From the way liquid flows out of a bottle and swirls in a glass to the lingering sensation after taking a sip, the character referred to as texture or mouthfeel is often underappreciated but vital. It is also a dimension that can be consciously shaped. Textural inspiration can be found in traditional drinks as well as modern trends.
Bitterness, saltiness, sourness, sweetness, and umami are recognized as components of taste experienced via receptors on the tongue, while aroma is detected via the nasal cavity. Mouthfeel is recognized by mechanoreceptors throughout the mouth that convert tactile stimuli into signals that travel through nerve cells, thereby communicating physical properties of drinks. Components of this include how it moves, thickness, viscosity, and physical sensations induced by chemical composition.
There are a range of ingredients that can be introduced at different stages throughout the process of making spirits, liqueurs, and fortified wines to shape their texture or mouthfeel with as much consideration as is widely applied to the aromatic element of taste. Some bring aroma in conjunction with physical aspects of taste, while others shape mouthfeel without discernible alteration of aroma.
The Impact of Base Ingredients
The first stage at which mouthfeel can be shaped is the selection of fermentation ingredients. Micil Heritage Poitín, a traditional Irish spirit made in Galway, Ireland, is a lot smoother than might be expected for unaged spirit at 46% ABV. That’s because the grain used to make it is only 80% barley, the remaining 20% being oats (Avena sativa). This fermentable grain gives raw spirit surprising creaminess. Without being tempered by barrel aging, spirit made with oats has a smooth silkiness because the grains are rich in lipid content. Hulled oats contain 50% more oil than barley and wheat. While making use of fermentables that have convenient attributes — barley, for example, which readily yields enzymes and sugars — oats can be added for their contribution to mouthfeel. Similarly, the lipid content of corn (Zea mays) used in distilling contributes butteriness in the end product.
Astringency
Astringency, often described as dryness, roughness, and tightening, isn’t just a property of wine. While in excess it can be unpleasant, in balance it gives drinks vibrancy and interest. The dry, rough sensation of tannins is caused by increased friction due to aggregation of proteins in saliva. In wine, tannins that create astringency come from the grapes that are fermented and are also introduced via barrel aging. In other drinks there is scope to make use of botanical ingredients that provide tannins in high enough concentration to add the property of astringency. These include chocolate (Theobroma cacao) seeds, coffee (Coffea arabica and Coffea robusta) seeds, hibiscus (Hibiscus sabdariffa) calyces, lemongrass (Cymbopogon citratus) leaves, plum (Prunus spp.) skins, and tea (Camellia sinensis) leaves. All need to be introduced via infusion in order to make use of their tannic quality. Cacao nibs — crushed chocolate seeds that have been fermented, then dried and roasted — also contain lipids, so they influence texture with both astringency and creaminess.
Slippery Textures
Social media health fads have re-introduced slippery or thickened non-dairy drinks to modern palates. For example, Ethiopian telba is made with toasted and ground flaxseeds (Linum usitatissimum). Other slippery drinks are made with entire seeds that have been dried before rehydrating them on use. In Costa Rica, the seeds of chan (Mesosphaerum suaveolens) are used similarly to chia (Salvia hispanica) by soaking the hydrophilic seeds in water to make a mucilaginous drink. Closely related basil (Ocimum basilicum) is used in the same way in India. As flaxseeds are rich in oils that oxidize relatively rapidly, they don’t make drinks with a long shelf life. The mucilage formed by basil, chan, and chia seeds is due to the hydration of their exterior layer, and it is difficult to separate liquid from seeds. While they have popularized slippery drinks, the use of these seeds in bottled drinks is limited.
Carrageenan from Irish moss (Chondrus crispus), guar gum extracted from guar bean (Cyamopsis tetragonoloba), pectin from dried citrus peel, and xanthan gum synthesized by bacterial fermentation are used as gelling agents in foods and in some soft drinks to give slipperiness. However, they precipitate out of solution as levels of alcohol increase, which makes them unsuitable for enhancing spirits, liqueurs, and vermouths.
Rather, in drinks containing alcohol, gum arabic, the dried sap of gum acacia (Senegalia senegal) and red acacia (Vachellia seyal), is the shelf stable ingredient that can invisibly add slipperiness or mucilaginous texture. Although now gomme syrup is just sugar syrup, this bartender’s staple used to be made with sugar and gum arabic. It is insoluble in alcohol, but remains dissolved in a blend of water and alcohol up to 50% ABV. Gum arabic enhances mouthfeel by smoothing tannins and astringency while also being perceived as sweet. Gum arabic thereby provides a means for reducing sugar content without adding alternative sweeteners.
Aquafaba, which is made from chickpeas or garbanzo beans (Cicer arietinum), is increasingly being used as a substitute for the foaming property and slippery consistency of egg white. It first came to the world’s attention as a vegan substitute for meringue. Adding corn starch and guar gum improved its stability. From an egg white alternative in desserts, it moved into cocktails. While domestic use more often relies on the water from canned chickpeas, at a larger scale this is not practical. Furthermore, preparation of aquafaba from dried chickpeas allows more control over the flavor that accompanies the texture. For drinks, the optimal process for minimal vegetal notes is first soaking the chickpeas in water, discarding the water, then rinsing the chickpeas and cooking them, this time retaining the thickened water. An additional soaking of the cooked chickpeas in water provides a second thinner but larger batch of aquafaba. Deriving its properties from carbohydrates and proteins, aquafaba is an additive that gives the end product a degree of cloudiness.
Salep, a drink made from the tubers of dried orchids, originates in the eastern Mediterranean. It is appreciated for its distinctive slippery and thick texture. All imports of salep to the U.S. are illegal because the wild collected orchids used to make it are protected by CITES legislation that restricts their export from countries where they grow. Yet glucomannan, the constituent of salep that creates its texture, can legally be sourced in the form of konjac (Amorphophallus konjac). Farmed in Southeast Asia, konjac is available in the U.S. in ready-to-use powdered form. In addition to thickening liquids, glucomannan is colloidal. It keeps particles mixed evenly through a liquid creating a uniform product in the bottle.
Creaminess
Botanicals aren’t the only contributors to texture. Animal products including beeswax, cream, and eggs can also be used. In the case of cream and eggs, there are also plant-derived ingredients that can be used as substitutes.
Following on from the ubiquity of the bee’s knees cocktail made of gin, lemon, and honey is the beeswax martini. With depth added through fat washing with beeswax, this cocktail has drawn attention to the mouthfeel-enhancing properties of this other product of honeybees. Unlike gum arabic, which is flavorless, beeswax carries a slight honey aroma. It softens and smooths other flavors, and, like gum arabic, it is an emulsifier that stabilizes blends. Developed in collaboration with Maybe Sammy, a Sydney bar, Never Never Distilling Company in Australia is now making beeswax and olive gin.
Beeswax has many uses in cleaning products, cosmetics, and pharmaceuticals as well as foods. Consequently, when sourcing beeswax, it is vital to use food-grade beeswax. As well as being unrefined to benefit from aromatic elements of flavor and without additives such as fragrance, it should also be from honeycomb that has not been exposed to pesticides used to control mites on bees.
Liqueurs are a large category in international drinks sales, within which two cream liqueurs are particularly big sellers. In 2023, Amarula sold 1.1 million cases, and Baileys sold 8.2 million cases. Baileys, the world’s dominant liqueur, was released in 1974 as an Irish cream liqueur. Following the trend for plant-based diets, it is now available made using almonds. Combining sweet almond oil with almond essence, sugar, vanilla, and water keeps the consistency creamier than simply adding almond milk. Irish cream liqueur is now protected under registered geographical indication and must contain Irish whiskey, but cream liqueurs based on other spirits are widespread.
While Baileys had its origin in making use of surplus whiskey and cream in Ireland, Amarula evolved as a smoother rendition of a clear spirit distilled from the fruit of marula (Sclerocarya birrea), a tree native to Southern Africa. In 1983, it was sold in South Africa as a clear spirit, until cream was added in 1989. After apartheid ended, Amarula began to enter foreign markets, starting with Brazil in 1994.
The category of cream liqueur continues to progress with successful iterations from different regions. Tequila Rose, a popular liqueur, is made with cream and strawberries as a counterpoint to tequila. The Spanish liqueur Licor 43 launched a vegan cream version by making use of the traditional Spanish version of horchata, which is made with tiger nuts (Cyperus esculentus), also called earth almonds or yellow nutsedge, rather than the rice used in Mexican horchata. Although its common names refer to nuts, tiger nuts are starchy tubers that grow underground, sustaining the grasslike leaves of the plant. To make horchata, they are soaked in water and then pureed and sieved to make a creamy liquid that is sweetened with sugar and served cold. Providing a slight nutty flavor along with creaminess, tiger nuts offer a lactose- and nut-free means of giving drinks the rich smoothness of cream.
While eggnog derives some of its creaminess from cream as well as egg yolks, advocaat is dairy free and uses only egg yolks for its texture. It is associated with Dutch sailors and Dutch colonies in the tropics and has its origin attributed to substituting avocado, a tropical ingredient readily available in the Dutch Antilles in the 17th century, with egg yolks that were more easily obtained in the Netherlands. Abacaty avocado cream liqueur draws on this heritage as inspiration for its vegan version of advocaat. Botanicals, including avocado, are macerated in neutral spirit and then combined with avocado cream. It also offers a lighter version that omits the addition of avocado cream and is sold as Avocado Dry Spirit.
Enhancing vermouth and spirits with botanicals that have astringent or slippery properties can add depth. Cream versions of existing liqueurs made with dairy or plant-based ingredients also offer the possibility of brand extension without creating an entirely new product. Post Covid-19, texture has become more relevant as post-viral taste loss in terms of aroma is more widely experienced and acknowledged. Aging can also erode taste tied to aroma. In these respects, the mouthfeel of a drink is a more universal and enduring property. Another appealing aspect of drinks made with care for their mouthfeel is the nudge toward savoring the process of having a drink. Paying attention to the physical experience of every sip is a step toward mindful drinking.
