Final Adjustments

When spirits are judged ready for bottling, they’re usually blended to obtain a consistent flavor, and diluted with water to the desired final alcohol content, in the neighborhood of 40%. Small quantities of other ingredients may be added to fine-tune the flavor and color; these include caramel coloring, sugar, a water extract made by boiling wood chips (the boisé of Cognac and Armagnac), and wine or sherry (blended U.S. and Canadian whiskeys).