Those are some thirsty angels!

Last weekend was our yearly Whiskey Tasting event.  In preparation, I decided to bottle the Wasmund's spirits I have been aging.  I took some samples of the rye and single malt to see how they were progressing and bottled off a little of each for the party.

Following the suggestion in the directions, I ran the whiskey through a coffee filter to catch any particulates from the inside of the keg.  I created a high-tech apparatus to raise the barrel high enough to fill the bottles.

I took about a half bottle of each for the party.  They have both picked up beautiful color from the kegs.  Interestingly, the barley has been in the keg a month less but is slightly darker.  In both photos, the rye is on the left.

 

Both whiskies are delicious, with a fantastic depth of flavor and mouthfeel, even at cask strength.  The rye is spicy, a little sweet, and smooth.  The single malt is still a little rough around the edges, so I'm going to leave that in the keg another month or two.

After the party, I started bottling up the rest of the rye.  Imagine my surprise when the whiskey ran out not even halfway through filling!  This is all I got.  Nothing was leaking, so there must have been some serious evaporation.

Now what to do with a charred oak cask that was recently emptied of its spirit?  You'll just have to wait for the next post to find out...