Flock and Filtration

In 2019, The Aisling Distillery made the decision to not cold chill filter our whiskies. Meaning you get to enjoy The Aisling in its 100% natural state. Please keep scrolling for a full explanation of flocking and filtration and what this change means for our whiskies.

ALL WHISKIES HAVE NATURALLY OCCURRING OILS AND FATS. THESE PROVIDE A LOT OF THE TEXTURE, PALATE WEIGHT AND FINISH OF GOOD WHISKY, ALSO HELPING TO ENHANCE THE FLAVOUR LIKE THE VINEGARETE ON YOUR SALAD, OR THE BUTTER ON YOUR BREAD.

 At cask strength, these compounds are held in solution by the alcohol, but when whiskies are diluted for bottling, these compounds can fall out of solution and cause the whisky to appear cloudy or form a sediment which settles at the bottom of the bottle.

Commercial or much larger distilleries will often use a process called cold chill-filtration to remove these compounds and make sure the whisky will always stay clear. This process involves cooling or freezing the whisky down to force the oils and fats out of solution, then passing the whisky through an extremely fine filtering system.

Several small craft distilleries prefer to avoid this process to preserve the natural texture and flavour of their whiskies, and The Aisling Distillery is no exception. We have never used chill filtration on our single malt whiskies and don’t have the intention to do so in the future.

Our process is called “flocking”.  The diluted whisky is allowed to settle in tanks for several weeks or months. This allows the largest and heaviest particles to fall to the bottom of the tank where they can then be removed with a simple double paper

filtering system prior to the bottling process. Keeping in mind, we have preserved the natural texture of our whisky while still making sure your bottle doesn’t go too cloudy.

What this means for our whisky community is all our single cask whiskies will be bottled completely unflocked and unfiltered, so 100% of the naturally occurring oils and fats will remain in the bottle.

The Aisling Distillery made this decision because we think it makes the whisky better – adds more flavour and body to the profile, more creamy texture, and more length – all things we love about The Aisling Distillery, and we know our whisky community will love and appreciate too.

So now you can experience and enjoy The Aisling Distillery in its 100% natural state. 

You may see sediment forming in the bottom of your bottle, if you were to slightly shake the bottle these sediments will be seen especially if it’s been on the shelf for a while, and it may go slightly cloudy if you add water or ice to your glass. Do not be concerned, it’s all perfectly natural within our distillery process.

If you have any more questions about flocking and filtration, please don’t hesitate to reach out contact@theaislingdistillery.com.au