Whisky by Flavour - Fruit - Berries
Berries, often referred to as soft fruits in Britain due to their small pulpy nature, can be sweet, sour or even tart. Key examples are Strawberries, Raspberries and Blackcurrants.
The production influence for fruit aromas and notes comes from the creation of esters in the fermentation stage of production. The longer the fermentation the more esters are created which give fruity flavours to the new make spirit. However, the distillation and more importantly the shape and size of the still are then key for determining how dense the spirit is and the resulting fruit flavoured esters, squat stills with 90-degree or less Lyne arms results in deeper richer fruit flavours (Berries and Orchard) and texture on the condensed alcohol vapour as there is less reflux. Whereas for a lighter and more floral spirit to be produced you need tall stills with above 90-degree Lyne arms, this creates more reflux for the lighter fruit esters (Citrus & Tropical) to survive distillation.
The maturation influence for fruit flavours comes from the previous fill of the cask, berry fruits tend to be highly noticeable in wine casks, the sweet red fruit notes such as Strawberry and Raspberries can often come from a fortified wine cask, such as Port casks especially Ruby Port. These notes can develop further with a more active cask or longer maturation where richer notes of blackcurrant can be found. These flavours will also develop in combination with the type of oak cask used, the spices and tannin imparted from European Oak can help to develop berry fruit flavours further, especially in ex red (fortified) wine casks.
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