A strong mechanism summary; specific effects depend on spirit and cask context.
PDF101 / printed76. Rechecked maturation paragraph. This is a review of mechanisms, not a demonstration that every listed reaction is quantitatively important in every whiskey. The nearby assertion that ABV always decreases is not adopted.
Spirit maturation varies with raw distillate composition, cask wood, size, treatment, temperature, and humidity; flavor develops through extraction and decomposition of wood compounds plus oxidation-reduction, esterification, Maillard, polymerization, and condensation reactions.
101
101
New trends in spirit-beverage production: ageing
Fresh full-book review September 28–29, 2026. PDF101 / printed76. Rechecked maturation paragraph. This is a review of mechanisms, not a demonstration that every listed reaction is quantitatively important in every whiskey. The nearby assertion that ABV always decreases is not adopted.
Verified evidence
Spirit maturation varies with raw distillate composition, cask wood, size, treatment, temperature, and humidity; flavor develops through extraction and decomposition of wood compounds plus oxidation-reduction, esterification, Maillard, polymerization, and condensation reactions.
Locator and limits
PDF101 / printed76. Rechecked maturation paragraph. This is a review of mechanisms, not a demonstration that every listed reaction is quantitatively important in every whiskey. The nearby assertion that ABV always decreases is not adopted.
Provenance
No access
Source, locator and context checked during the fresh full-copy review. This is a paraphrase of a secondary discussion; not all cited primary experiments have been independently reviewed.