All About Liqueurs, Cordials & Aperitifs

Liqueurs, Schnapps, Anise, and Bitters are terms that cover a wide variety of types of spirits. What they all share in common is that they are flavored spirits.
Liqueurs (also known as Cordials) are sweet, flavor-infused spirits that are categorized according to the flavoring agent (i.e., fruits, nuts, herbal and spice blends, creams and such). The word liqueur comes from the Latin liquifacere ("to dissolve") and refers to the dissolving of flavorings in the spirits. Artificial flavorings are strictly regulated in most countries, and where allowed, must be prominently labeled as such.
Top-quality liqueurs are produced by distillation of either the fermented flavor materials or the spirit in which they have been infused. Many liqueurs use finished spirits such as Cognac, Rum or Whisky as their base. Others macerate fruit or other flavorings in a neutral spirit. Crèmes (crème de menthe, crème de cacao, etc.) are liqueurs with a primary flavor (a single, dominant flavor rather than a mix), while cream liqueurs combine dairy cream and alcohol in a homogenized, shelf-stable blend.
All liqueurs are blends, even those with a primary flavor. A touch of vanilla is added to crème de cacao in order to emphasize the chocolate. Citrus flavor notes sharpen the presentation of anise. Herbal liqueurs may contain dozens of different flavor elements that a master blender manipulates to achieve the desired flavor profile.
Liqueurs are not usually aged for any great length of time (although their base spirit may be), but may undergo resting stages during their production in order to allow the various flavors to "marry" into a harmonious blend.

Liqueurs can be hard to classify, but regardless of flavor they can be broadly divided into two categories.
Generics are liqueurs of a particular type (Crème de Cacao or Curaçao, for example) that can be made by any producer.
Proprietaries are liqueurs with trademarked names that are made according to a specific formula. Examples of such liqueurs include Kahlúa, Grand Marnier, and Southern Comfort.
Schnapps is a general term used for an assortment of white and flavored spirits that have originated in northern countries or regions such as Germany or Scandinavia. Schnapps can be made from grain, potatoes, or molasses and be flavored with virtually anything (Watermelon and Root Beer Schnapps from the United States being proof of that). The dividing line between Schnapps and Flavored Vodka is vague and is more cultural than stylistic, although European Schnapps tend to be drier than their American counterparts and liqueurs.
Anise-Flavored Spirits can vary widely in style depending on the country of origin. They can be dry or very sweet, low or high proof, distilled from fermented aniseed or macerated in neutral spirit. In France, Anis (as produced by Pernod) is produced by distilling anise and a variety of other botanicals together. Pastis is macerated, rather than distilled, and contains fewer botanicals than Anis. In Italy, Sambucca is distilled from anise and botanicals, but is then heavily sweetened to make it a liqueur. Oil of fennel (also known as green anise) is frequently added to boost the aroma of the spirit. Greece has a drier, grappa-like liqueur called Ouzo , which is stylistically close to pastis.
Bitters are the modern-day descendents of medieval medical potions and are marketed as having at least some vaguely therapeutic value as stomach settlers or hangover cures. They tend to be flavored with herbs, roots, and botanicals, contain lower quantities of fruit and sugar than liqueurs, and have astringent notes in the palate.

All About Irish Whiskey

The Scots most likely learned about distilling from the Irish (though they are loath to admit it). The Irish in turn learned about it, according to the Irish at least, from missionary monks who arrived in Ireland in the seventh century. The actual details are a bit sketchy for the next 700 years or so, but it does seem reasonable to believe that monks in the various monasteries were distilling aqua vitae ("water of life"), primarily for making medical compounds. These first distillates were probably grape or fruit brandy rather than grain spirit. Barley-based whiskey (the word derives from uisce beatha the Gaelic interpretation of aqua vitae) first appears in the historical record in the mid-1500s when the Tudor kings began to consolidate English control in Ireland. Queen Elizabeth I was said to be fond of it and had casks shipped to London on a regular basis.
The imposition of an excise tax in 1661 had the same effect as it did in Scotland, with the immediate commencement of the production of poteen (the Irish version of moonshine). This did not, however, slow down the growth of the distilling industry, and by the end of the 18th century there were over 2,000 stills in operation around the country.
Under British rule Ireland was export oriented and, along with grains and assorted foodstuffs, Irish distillers produced large quantities of pot-distilled whiskey for export into the expanding British Empire. Irish whiskey outsold Scotch whisky in most markets because it was lighter in body. It is said that in the late 19th century over 400 brands of Irish whiskey were being exported and sold in the United States.
This happy state of affairs for Irish distillers lasted into the early 20th century when the market began to change. The Irish distillers, pot still users to a man, were slow to respond to the rise of blended Scotch whisky with its column-distilled, smooth grain whisky component. When National Prohibition in the United States closed off Irish whiskys largest export market, many of the smaller distilleries closed. The remaining distilleries then failed to adequately anticipate the coming of Repeal (unlike the Scotch distillers) and were caught short without adequate stocks when it came. The Great Depression, trade embargoes between the newly independent Irish Republic and the United Kingdom, and World War II caused further havoc among the distillers.
In 1966 the three remaining distilling companies in the Republic of Ireland—Powers, Jameson, and Cork Distilleries—merged into a single company, Irish Distillers Company (IDC). In 1972, Bushmills, the last distillery in Northern Ireland, joined IDC. In 1975 IDC opened a new mammoth distillery at Midleton, near Cork, and all of the other distilleries in the Republic were closed down with the production of their brands being transferred to Midleton. For a 14-year period the Midleton plant and Bushmills in Northern Ireland were the only distilleries in the country.
This sad state of affairs ended in 1989 when a potato-peel ethanol plant in Dundalk was converted into a whiskey distillery. The new Cooley Distillery began to produce malt and grain whiskeys, with the first three-year-old bottlings being released in 1992.
Irish whiskeys, both blended and malt, are usually triple distilled through both column and pot stills, although there are a few exclusively pot-distilled brands. Irish Pure Pot Still Whiskey is generally labeled as such. Otherwise, Irish whiskeys are a mix of pot and column-distilled whiskeys. Irish Malt Whiskey is likewise so designated. Standard Irish Whiskey is a blend of malt and grain whiskies.

Source: Tastings.com

What is a Cocktail?

The official definition of a Cocktail according to the modern Merriam-Webster Dictionary is "an iced drink of wine or distilled liquor mixed with flavoring ingredients." That's a pretty broad definition, but reflects the modern practice of referring to almost any mixed drink as a Cocktail. The first published definition of the Cocktail appeared in an editorial response in The Balance and Columbian Repository of 1806. This read: "Cocktail is a stimulating liquor, composed of spirits of any kind, sugar, water and bitters It is this definition of ingredients that still refers to the "ideal cocktail."

When was the cocktail created?

People have been mixing drinks for centuries but it wasn't until the 17th and 18th centuries that the precursors of the Cocktail (the Slings, Fizzes, Toddies and Juleps) became popular enough to be recorded in history. It's unclear where, who, and what went into the creation of the original Cocktail, but it seems to be a specific drink rather than a category of mixed drinks during that time.
The first published reference to the Cocktail appears in the Farmer's Cabinet (Amherst, New Hampshire, April 28, 1803). The spoof editorial tells of a "lounger" who, with an 11 a.m. hangover, "…Drank a glass of cocktail - excellent for the head…" In Imbibe!, David Wondrich attributes the first known Cocktail recipe in print to Captain J.E. Alexander in 1831 who calls for brandy, gin or rum in a mix of "…a third of the spirit to two-thirds of the water; add bitters, and enrich with sugar and nutmeg…"

Where did the name Cocktail come from?

There are as many stories behind the origin of the name Cocktail as there are behind the creation of the Margarita or the Martini. As always, some are preposterous, some believable and who knows, one may be the truth. None the less, the stories are interesting.

• A popular story behind the Cocktail name refers to a rooster's tail (or cock tail) being used as a Colonial drink garnish. There are no formal references in recipe to such a garnish.


• In the story in The Spy (James Fenimore Cooper, 1821) the character "Betty Flanagan" invented the Cocktail during the Revolution. "Betty" may have referred to a real-life innkeeper at Four Corners north of New York City by the name of Catherine "Kitty" Hustler. Betty took on another non-fiction face, that of Betsy Flanagan. Betsy likely not a real woman though, but the story says she was a tavern keeper who served French soldiers in 1779 a drink garnished with tail feathers of her neighbor's rooster. We can assume that Kitty inspired Betty and Betty inspired Betsy, but whether or not one of the three are responsible for the Cocktail is a mystery.


• The rooster theory is also said to have been influenced by the colors of the mixed ingredients, which may resemble the colors of the cock's tail. This would be a good tale today given our colorful array of ingredients, but at the time spirits were visually bland.


• The British publication, Bartender, published a story in 1936 of English sailors, of decades before, being served mixed drinks in Mexico. The drinks were stirred with a Cola de Gallo (Cock's tail), a long root of similar shape to the bird's tail.


• Another Cocktail story refers to the leftovers of a cask of ale, called cock tailings. The cock tailings from various spirits would be mixed together and sold at a lower priced mixed beverage of questionable integrity.


• Yet another unappetizing origin tells of a cock ale, a mash of ale mixed with whatever was available to be fed to fighting cocks.


• Cocktail may have derived from the French term for egg cup, coquetel. One story that brought this reference to America speaks of Antoine Amedie Peychaud of New Orleans who mixed his Peychaud bitters into a stomach remedy served in a coquetel. Not all of Peychaud's customers could pronounce the word and it became known as Cocktail. This story doesn't add up because of conflicting dates.


• The word Cocktail may be a distant derivation of the name for the Aztec goddess, Xochitl. Xochitl was also the name of a Mexican princess who served drinks to American soldiers.


• It was an 18th and 19th century custom to dock draft horses' tales. This caused the tales to stick up like a cocks tail. As the story goes, a reader's letter to the balance explains that when drunk these Cocktails made you cock your tail up in the same manner.


• Another horse tail supposes the influence of breeders term for a mix breed horse, or cock-tails. Both racing and drinking were popular among the majority of Americans at the time and it's possible the term transferred from mixed breeds to mixed drinks.


• There's a quirky story of an American tavern keeper who stored alcohol in a ceramic, rooster-shaped container. When patrons wanted another round they tapped the rooster's tail.


• In George Bishop's The Booze Reader: A Soggy Saga of Man in His Cups (1965) he says, "The word itself stems from the English cock-tail which, in the middle 1800's, referred to a woman of easy virtue who was desirable but impure…and applied to the newly acquired American habit of bastardizing good British Gin with foreign matter, including ice."

Source: By Colleen Graham, About.com

Gin Regions

The United Kingdom produces mostly dry Gin, primarily from column stills. British gins tend to be high proof (90° or 45% ABV) and citrus-accented from the use of dried lemon and Seville orange peels in the mix of botanicals. British gins are usually combined into mixed drinks.

Holland and Belgium produce Genever, mostly from pot stills. Genevers are distilled at lower proof levels than English gins and are generally fuller in body. Many of these gins are aged for one to three years in oak casks. Some Genever producers now market fruit-flavored genevers, the best known being black currant. Dutch and Belgian genevers are usually chilled and served neat.

Germany produces a Genever-style Gin called Dornkaat in the North Sea coast region of Frisia. This spirit is lighter in body and more delicate in flavor than both Dutch Genever and English dry Gin. German Gin is usually served straight up and cold.

Spain produces a substantial amount of Gin, all of it in the London Dry style from column stills. Most of it is sold for mixing with cola.

The United States is the world's largest Gin market. London Dry Gin accounts for the bulk of domestic Gin production, with most of it being produced in column stills. American Dry gins (often termed "soft" gins) tend to be lower proof (80° or 40% ABV) and less flavorful than their English counterparts ("hard" gins). This rule applies even to brands such as Gordon's and Gilbey's, which originated in England. America's best-selling Gin, Seagram's Extra Dry, is a rare cask-aged Dry Gin. Three months of aging in charred oak barrels gives the Gin a pale straw color and a smooth palate.

The Martini and the Meaning of Life

The best known of hundreds of Gin-based mixed drinks is the Gin and white vermouth combination called the Martini. As is usually the case with most popular mixed drinks, the origins of the martini are disputed. One school of thought holds that it evolved from the late-19th-century Martinez cocktail, a rather cloying mixture of Old Tom-style Gin and sweet vermouth.

A dissenting sect holds that it was created in the bar of the Knickerbocker Hotel in New York City in the early 20th century. The ratio of Gin to vermouth started out at about 2 to 1, and it has been getting drier ever since. The great British statesman Winston Churchill, who devoted a great deal of thought and time to drinking, was of the opinion that passing the cork from the vermouth bottle over the glass of Gin was sufficient.

The martini has frequently served as a metaphor for some of the great social and political issues of our times. President Jimmy Carter denounced the "three martini lunch" in a thinly-veiled attempt at class warfare during his election campaign. He was not reelected.

Source: Tastings.com

Classifications of Gin

London Dry Gin is the dominant English style of Gin. As a style it lends itself particularly well to mixing. London Dry Gin is the dominant Gin style in the United Kingdom, former British colonies, the United States, and Spain.

Plymouth Gin is relatively full-bodied (when compared to London Dry Gin). It is clear, slightly fruity, and very aromatic. Originally the local Gin style of the English Channel port of Plymouth, modern Plymouth Gin is nowadays made only by one distillery in Plymouth, Coates & Co., which also controls the right to the term Plymouth Gin.

Old Tom Gin is the last remaining example of the original lightly sweetened gins that were so popular in 18th-century England. The name comes from what may be the first example of a beverage vending machine. In the 1700s some pubs in England would have a wooden plaque shaped like a black cat (an "Old Tom") mounted on the outside wall. Thirsty passersby would deposit a penny in the cat's mouth and place their lips around a small tube between the cat's paws. The bartender inside would then pour a shot of Gin through the tube and into the customer's waiting mouth. Until fairly recently limited quantities of Old Tom-style Gin were still being made by a few British distillers, but they were, at best, curiosity items.

Genever or Hollands is the Dutch style of Gin. Genever is distilled from a malted grain mash similar to that used for whisky. Oude ("old") Genever is the original style. It is straw-hued, relatively sweet and aromatic. Jonge ("young") Genever has a drier palate and lighter body. Some genevers are aged for one to three years in oak casks. Genevers tend to be lower proof than English gins (72-80 proof or 36-40% ABV is typical). They are usually served straight up and chilled. The classic accompaniment to a shot of Genever is a dried green herring. Genever is traditionally sold in a cylindrical stoneware crock. Genever-style gins are produced in Holland, Belgium, and Germany.

Source: Tastings.com

Distillation of Gin

Most Gin is initially distilled in efficient column stills. The resulting spirit is high-proof, light-bodied, and clean with a minimal amount of congeners (flavor compounds) and flavoring agents. Genever is distilled in less-efficient pot stills, which results in a lower-proof, more flavorful spirit.
Low-quality "compound" gins are made by simply mixing the base spirit with juniper and botanical extracts. Mass-market gins are produced by soaking juniper berries and botanicals in the base spirit and then redistilling the mixture.

Top-quality gins and genevers are flavored in a unique manner. After one or more distillations the base spirit is redistilled one last time. During this final distillation the alcohol vapor wafts through a chamber in which the dried juniper berries and botanicals are suspended. The vapor gently extracts aromatic and flavoring oils and compounds from the berries and spices as it travels through the chamber on its way to the condenser. The resulting flavored spirit has a noticeable degree of complexity.

Source: Tastings.com

All About Gin

Why don’t you slip out of those wet clothes and into a dry martini? - Robert Benchley

Gin and its Lowlands cousin Genever (Jenever in Belgium) are white spirits that are flavored with juniper berries and so-called botanicals (a varied assortment of herbs and spices). The spirit base of Gin is primarily grain (usually wheat or rye), which results in a light-bodied spirit.

Genever is made primarily from "malt wine" (a mixture of malted barley, wheat, corn, and rye), which produces a fuller-bodied spirit similar to raw malt whisky. A small number of genevers in Holland and Belgium are distilled directly from fermented juniper berries, producing a particularly intensely flavored spirit.

The chief flavoring agent in both Gin and Genever is the highly aromatic blue-green berry of the juniper, a low-slung evergreen bush (genus Juniperus) that is commercially grown in northern Italy, Croatia, the United States and Canada. Additional botanicals can include anise, angelica root, cinnamon, orange peel, coriander, and cassia bark. All Gin and Genever makers have their own secret combination of botanicals, the number of which can range from as few as four to as many as 15.

Source: Tastings.com

Gin - Origins and History # 3

The first confirmed date for the production of gin is the early 17th century in Holland, although claims have been made that it was produced prior to this in Italy. In Holland it was produced as a medicine and sold in chemist shops to treat stomach complaints, gout and gallstones. To make it more palatable, the Dutch started to flavor it with juniper, which had medicinal properties of its own.

From Dutch courage to William of Orange
British troops fighting in the Low Countries during the Thirty Years' War were given 'Dutch Courage' during the long campaigns in the damp weather through the warming properties of gin. Eventually they started bringing it back home with them, where already it was often sold in chemists' shops. Distillation was taking place in a small way in England, but it now began on a greater scale, though the quality was often very dubious. Nevertheless, the new drink became a firm favourite with the poor. The formation by King Charles I of the Worshipful Company of Distillers, where members had the sole right to distil spirits in London and Westminster and up to twenty-one miles beyond improved both the quality of gin and its image; it also helped English agriculture by using surplus corn and barley. When King William III - better known as William of Orange - came to the English throne in 1689, he made a series of statutes actively encouraging the distillation of English spirits. Anyone could now distil by simply posting a notice in public and just waiting ten days. Sometimes gin was distributed to workers as part of their wages and soon the volume sold daily exceeded that of beer and ale, which was more expensive anyway.

The Gin Riots
The problem was tackled by introducing The Gin Act at midnight on 29 September 1736, which made gin prohibitively expensive. A license to retail gin cost £50 and duty was raised fivefold to £1 per gallon with the smallest quantity you could buy retail being two gallons. The Prime Minister, Sir Robert Walpole and Dr. Samuel Johnson were among those who opposed the Act since they considered it could not be enforced against the will of the common people.. They were right. Riots broke out and the law was widely and openly broken.. About this time, 11 million gallons of gin were distilled in London, which was over 20 times the 1690 figure and has been estimated to be the equivalent of 14 gallons for each adult male. But within six years of the Gin Act being introduced, only two distillers took out licenses, yet, over the same period of time, production rose by almost fifty per cent.

Respectability, High quality and Patronage
The Gin Act, finally recognized as unenforceable, was repealed in 1742 and a new policy, which distillers helped to draft, was introduced: reasonably high prices, reasonable excise duties and licensed retailers under the supervision of magistrates. In essence this is the situation, which exists today. These changes led to more respectable firms embarking on the business of distilling and retailing gin and it became the drink of high quality, which it has since remained. Many companies established themselves as well-to-do manufacturers, often becoming patrons for major enterprises; one such was the sponsorship of the attempt to discover the North West Passage 1829-33: the attempt failed, but the expedition did establish the true position of the North Magnetic Pole.
Gin had been known as 'Mother's Milk' from the 1820s but later in the century it became known as 'Mother's Ruin', a description perhaps originating from the earlier 'Blue Ruin' of the prohibition era in the previous century.

Gin - Origins and History # 2

In Holland the production of Genever was quickly integrated into the vast Dutch trading system. The port of Rotterdam became the center of Genever distilling, as distilleries opened there to take advantage of the abundance of needed spices that were arriving from the Dutch colonies in the East Indies (present-day Indonesia). Many of today's leading Dutch Genever distillers can trace their origins back to the 16th and 17th centuries. Examples include such firms as Bols (founded 1575) and de Kuyper (1695). Belgium developed its own juniper-flavored spirit, called Jenever (with a "j"), in a manner similar to that in Holland (which controlled Belgium for a time in the early 19th century).

The two German invasions of Belgium in World Wars I and II had a particularly hard effect on Jenever producers, as the occupying Germans stripped the distilleries of their copper stills and piping for use in the production of shell casings. The remaining handful of present-day Belgian Jenever distillers produce Jenever primarily for the local domestic market. Gin may have originated in Holland and developed into its most popular style in England, but its most enthusiastic modern-day consumers are to be found in Spain, which has the highest per capita consumption in the world.

Production of London Dry-style Gin began in the 1930s, but serious consumption did not begin until the mix of Gin and Cola became inexplicably popular in the 1960s. Gin production in the United States dates back to colonial times, but the great boost to Gin production was the advent of National Prohibition in 1920. Moonshining quickly moved in to fill the gap left by the shutdown of commercial distilleries, but the furtive nature of illicit distilling worked against the production of the then-dominant whiskies, all of which required some aging in oak casks. Bootleggers were not in a position to store and age illegal whisky, and the caramel-colored, prune-juice-dosed grain alcohol substitutes were generally considered to be vile. Gin, on the other hand, did not require any aging, and was relatively easy to make by mixing raw alcohol with juniper berry extract and other flavorings and spices in a large container such as a bathtub (thus the origin of the term "Bathtub Gin").

These gins were generally of poor quality and taste, a fact that gave rise to the popularity of cocktails in which the mixers served to disguise the taste of the base Gin. Repeal of Prohibition at the end of 1933 ended the production of bootleg Gin, but Gin remained a part of the American beverage scene. It was the dominant white spirit in the United States until the rise of Vodka in the 1960s. It still remains popular, helped along recently by the revived popularity of the Martini.

Source: Tastings.com

Gin - Origins and History # 1

Gin is a juniper berry-flavored grain spirit . The word is an English shortening of Genever, the Dutch word for juniper. The origins of Gin are rather murky. In the late 1580s a juniper-flavored spirit of some sort was found in Holland by British troops who were fighting against the Spanish in the Dutch War of Independence. They gratefully drank it to give them what they soon came to call "Dutch courage" in battle. The Dutch themselves were encouraged by their government to favor such grain spirits over imported wine and brandy by lack of excise taxes on such local drinks.

A clearer beginning was a few decades later in the 1600s when a Dr. Franciscus de la Boë in the university town of Leiden created a juniper and spice-flavored medicinal spirit that he promoted as a diuretic. Genever soon found favor across the English Channel; first as a medicine (Samuel Pepys wrote in 1660 of curing a case of "colic" with a dose of "strong water made with juniper") and then as a beverage.

When the Dutch Protestant William of Orange and his English wife Mary became co-rulers of England after the "Glorious Revolution" drove James II from the throne, he moved to discourage the importation of brandy from the Catholic wine-making countries by setting high tariffs. As a replacement he promoted the production of grain spirits ("corn brandy" as it was known at the time) by abolishing taxes and licensing fees for the manufacture of such local products as Gin. History has shown that prohibition never works, but unfettered production of alcohol has its problems too. By the 1720s it was estimated that a quarter of the households in London were used for the production or sale of Gin. Mass drunkenness became a serious problem. The cartoonist Hogarth's famous depiction of such behavior in "Gin Lane" shows a sign above a Gin shop that states, "Drunk for a penny/Dead drunk for twopence/Clean straw for Nothing." Panicky attempts by the government to prohibit Gin production, such as the Gin Act of 1736, resulted in massive illicit distilling and the cynical marketing of "medicinal" spirits with such fanciful names as Cuckold's Comfort and My Lady's Eye Water.

A combination of reimposed government controls, the growth of high-quality commercial Gin distillers, the increasing popularity of imported rum, and a general feeling of public exhaustion gradually brought this mass hysteria under control, although the problems caused by the combination of cheap Gin and extreme poverty extended well into the 19th century. Fagin's irritable comment to a child in the film Oliver —"Shut up and drink your Gin!"—had a basis in historical fact.

Starting in the 18th century the British Empire began its worldwide growth; and wherever the Union Jack went, English-style gins followed. In British North American colonies such celebrated Americans as Paul Revere and George Washington were notably fond of Gin, and the Quakers were well-known for their habit of drinking Gin toddies after funerals.

The arrival of the Victorian era in England in the mid-19th century ushered in a low-key rehabilitation of Gin's reputation. The harsh, sweetened "Old Tom" styles of Gin of the early 1700s slowly gave way to a new cleaner style called Dry Gin. This style of Gin became identified with the city of London to the extent that the term "London Dry" Gin became a generic term for the style, regardless of where it was actually produced.

Genteel middle-class ladies sipped their sloe Gin (Gin flavored with sloe berries) while consulting Mrs. Beeton's Book of Household Management (a wildly popular Victorian cross between the Joy of Cooking and Martha Stewart lifestyle books) for Gin-based mixed drink recipes. The British military, particularly the officer corps, became a hotbed of Gin consumption. Hundreds of Gin-based mixed drinks were invented and the mastery of their making was considered part of a young officer's training. The best known of these cocktails, the Gin and Tonic, was created as a way for Englishmen in tropical colonies to take their daily dose of quinine, a very bitter medicine used to ward off malaria. Modern tonic water still contains quinine, though as a flavoring rather than a medicine.

Source: Tastings.com

Vodka: Its History and Significance #5

History of Vodka and Why Vodka was Made
Vodka, according to Russian lore, translates to “little water” and was used as an anesthetic and disinfectant in the 12 century. It originally was made from Rye but as time passed, wheat, barley and then corn became the preferred refining ingredient.
In the 14th century, Russians came to believe that Vodka retained a divine spirit due to its intoxicating effect. It was cheap to produce so was distributed and carried around in gallon-sized jugs at religious ceremonies. It seems most churchgoers drank from these jugs because to reject the offering of a drink would be tantamount to sacrilege.
As time passed into the 16th and 17th centuries, vodka spread its influence from the church to the banquet table where meals typically began with bread and vodka. Not wanting to be left behind, lower class peasants figured a way to make their own cheap version of vodka by refining potatoes. Now everyone could afford to drink and that, they did. The whole country indulged without limit.
World War I temporarily crashed the party because soldiers marching into battle were expected to be sober so government officials attempted to suppress vodka consumption. It didn’t work. Nor did their attempts in the 1920’s to institute sobering educational programs. Then, Stalin came along and completely reversed protocol by ordering a re-expansion of vodka production so he could fund Russia’s defense.

Smirnoff Introduces Vodka to the United States

Vodka was introduced to the United States in the 1930’s by the Smirnoff Company in the form of gold vodka. Gold vodka was vodka aged ten (10) years in oak casks.
Piotr Smirnov founded Smirnoff vodka in Moscow in the 1860’s. During the October Revolution of 1917, the Bolsheviks confiscated his distillery and he was forced to flee. He fled to Istanbul where he re-established the brand then on to Lwow where he took on the French spelling of his Russian name: Smirnoff.
In 1934 and still in the midst of the Great Depression, Vladimir Smirnov, son of Piotr Smirnov, was forced to sell the company to an American, Rudolph Kunet (Kunet was a Russian Émigré), who subsequently moved the company to the United States. Kunet then sold the company to Heublein who then sold to the French conglomerate Diageo. Diageo also owns Guiness, Captain Morgan, Crown Royal, J&B, Seagram 7 Crown, VO, Johnnie Walker, Tanqueray, Bailey’s Irish Cream, Bushmills, Lagavulin, and many more.

Vodka Sales Soar in the United States

Smirnoff made giant leaps into the alcohol consumption market by paying to have James Bond drink only vodka martinis in his movies, beginning with Dr. No. In Ian Fleming’s novels, Bond drinks unbranded vodka.

Source: www.martinimuse.com

Best Value Vodkas

1. SKYY Vodka – USA No carbohydrates, said to contain the fewest impurities of the leading brands, distilled from American Midwest grain with cocoa. Considered a light vodka.
2. Smirnoff – Russia, now USA Distilled from grain with hint of mint, wet stone and charcoal
3. Blavod Black Vodka – London Distilled from grain - color and smoothness attributed to the Black Catechu, a tannin resin of the Acacia catechu heartwood, a tree indigenous to India and Burma
4. Gilbeys Vodka – USA Distilled from grain
5. Gordons Vodka – USA Distilled from grain
6. Mor Vodka – Poland Distilled from potatoes
7. Wodka Wyborowa – Poland Distilled from rye
8. Three Olives Vodka – England Distilled from English wheat
9. Oliphant Vodka – Holland Distilled from
10. 3 Vodka – USA 1st and only vodka distilled from soy and contains no carbohydrates

Source: www.martinimuse.com

Origin and Contents of the Best Vodka Brands

Americana Luxury Vodka – Colts Neck, New Jersey Americana Luxury Vodka is an unflavored grain vodka that is quadruple distilled with water sourced at 300 feet below sea level. The grains included in Americana are wheat, barley, rye and corn. It is charcoal filtered seven times with a carbon block filter that is capable of filtering even tobacco smoke. Americana Luxury Vodka is distilled at a family distillery in Colts Neck, New Jersey at the Laird and Company Plant. It is the nation's oldest distillery. You'll notice the nod to American craftsmanship on the bottle whose main body is clear (signifying white) with tints of read and blue surrounding the corners. Americana received a "91, Exceptional, Gold Medal Rating" from the Beverage Testing Institute as well as a "Bronze Medal" and "People's Choice for Package of the Year" by the National Association of Contributors and "Package of the Year Award" by All Pak, Inc. Americana Luxury Vodka was introduced in the Fall of 2007. Dan Marino, Hall of Fame and retired Miami Dolphins quarterback is an investor.

1. O-N Vodka – Oregon Organic Nation Vodka is a premium organic vodka distilled from rye and grown in Etna, California. The finished product is an organic blend of rye (for sweetness), wheat and corn. O-N Vodka is produced organically: no pesticides, no fertilizers, ionizing radiation, non-potable water runoff, etc. Interesting, the label is produced on recycled paper and the label glue is not toxic.
2. Belvedere Vodka – Poland Premium vodka distilled from rye
3. Chopin Vodka – Poland Luxury vodka distilled from potatoes, named after Polish composer Frederic Chopin. Seven (7) pounds of potatoes are used to make just one (1) bottle.
4. VeeV Liqueur – South America Luxury vodka substitute made from organic Acai berries
5. Stolichnaya Vodka – Russia Distilled from winter wheat in Russia’s oldest distillery using pure glacial waters. Herbal and pine bouquet
6. Bak’s Zubrowka Bison Grass Vodka – Poland Distilled from potatoes and artesian well water with a hint of bison grass
7. Absolut Vodka – Sweden Distilled from winter wheat
8. Finlandia Vodka – Finland Distilled from barley and glacier water, silky texture, medium weight body, a bit harsh yet warm and provides a smooth finish
9. Grey Goose Vodka – France Quality vodka distilled from French wheat with impeccable clarity and supple medium weight body. Crisp, clean and smooth finish.
10. Hangar One Vodka – Alameda, CaliforniaPot-distilled from quality viognier grapes then blended into column still mid-western wheat vodka at the Alameda Naval Air Station. Soft, aromatic and smooth.
11. Ketel One Dutch Vodka – Netherlands Distilled from pure wheat in an alembic copper pot, a method reserved for fine scotches and cognacs. Citrus and toasted cereal aromas. Sweet and spicy flavor first ftaste.
12. Luksusowa Potato Vodka (lux-sus-ova) – Poland Distilled from potatoes with hint of herbs and caramel
13. Cristall Vodka – Russia Distilled from winter wheat and glacial waters with hints of chocolate and vanilla
14. Original Polish Vodka – Poland Distilled from rye, crystal clear with lightweight, satiny smooth body with a caramel bouquet.
15. Pearl Vodka – Western Canada Distilled from wheat, is brisk and refreshing with soft creamy aromas
16. Purus Vodka – Italy Luxury vodka distilled from organic Italian wheat
17. Rain Vodka – Kentucky Distilled from yeast and organically grown corn with hint of fruit and toffee
18. Van Hoo Vodka – Belgium Distilled from grain and spring water. Bouquet of citrus cocoa and grain. Taste of quinine and lemon.
19. Van Gogh Vodka – Netherlands Distilled using mostly wheat, some barley and corn in a copper potstill for extra smoothness. Citrus taste, silky texture.
20. Vox Vodka – Netherlands Distilled from wheat said to have a weightless body and clean palate (taste)
21. 360 Vodka – United States Luxury vodka distilled from grain

Source: www.martinimuse.com

Vodka: Its History and Significance #4

Vodka in Sweden

Vodka production in Sweden, which dates from the 15th century, has its origins in the local gunpowder industry where high-proof spirit (originally called brännvin) was used as a component of black powder for muskets. When distilleries were licensed to produce beverage alcohol (primarily spice-flavored Aquavit, but also Vodka), it was with the understanding that gunpowder makers had first priority over beverage consumers.
Home distilling was long a part of Swedish society. In 1830 there were over 175,000 registered stills in a country of less than three million people. This tradition, in a much diminished and illegal form, still continues to this day. Modern Swedish Vodka is produced by the Vin & Sprit state monopoly.

Vodka in the United States

Vodka was first imported into the United States in commercial quantities around the turn of the 20th century. Its primary market was immigrants from Eastern Europe. After the repeal of National Prohibition in 1933, the Heublein Company bought the rights to the Smirnoff brand of Vodka from its White Russian émigré owners and relaunched Vodka into the U.S. market. Sales languished until an enterprising liquor salesman in South Carolina started promoting it as "Smirnoff White Whisky — No taste. No smell." Sales started to increase and American Vodka, after marking time during World War II, was on its way to marketing success.

The first popular Vodka-based cocktail was a combination of Vodka and ginger ale called the Moscow Mule. It was marketed with its own special copper mug, examples of which can still be found in the back shelves of liquor cabinets and flea markets of America.
Today Vodka is the dominant white spirit in the United States, helped along by its versatility as a mixer and some very clever advertising campaigns from the various producers. One of the most famous of these was the classic double entendre tag line: "Smirnoff — It leaves you breathless."

Source: Tastings.com

Vodka: Its History and Significance #3

Vodka in Poland

The earliest written records of Vodka production in Poland date from the 1400s, though some Polish historians claim that it was being produced around the southern city of Krakow at least a century earlier. Originally known as okowita (from the Latin aqua vita —water of life), it was used for a variety of purposes besides beverages. A 1534 medical text defined an aftershave lotion as being "Vodka for washing the chin after shaving." Herbal-infused Vodkas were particularly popular as liniments for the aches and pains of life.
In 1546 King Jan Olbracht of Poland granted the right to distill and sell spirits to every adult citizen. The Polish aristocracy, taking a cue from their Russian peers, soon lobbied to have this privilege revoked and replaced by a royal decree that reserved the right to make Vodka exclusively to them.
Commercial Vodka distilleries were well established by the 18th century. By the mid-19th century a thriving export trade had developed, with Polish Vodkas, particularly those infused with small quantities of fruit spirit, being shipped throughout northern Europe and even into Russia.
With the fall of Communism in the late 1980s, the Vodka distilleries soon returned to private ownership. Nowadays high-quality Polish Vodkas are exported throughout the world.

Source: Tastings.com

Vodka: Its History and Significance #2

Vodka in Russia

Russians firmly believe that Vodka was created in their land. Commercial production was established by the 14th century. In 1540 Czar Ivan the Terrible took a break from beheading his enemies and established the first government Vodka monopoly. Distilling licenses were handled out to the boyars (the nobility) and all other distilleries were banned. Needless to say, moonshining became endemic.
Vodka production became an integral part of Russian society. Aristocratic landowners operated stills on their estates and produced high-quality Vodkas which were frequently flavored with everything from acorns to horseradish to mint. The Czars maintained test distilleries at their country palaces where the first experiments in multiple redistillations were made. In 1780 a scientist at one such distillery invented the use of charcoal filtration to purify Vodka.
By the 18th and well into the 19th century the Russian Vodka industry was probably the most technologically advanced industry in the nation. New types of stills and production techniques from Western Europe were eagerly imported and utilized. State funding and control of Vodka research continued. Under a 1902 law, "Moscow Vodka," a clear 40% ABV rye Vodka made with soft "living" (undistilled) water and without added flavorings was established as the benchmark for Russian Vodka.
The Soviet Union continued government control of Vodka production. All distilleries became government-owned, and while the Communist Party apparatchiks continued to enjoy high-quality rye Vodka, the proletariat masses had to make do with cheap spirits. The societal attitude toward such products could be best summed up by the curious fact that mass-produced Vodka was sold in liter bottles with a non-screw cap. Once you opened the bottle it couldnt be resealed. You had to drink it all in one session.
Vodka production in the current Russian Federation has returned to the pre-Revolutionary pattern. High-quality brands are once again being produced for the new social elite and export, while the popularly priced brands are still being consumed, well, like voda.

Source: Tastings.com

Vodka: Its History and Significance #1

The story is told that in A.D. 988 the Grand Prince of Kiev in what is now Ukraine decided that it was time for his people to convert from their pagan ways to one of the monotheistic religions that held sway in the civilized countries to the south. First came the Jewish rabbis. He listened to their arguments, was impressed, but ultimately sent them away after remarking that the followers of Judaism did not control any land. Next came the Moslem mullahs. Again he was impressed, both with their intellectual arguments and the success of Islam as a political and military force, but when he was told that Islam proscribed alcohol he was dismayed and sent them away. Finally came the Christian priests who informed him that not only could good Christians drink alcohol, but that wine was actually required for church rituals such as communion. That was good enough for the Grand Prince, and on his command his subjects converted en masse to Christianity.

The point of this historical anecdote is that the Slavic peoples of the north and their Scandinavian neighbors took alcoholic drinks very seriously. The extreme cold temperatures of winter inhibited the shipment of wines and beers, as these relatively low- proof beverages could freeze during transit. Until the introduction of distilling into Eastern Europe in the 1400s, strong drink was made by fermenting strong wines, meads, and beers, freezing them, and then drawing off the alcoholic slush from the frozen water.

The earliest distilled spirit in Eastern Europe was distilled from mead (honey wine) or beer and was called perevara. Vodka (from the Russian word voda, meaning water) was originally used to describe grain distillates that were used for medicinal purposes. As distilling techniques improved Vodka (Wodka in Polish) gradually came to be the accepted term for beverage spirit, regardless of its origin.

Source: Tastings.com

Vodka Regions

Eastern Europe is the homeland of Vodka production. Every country produces Vodka, and most also have local flavored specialties.

Russia, Ukraine and Belarus produce the full range of Vodka types, and are generally acknowledged to be the leaders in Vodka production. Only the better brands, all of which are distilled from rye and wheat, are exported to the West.

Poland produces and exports both grain- and potato-based Vodkas. Most of the high- quality brands are produced in pot stills.

Finland, along with the Baltic States of Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania, produce primarily grain-based Vodkas, mostly from wheat.

Sweden has, in recent decades, developed a substantial export market for its straight and flavored wheat-based Vodkas.

Western Europe has local brands of Vodka wherever there are distilleries. The base for these Vodkas can vary from grains in northern countries such as the United Kingdom, Holland, and Germany, to grapes and other fruits in the winemaking regions of France and Italy.

The United States and Canada produce nonflavored Vodkas, both from various grains (including corn) and from molasses. American Vodkas are, by law, neutral spirits, so the distinction between brands is more a matter of price and perception than taste.

The Caribbean produces a surprising amount of Vodka, all of it from molasses. Most of it is exported for blending and bottling in other countries.

Australia produces molasses-based Vodkas, but few are exported.

Asia has a smattering of local Vodkas, with the best coming from Japan.

Source: Tastings.com

Classification and Types of Vodka

CLASSIFICATION There are no uniform classifications of Vodka. In Poland, Vodkas are graded according to their degree of purity: standard (zwykly), premium (wyborowy) and deluxe (luksusowy). In Russia Vodka that is labeled osobaya (special) usually is a superior-quality product that can be exported, while krepkaya (strong) denotes an overproof Vodka of at least 56% ABV.
In the United States, domestic Vodkas are defined by U.S. government regulation as "neutral spirits, so distilled, or so treated after distillation with charcoal or other materials, as to be without distinctive character, aroma, taste or color." Because American Vodka is, by law, neutral in taste, there are only very subtle distinctions between brands. Many drinkers feel that the only real way of differentiating between them is by alcohol content and price.

TYPES

Since Vodka tends to be a neutral spirit, it lends itself to blending with flavors and fortifying other beverages. In the 19th century, high-proof "Russian spirit" was held in high esteem by Sherry producers in Spain, who imported it to fortify their wines.

Neutral spirits are still used to fortify Port, Sherry, and other types of fortified wines, although the source of alcohol for such purposes these days tends to be the vast "wine lake" that has been created by European Union agricultural practices.

Flavored Vodkas have been produced from the start, originally to mask the flavor of the first primitive Vodkas, but later as a mark of the distiller's skill. The Russians and Poles in particular still market dozens of flavors. Some of the better known types are:

1. Kubanskaya - Vodka flavored with an infusion of dried lemon and orange peels.
2. Limonnaya - Lemon-flavored Vodka, usually with a touch of sugar added.
3. Okhotnichya -"Hunter's" Vodka is flavored with a mix of ginger, cloves, lemon peel, coffee, anise and other herbs and spices. It is then blended with sugar and a touch of a wine similar to white port. A most unusual Vodka.
4. Pertsovka -Pepper-flavored Vodka, made with both black peppercorns and red chili peppers.
5. Starka - "Old" Vodka, a holdover from the early centuries of Vodka production, which can be infused with everything from fruit tree leaves to brandy, Port, Malaga wine, and dried fruit. Some brands are aged in oak casks.
6. Zubrovka - Zubrowka in Polish; Vodka flavored with buffalo (or more properly "bison") grass, an aromatic grass favored by the herds of the rare European bison.

In recent years numerous other flavored Vodkas have been launched on the world market. The most successful of these have been fruit flavors such as currant and orange.

Source: Tastings.com

What is Vodka?

Vodka is the dominant spirit of Eastern Europe. It is made by fermenting and then distilling the simple sugars from a mash of pale grain or vegetal matter. Vodka is produced from grain, potatoes, molasses, beets, and a variety of other plants. Rye and wheat are the classic grains for Vodka, with most of the best Russian Vodkas being made from wheat while in Poland they are mostly made from a rye mash. Swedish and Baltic distillers are partial to wheat mashes. Potatoes are looked down on by Russian distillers, but are held in high esteem by some of their Polish counterparts. Molasses, a sticky, sweet residue from sugar production, is widely used for inexpensive, mass-produced brands of Vodka. American distillers use the full range of base ingredients.
Distillation of VodkaThe choice of pot or column still has a fundamental effect on the final character of Vodka. All Vodka comes out of the still as a clear, colorless spirit, but Vodka from a pot still (the same sort used for Cognac and Scotch whisky) will contain some of the delicate aromatics, congeners, and flavor elements of the crop from which it was produced. Pot stills are relatively "inefficient," and the resulting spirit from the first distillation is usually redistilled (rectified) to increase the proof of the spirit. Vodka from a more "efficient" column still is usually a neutral, characterless spirit.
Except for a few minor styles, Vodka is not put in wooden casks or aged for an extensive period of time. It can, however, be flavored or colored with a wide variety of fruits, herbs, and spices.

Source: Tastings.com

Famous Vodka Quotes

1. Vodka shall be taxed at a rate of two kopecks per bucketful. - 18th-century Czarist government excise tax regulation.
2. “In Soviet Russia, Vodka drinks YOU!!” ~ Russian Reversal on Vodka
3. “Mmm, I like this water! Is this Crystal Geyser?”~ Donald Trump on vodka, shortly before puking everywhere and passing out.
   
4. “Vodka is the opiate of the people.”~ Karl Marx on communism
   
5. “It was not without the help of vodka that Ape became Man.”~ Friedrich Engels on vodka
   
6. “Vodka is God's gift to Mankind!”~ Albert Einstein on vodka
   
7. “Mankind is God's gift to Vodka!”~ Albert Einstein on intoxication
   
8. “The relationship between a Russian and a bottle of vodka is almost mystical.”~ Sex and the City
9. “Ouch, my liver!”~ This Guy on vodka
   
10. “Don't vote for Vodka, vote for George Bush!”~ U.S.A on fixed erections
    
11. “I thought cirrhosis was a cloud formation, until I discovered Smirnoff!”~ Wide-spread advertising campaign
    
12. “I'm not as think as you drunk I am!”~ Anonymous on copious amounts.
    
13. “QWACK!, QWACK!”~ Cobby on vodka
    
14. “Oscar! Have you been drinking?”~ George W. Bush on Oscar's bad habit
    
15. “I don't know! I'm too drunk to remember!”~ Oscar Wilde on 5 pints of vodka
    
16. “Pussy.”~ Absinthe on Vodka
    
17. “How do the Russians do it?”~ Murree on Vodka
    
18. “In vodka we trust.”~ Enzo Dirlik on Vodka
    
19. “If there was no vodka, there would be no beautiful women”~ Russian Man on Russian Women
    
20. “Ah, Vodka. Communism in every sip.”~ Communist on Vodka
    
21. “But officer, I was too drunk to walk, I HAD to drive.”~ You on Vodka

What is the Origin of VODKA? Part # 4

Vodka marches across Europe

The spread of awareness of vodka continued throughout the 19th century, helped by the presence in many parts of Europe of Russian soldiers involved in the Napoleonic Wars. Increasing popularity led to escalating demand and to meet this demand, lower grade products were produced based largely on distilled potato mash. Earlier attempts to control production by reducing the number of distilleries from 5,000 to 2,050 between the years 1860 and 1890 having failed, a law was enacted in 1894 to make the production and distribution of vodka in Russia a state monopoly. This was both for fiscal reasons and to control the epidemic of drunkenness which the availability of the cheap, mass-produced 'vodkas' imported and home-produced, had brought about. It is only at the end of the 19th century, with all state distilleries adopting a standard production technique and hence a guarantee of quality, that the name vodka was officially and formally recognized. After the Russian Revolution, the Bolsheviks confiscated all private distilleries in Moscow. As a result, a number of Russian vodka-makers emigrated, taking their skills and recipes with them. One such exile revived his brand in Paris, using the French version of his family name - Smirnoff. Thence, having met a Russian émigré from the USA, they set up the first vodka distillery there in 1934. This was subsequently sold to a US drinks company. From this small start, vodka began in the 1940s to achieve its wide popularity in the Western World.

What is the Origin of VODKA? Part # 3

From acorns to melon
In 1716, owning distilleries became the exclusive right of the nobility, who were granted further special rights in 1751. In the following 50 or so years there was a proliferation of types of aromatised vodka, but no attempt was made to standardise the basic product. Types produced included: absinthe, acorn, anisette, birch, calamus root, calendula, cherry, chicory, dill, ginger hazelnut, horseradish, juniper, lemon, mastic, mint, mountain ash, oak, pepper, peppermint, raspberry, sage, sorrel, wort and water melon! A typical production process was to distil alcohol twice, dilute it with milk and distil it again, adding water to bring it to the required strength and then flavouring it, prior to a fourth and final distillation. It was not a cheap product and it still had not attained really large-scale production. It did not seek to compete commercially with the major producers in Lithuania, Poland and Prussia. In the 18th century a professor in St. Petersburg discovered a method of purifying alcohol using charcoal filtration. Felt and river sand had already been used for some time in Russia for filtration.

What is the Origin of VODKA? Part # 2

Medicine and Gunpowder

During the Middle Ages, distilled liquor was used mainly for medicinal purposes, as well as being an ingredient in the production of gunpowder. In the 14th century a British Ambassador to Moscow first described vodka as the Russian national drink and in the mid-16th century it was established as the national drink in Poland and Finland. We learn from the Novgorod Chronicles of 1533 that in Russia also, vodka was used frequently as a medicine (zhiznennia voda meaning 'water of life'). In these ancient times Russia produced several kinds of 'vodka' or 'hot wine' as it was then called. There was 'plain wine' (standard), 'good wine' (improved) and 'boyar wine' (high quality). In addition stronger types existed, distilled two ('double wine') or more times. Since early production methods were crude, vodka often contained impurities, so to mask these the distillers flavoured their spirits with fruit, herbs or spices. The mid - 15th century saw the first appearance of pot distillation in Russia. Prior to that, seasoning, ageing and freezing were all used to remove impurities, as was precipitiation using it in glass ('karluk') from the air bladders of sturgeons. Distillation became the first step in producing vodka, with the product being improved by precipitation using isinglass, milk or egg white. Around this time (1450) vodka started to be produced in large quantities and the first recorded exports of Russian vodka were to Sweden in 1505. Polish 'woda' exports started a century later, from major production centres in Posnan and Krakow.

What is the Origin of VODKA? Part #1

Vodka is a drink, which originated in Eastern Europe, the name stemming from the Russian word 'voda' meaning water or as the Poles would say 'woda'. The first documented production of vodka in Russia was at the end of the 9th century, but the first known distillery at, Khylnovsk, was about two hundred years later as reported in the Vyatka Chronicle of 1174. Poland lays claim to having distilled vodka even earlier in the 8th century, but as this was a distillation of wine it might be more appropriate to consider it a crude brandy. The first identifiable Polish vodkas appeared in the 11th century when they were called 'gorzalka', originally used as medicines.