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Food and Beverage
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Filtration Solutions for Distilled Spirits

Premium spirits require premium filtration. 3M filtration products are designed to help distillers bring out the best.

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Pure spirit.

From the purest single malt whiskey to a perfectly curated brandy, many spirits are aged for decades. Spirits typically have much higher value by volume than any other beverage, so reducing waste within the distilling process is of the utmost importance. Fully enclosed depth filters can help with reducing loss, as can using high solid loading filter cartridges with superior throughput performance.

The Distilling Process

Typical spirit production processes, such as those used in whisky, vodka or cognac production, often start upstream with the consideration of types and quantities of grains, malts or sugars, depending on the spirit being created and the finish a distiller is looking for. The filtering of spirits is mainly employed in the final stages of the production process and varies slightly upon spirit type. As with most filtration processes, the stages get successively more refined as the spirit moves downstream from the removal of carbon particles and barrel char, to the clarification, to the final filtration which ensures the purity and clarity of the bottled spirit.

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  • A flowchart showing the distilling process.
 
 
 
 
 
 
Barrel char removal

After years of maturation, many spirits need barrel char and other particulates extracted from the liquor.

Chill haze/Clarification

To achieve optimum clarity, some spirits are filtered to remove chill haze and residual carbon fines.

Final filtration

Decades are dedicated to maturation; to ensure the purity and clarity after bottling, distillers add a final filtration stage.

That’s the spirit.

Keep the good times flowing with innovative filtration solutions for distilleries from 3M.

Learn more (PDF, 14.73 MB)

Featured applications

  • Rows of casks in a warehouse.
    Barrel Char Removal and Particulate Reduction

    Your finely distilled spirit is a product of history, tradition and pride. 3M filtration solutions are designed to help ensure any visible particles or fibres in your spirits are cleared prior to bottling. These can be caused by process contamination, carbon treatment as well as barrel aging.

  • A hand holding a small glass of whiskey.
    Chill Haze Removal and Clarification

    The same barrels that give that great taste to whisky, brandy and rum can also be responsible for a hazy appearance. Our lenticular-style depth filter cartridges provide turbidity reduction – by removing long-chain fatty acids that can give spirits a hazy appearance at lower temperatures; whilst helping to eliminate spirit leakage, reducing alcohol fume emission.

  • Brass distillery equipment.
    Final Filtration

    Before being bottled, spirits may run through a final filtration to ensure the clarity and the longevity of the spirit remains consistent, be it months, years or decades after filling. The bottles must also be rinsed prior to packaging to avoid contamination.

Products for distilled spirit filtration

* 3M Data on file.

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    3M experts will work with you to help find the optimal 3M purification and filtration solution for your application.

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