Why is whiskey brown?

Why is whiskey brown? The type of barrel and length of aging play a role, but so does a semi-secret ingredient some would rather shelve for good. read more

Brown rum goes through the same processes. Now, white (clear) whiskey does exist, but so does a surrounding myth: that white whiskey goes straight from the still into the bottle. In fact, white whiskey is typically barrel-aged – the barrels just aren’t charred. read more

In general, whiskey is brown because it comes into contact with barrels. Alcohol is a solvent, so it leaches flavor and pigment compounds from the wood it’s aged in. The longer a whiskey spends in a barrel, the darker the color. read more

Whisky maturing in Ex- Sherry casks will take on a dark red/brown colour. However, almost all blends and the majority of single malt whiskies contain E150a caramel colouring which turns the whisky a bright orangy brown which most people associate with the colour of whisky. read more