How Bourbon Gets Its Color?

The Color of Your Bourbon

If you’re Gonna Get Sipn, Make Sure You Know What The Color of Your Bourbon Means

Ever wonder how bourbon gets its color? You aren’t the only one.

It’s natural for most people to be confused by the true color of bourbon.

Considering the sheer number of different ingredients, aging methods, and distillation techniques it’s hard to tell what makes the biggest impact on whether a bourbon has shades of amber, caramel, or mahogany.

How many of you knew that bourbon actually starts clear…it’s absolutely mind-blowing but it is also 100% true!

Bourbon actually starts as a clear liquid called “white dog” and gets most of that tempting brownish color we see, comes from aging several years in charred new oak barrels.

The science behind the color is pretty straightforward, the higher the level of char in the barrel, the darker the bourbon, and the woodier the flavor you get from the pour.

Although uncommon, several popular companies like Woodford Reserve make a double-barreled version of their bourbon by placing it into a second charred or toasted barrel so that it will get even darker. Woodford Reserve Double Oaked is a shining, and delicious example of this very phenomenon.

It’s amazing how several seemingly insignificant elements relating to how and where this spirit is stored can have a significant impact on its color.

The Barrel Entry Proof, for instance, impacts it directly. The higher the barrel entry proof, the lighter the color of the bourbon will be. This occurs due to the lesser quantity of water in the barrel, water dissolves natural sugars from the oak barrel much more efficiently than alcohol, and the higher barrel proof leads to less color and lighter flavor.

The way barrels are stored can also affect the color of America’s spirit. Barrels stored on their sides tend to get plenty of air circulation along their sides and ends, leading to faster and more flavorful aging of Bourbon. This allows the bourbon to have more access to the thickest parts of the barrel (the staves), which may lead to a darker color.

On the other hand, barrels that have been stored vertically age slower because of the decreased airflow they receive. They also end up getting more access to the barrel heads, which are much thinner and thus have less impact on color.

Every time you open a new bottle of Bourbon, you’ll see the brown color, and you'll fall in love with Bourbon a little more! Get to know the all-American drink with the Sipn app. It has been intuitively designed to cater to people, who enjoy and are open to exploring the world of Bourbon.

Fret not, Sipn will be available to experience and use soon, in the meantime, just enjoy your glass of bourbon and treat yourse