detail, the effect of barrels on the delicate flavors of gin and the balance of these flavors with those extracted from a barrel have yet to be studied. In this paper, we evaluate several relevant chemical processes that occur when aging gin in new, charred, American oak barrels. We observed phenolic compounds being extracted with kinetics that can be described by a modified intraparticle diffusion model. We observe much more complex dynamics for both gin- and barrel-derived aroma compounds, suggesting the presence of multiple chemical processes for these molecules within the barrel. We generate a flavor wheel for barrel-aged gin and use this, along with gas chromatography–mass spectrometry (GC–MS) data, to give context to flavor development over the course of aging. This study elucidates some of the key chemical mechanisms that control flavor development in barrel-aged gins. Because of the nuance required by the craft of producing gin, we expect that more detailed studies will follow ours.