You’ve probably heard people talking about the angel’s share when it comes to whiskey and maybe you’ve wondered what it is. Simply put, the angel’s share is the whiskey that evaporates out of an aging barrel.
Oak barrels are the perfect vessels in which to store and age whiskey. The oak is hard enough that the whiskey won’t leak out, but also porous enough that some water and alcohol molecules do escape due to evaporation. The whiskey that evaporates is lost to the “angels.”
The amount of angel’s share lost during aging varies depending on factors such as climate, humidity, and the length of time the spirit is aged.
Here at MurLarkey we lose approximately 10% of the barrel the first year and about 5% of the barrel each year after that. Those are definitely some lucky angels!