Spirit was matured in clay until the middle ages, when oak barrels came into vogue, since it made the product easier to transport. It also has a very subtle impact on the flavor of the distillate, coloring and flavoring it slowly during the aging process.
By the 17th C, Cognac & Armagnac were extensively using barrel aging, and this trend spread to Scotland in the 18th C, and to North America in the 19th C.
It was only gradually that oak came to dominate the industry. Even today, some other types of wood are used, such the jequitiba wood used to age some cachaça. The importance of wood cannot be overstated. In Scotch the former master distiller at Glenlivet believes that the impact accounts for up to 70% of the total flavor. The specific flavors imparted can vary wildly with the type of oak (French, American, new, old, etc).
Cask maturation also allows the alcohol to escape, however, at a fairly liberal pace, reducing the alcohol gradually. This evaporation is known as “the angel’s share”, and it also contributes to softening the spirit.
Finishing
Once the maturation process has been completed, the spirit is finished, bottled, and shipped. Some country’s regulations require a specific type of finishing, although more often than not, it is left to the discretion of the country. Possibilities include filtration, cold stabilization, sweetening, flavoring, or coloring.
Distillate can be filtered through a variety of mediums, including paper or cloth (plate and frame filtration), synthetic membranes, charcoal (the “Lincoln County Process” used in Tennessee and in Cuba, where it was used by Bacardi), ground quartz and others.
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Wine Regions of the World
