The chemistry of whiskey (video)

WASHINGTON, May 2, 2017 — Derby Day is around the corner, and with it comes big hats, horses with funny names, and bourbon. The latest episode of Reactions celebrates the chemical process of distillation that makes bourbon and other whiskey varieties possible. Since water and ethanol, along with tasty flavors, have different boiling points, they can be separated by carefully heating the mash that starts off every whiskey. Each distillery carefully protects their still design, engineered to create their signature liquor. The strongest flavors take aging, but might some innovative whiskey makers find a way to hack maturation time? There’s a barrel-full of chemistry in this video about whiskey: https://youtu.be/cR7Bt9Ei_zI.

Reactions is a video series produced by the American Chemical Society and PBS Digital Studios. Subscribe to our weekly series at http://bit.ly/ACSReactions and follow us on Twitter @ACSReactions.

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