Maturation related phenolic compounds in cachaca aged in new oak barrels

Aging cachaca in wooden barrels improves its chemical and sensory profile and adds quality. Maturation of distilled spirits is influenced by factors such as the species of wood to make the barrels, degree of internal toasting, number of uses of the barrel and aging time. The level of maturation of distillates can be determined based on the concentration of age marker phenolic compounds extracted from the lignin of the wooden barrel, as well as their relationships with each other. This study characterises the aging process of cachaca by analysing the mechanism of lignin degradation during maturation in new oak barrels for up to 60 months in order to establish the relationship between the age of the distillate and the content of phenolic compounds extracted from the wood. The evaluation was based on the analyses of liginin derived compounds using high-performance liquid chromatography. The level of maturation of aged cachaca can be characterised by evaluating the low molecular weight lignin-derived phenolic substances. The total amount of benzoic acids (vanillic and syringic acids) can be taken into consideration for predicting the level of maturation of distillates. Based on the composition of maturation related congeners, it is likely that for cachaca, each year of aging in new oak barrels corresponds to approximately five years of aging for spirits in general. (c) 2020 The Institute of Brewing & Distilling