This Small Bartending Tool Can Make Cheap Scotch Taste Barrel-Aged

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Unlike more expensive and complex expressions, many types of budget Scotch tend to spend minimal time aging in oak barrels, where it would otherwise develop sophisticated aromas and flavors. Infusion spirals are small oak bartending tools designed to bring some of those cask notes to more affordable drinks so that they taste more complex (just one way of enhancing cheap Scotch). The premise is that you can drop a spiral into a bottle of Scotch in need of flavor and transform it into a spirit with notes of vanilla, oak, cloves, and more.

Scotch whisky rules are clear. The spirit must be made in Scotland whether blended or single-malt, and should be aged in oak casks for at least three years. That minimum is what you'll find in most bottom-shelf Scotch. With such little time devoted to aging, young Scotch tends to have a sharper alcohol taste and lacks softer aromas imparted upon more expensive whiskies that get to rest in oak casks for many more years. Infusion spirals, which are made of charred or toasted oak, mimic this process quickly thanks to the way they are cut: The twists keep them small enough to fit in most bottles while giving the most end-grain surface area to blend with the spirit. But can you really get the flavor of a fine, barrel-aged Scotch by spending $11 on infusion spirals?

Infusion spirals do round out sharp edges, making budget Scotch easier to sip, and give your nose and tastebuds more character to latch onto. Sure, it won't transform a bottle of Cutty Sark into a Macallan 18, but it will improve the original bottle by imparting hints of oak notes. That's why Barrel Mill — manufacturer of infusion spirals — offers them in several varieties of casks including American oak and even the more rare and spice-heavy Amburana Brazilian oak. Think of it as adding barrel notes to your whisky much the same way cocktail mixers add new flavors over the base spirit to create something new.

And similar to the craft of making cocktails, using infusion spirals also requires attention to detail. Leave infusion spirals in the Scotch for too long — people often leave them in for around one to six weeks — and you wind up with a drink that's overly tart and woody. If you plan to leave them in for a while, try tasting the whisky after one week to test if you've achieved the desired results. Much like leaving Scotch in the sun, an infusion spiral left in the bottle will continue to affect the look, smell, and taste of the Scotch as long as it's present. But if you stay attentive and remember to remove the spiral or pour the whisky into a decanter once the taste is right, an infusion spiral can be a low-cost tool for your home bar that will turn a cheap bottle of Scotch into an oaky, mellow sipper to wind down your day.