Still Spirits Fruity Esters Profile, what it does

Every so often somebody brings me a batch that's technically fine and just a bit boring, and what it's missing is almost never strength or smoothness, it's fruit. That soft pear and apple thing you get off a decent malt is coming from esters, and esters are a big part of why one spirit smells like something and another one smells like alcohol.

What the Fruity Esters Profile actually is

Still Spirits Fruity Esters Profile is a blending component rather than a finished essence, so it's not something you mix on its own and pour. You add it to a spirit you've already flavoured and it pushes the fruit side of the aroma forward. Esters form naturally during fermentation and how many you end up with depends on your yeast and your temperature, both of which are fiddly to control in a shed, so this is basically the shortcut around all that.

It's worth saying, because somebody always asks. Flavouring a bought neutral base isn't distilling and there's no ATO excise licence in it at all. If you're distilling the base yourself that's a federal manufacturer licence through the ATO, and it's a separate question to this one.

How to use it without overdoing it

Start with a lot less than you think you need. The dose is printed on the bottle and I'd follow it the first time, because esters are one of those things where a little bit reads as ripe fruit and a lot of it reads as nail polish, and there's no way back once it's in. Add it, stir it, leave it a day and taste it again, because the smell keeps developing after you have stopped fiddling with it. If it still wants more you can always put more in.

What it suits

• A young whisky that tastes thin. Esters give the aroma something to hold onto while the oak does the slower work underneath.
• A rum you want brighter. Jamaican styles carry a lot of ester character of their own, so this sits very naturally in one.
• Blending your own profile. If you're building a spirit out of the Still Spirits components rather than a single essence, this is the one that decides how lively it smells when the glass gets near your face.
• A spirit that tastes right and smells of nothing. That gap is almost always aroma, and aroma is what this fixes.

Shop related products

• Still Spirits Fruity Esters Profile. The profile itself, and the one this whole post is about.
• Still Spirits Cedar Oak Profile. Dry oak character, and it pairs well with the fruit.
• Still Spirits Sweet Vanillin. Sweetness and roundness if the fruit ends up sitting too sharp.
• Still Spirits Top Shelf Whiskey Essence. A base to build all of it onto.

Did you know we also keep the 1125ml spirit bottles and the oak soakers in bourbon, whiskey and rum in the shop. They are not on the website, so give us a ring on (08) 8536 4333 to check what is on the shelf.

More on this

• 3 ways to age and flavour whisky at home
• Still Spirits Peat Smoke, what it does and how to use it
• How to flavour a spirit at home with essences

Not sure which one suits what you actually drink? Brewhilder will narrow it down, or have a look through the homebrew collection.

I still measure this one out over the sink, because I don't trust myself with a steady hand and a small bottle.

Candeece

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