the library

Bourbon

Spirits & brews· spirit

Bourbon

What it is

Bourbon is an American whiskey distilled from a mash of at least 51 percent corn and aged in new, charred oak barrels.

What it tastes like

On the nose: herbaceous, spicy, smokey, fruity. Among its measured molecules: (Z)-whiskey lactone, rotundone, isoeugenol, syringol, 1,1-diethoxyethane.

What goes with it

160 more go with it. See them all in the full library →

Salt and acid

Salt

Salt not measured yet.

Acid

Acid not measured yet.

Unusual pairings

Pairs the library can cite that almost nobody makes.

Every one of its 15 compounds carries a paper the library can cite.

  • guaiacolaromaphenolreads as smokeyMeasured in 15 of 338 ingredients.cite
    log3 FD 7/7/7, odour 'smokey'; quantified at 39.1-63.5 µg/L; OAV 43-69Genthner-Kreger et al. 2021, Molecules (Table 3, row 'guaiacol'; Table 4; Table 5)
  • vanillinaromaphenolreads as vanillaMeasured in 12 of 338 ingredients.cite
    log3 FD 6/7/8 (Wax) across the 4-, 8- and 12-year bourbons, odour described as 'vanilla'; quantified at 619-1410 µg/L; OAV 28-64Genthner-Kreger et al. 2021, Molecules (Table 3 (Potent odorants determined by aroma extract dilution analysis of bourbon whiskeys aged for 4, 8, and 12 years), row 'vanillin'; Table 4; Table 5)
  • eugenolaromaphenolreads as spicy, clovesMeasured in 19 of 338 ingredients.cite
    log3 FD 5/5/6, odour 'spicy, cloves'; quantified at 131-207 µg/L; OAV 18-29 — the one selected odorant whose concentration FALLS with ageGenthner-Kreger et al. 2021, Molecules (Table 3, row 'eugenol'; Table 4; Table 5)
  • phenylethyl alcoholaromaalcoholreads as rosey, wine-likeMeasured in 41 of 338 ingredients.cite
    log3 FD 6/6/7, odour 'rosey, wine-like'; quantified at 33,800-41,700 µg/L; OAV 13-16Genthner-Kreger et al. 2021, Molecules (Table 3, row '2-phenethyl alcohol'; Table 4; Table 5)
  • syringolaromaphenolreads as smokeyMeasured in 5 of 338 ingredients.cite
    log3 FD 7/8/7, odour 'smokey' — one of the three highest flavour-dilution factors in the whole analysis; quantified at 205-265 µg/L (OAV below 1, so it is a dilution-potent rather than a concentration-driven odorant)Genthner-Kreger et al. 2021, Molecules (Table 3, row 'syringol'; Table 4; Table 5)
  • ethyl butyratearomaesterreads as fruity, bubble gumMeasured in 21 of 338 ingredients.cite
    log3 FD 3/3/4, odour 'fruity, bubble gum'; quantified at 458-1260 µg/L; OAV 48-133Genthner-Kreger et al. 2021, Molecules (Table 3, row 'ethyl butanoate'; Table 4, row 'ethyl butyrate'; Table 5)
  • 1,1-diethoxyethanearomaetherreads as fruityMeasured in 8 of 338 ingredients.cite
    log3 FD 4/4/4, odour 'fruity'; quantified at 5170-5390 µg/L; OAV ~7.5Genthner-Kreger et al. 2021, Molecules (Table 3, row 'acetal'; Table 4; Table 5)
  • ethyl isovaleratearomaesterMeasured in 10 of 338 ingredients.cite
    quantified at 85.0-313 µg/L; OAV 53-195, the highest odour-activity value reported for any odorant in the paperGenthner-Kreger et al. 2021, Molecules (Table 4; Table 5; Table 6 (calibration table for SIDA of whiskey))
  • 2-methyl-1-butanolaromaalcoholMeasured in 15 of 338 ingredients.cite
    quantified at 379,000-727,000 µg/L; OAV 1.8-4.1; the paper names the branched short-chain alcohols as fermentation products rather than oak productsGenthner-Kreger et al. 2021, Molecules (Table 3, co-eluting row '2/3-methyl-1-butanol'; Table 4, row '2-methyl-1-butanol'; Table 5)
  • isoamyl alcoholaromaalcoholreads as chocolate, maltyMeasured in 43 of 338 ingredients.cite
    the co-eluting pair carries log3 FD 8/7/7, odour 'chocolate, malty'; 3-methyl-1-butanol alone quantified at 962,000-1,420,000 µg/L, the most abundant odorant measured; OAV 1.7-2.5Genthner-Kreger et al. 2021, Molecules (Table 3, co-eluting row '2/3-methyl-1-butanol'; Table 4, row '3-methyl-1-butanol'; Table 5)
  • ethyl hexanoatearomaesterreads as fruity, berryMeasured in 36 of 338 ingredients.cite
    log3 FD 4/4/4, odour 'fruity, berry'; quantified at 1420-3110 µg/L; OAV 47-104Genthner-Kreger et al. 2021, Molecules (Table 3, row 'ethyl hexanoate'; Table 4; Table 5)
  • isoeugenolaromaacidreads as spicy, clovesMeasured in 4 of 338 ingredients.cite
    log3 FD 6/6/6, odour 'spicy, cloves'; quantified at 306-416 µg/L; OAV 51-69Genthner-Kreger et al. 2021, Molecules (Table 3, row '(E)-isoeugenol'; Table 4; Table 5)
  • rotundonearomaterpenoidreads as spicy, woody, incenseMeasured in 3 of 338 ingredients.cite
    0.342-0.453 µg/L in the three bourbons and up to 1.35 µg/L in a 10-year Bulleit bourbon; log3 FD 2/4/3, odour 'spicy, woody, incense'; OAV 43-57 on an 0.008 µg/L threshold. The paper identifies rotundone as the compound behind the 'woodiness' of oak-aged spiritsGenthner-Kreger et al. 2021, Molecules (Table 2 (Concentration of rotundone in oak-aged distilled spirits); Table 3; Table 5; Abstract)
  • β-damascenonearomaterpenoidreads as floral, cooked appleMeasured in 13 of 338 ingredients.cite
    log3 FD 4/5/4, odour 'floral, cooked apple'; quantified at 3.58-6.56 µg/L; OAV 26-47 on a 0.14 µg/L thresholdGenthner-Kreger et al. 2021, Molecules (Table 3, row '(E)-β-damascenone'; Table 4; Table 5)
  • (Z)-whiskey lactonearomareads as herbaceous, coconutMeasured in 1 of 338 ingredients.cite
    log3 FD 5/8/8, odour 'herbaceous, coconut'; quantified at 2850-5470 µg/L; OAV 43-82Genthner-Kreger et al. 2021, Molecules (Table 3, row '(Z)-whiskey lactone'; Table 4; Table 5)

Sources

  • Genthner-Kreger et al. 2021, Molecules