Estudio de la influencia en la relación superficie/volumen durante el envejecimiento del Brandy de Jerez

Abstract

One of the most important physical parameters that influences the speed of the aging of wine spirits is the relationship between the surface of the vessel and the volume of stored liquid. In this paper is the study of the importance of the surface/volume ratio in the extraction processes that take place during the elaboration of Brandy de Jerez. To this end, the aging of a brandy with 60% alcoholic strength in vessels of two different capacities, made from three types of oak, seasoned and not seasoned prior to ageing, has been studied. The parameters analyzed in the aged spirits have been the Total Polyphenol Index (TPI), the content of individual phenolic compounds and color. These values are directly related to the aging process, increasing as the brandy ages in the vessels. It has been observed that as the surface/volume ratio increases, spirits present higher values of these parameters, the increase being different for each type of oak studied. On the other hand, the shipment of the vessel decreases the contribution of phenolic compounds from the wood to the brandy.