maturation
Finishing
A secondary maturation period in a different cask type — sherry, port, wine, rum, virgin oak — after the main maturation, usually months to a few years, intended to layer character onto established spirit.
Not a legal term
No whisky regulation in Scotland, Ireland, the United States, the EU or Japan defines this. It is a trade or marketing term, so it is only actionable if its use is actively misleading.
Often confused with the finish (tasting)
'Finishing' is a maturation process; 'the finish' is the aftertaste in the glass. The two are unrelated and routinely conflated in tasting notes.
Worth knowing
For Scotch, time in a finishing cask counts towards the age statement because it is still oak under 700 litres in Scotland. For US straight whiskies the opposite holds: 'age' means charred new oak only, and transferring a straight whisky into a different wood species requires redesignation.
Related terms
Last reviewed 2026-07-30 · All glossary terms