ellagic tannins comprise a category of phenols, including such common compounds as castalagin, grandinin, roburin D and E, and vescalagin. For distillers, the critical issue is that the extraction of these compounds is not wholly water soluble but is also affected by heat, time, and pH. Moreover these factors may also speed the degradation and oxidation of ellagic tannins and ellagic acid, a process that can lead to the development of secondary aromas, flavors, and textures.
See also phenols.
Jordão, A. M., J. M. Ricardo-da-Silva, and O. Laureano. “Extraction of Some Ellagic Tannins and Ellagic Acid from Oak Wood Chips in Model Wine Solutions: Effect of Time, pH, Temperature and Alcoholic Content.” South Africa Journal of Viticulture and Enology 26, no. 2. (2005): 83–89.
McPhail, Donald B., Peter T. Gardner, Garry G. Duthie, Gordon M. Steele, and Kenneth Reid. “Assessment of the Antioxidant Potential of Scotch Whiskeys by Electron Spin Resonance Spectroscopy: Relationship to Hydroxyl-Containing Aromatic Components.” Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry 47, no. 5 (1999): 1937–1941.
By: Doug Frost