Flavour components of whiskey. II. Ageing changes in the high-volatility fraction

The volatile compounds isolated from whiskey by fractional vacuum distillation were identified by two-dimensional capillary gas chromatography/mass spectrometry. Changing levels with ageing were quantified for the most abundant compounds by direct split injection of whiskeys on a gas chromatograph equipped with a flame ionisation detector. The ageing decreases in volatile sulfides were similarly determined using a sulfur chemiluminescence detector. Large volume headspace injection sufficiently reproduced the distillation enrichment to allow direct twodimensional determination of similar ageing changes for other trace compounds. Seven compounds at μg/L and low mg/L levels were monitored and quantified.