Beverage management - alcohol Flashcards
Alcohol production
- raw materials
- fermentation
- distilling
Alcohol production - How do you create alcohol?
By fermenting raw materials into sugars
- raw sugar containing materials
- fruits / sugarcane / sugar beet - Raw starch containing materials
- barley, rye, corn, wheat, rice
Alcohol production - How does it work?
- Starch is steeped and heated until it starts growing. Enzymes will transform the starch into sugar, which is needed for the alcohol
- After that the yeast process will start; the yeast eats up the sugar and Alcohol and CO2 are created
- More alcohol means less sugar
- At a certain point the alcohol levels become toxic for the yeast
- To create higher ABV, you have to separate alcohol from water > distilling
Alcohol production - two ways to distill
- Column still
2. Pot still
Column still
- Wash is continuously injected into the column with steam constantly rising up to meet it
- Steam is set at the perfect temperature to strip the alcohol from the wash and leave undesired components behind
- Column distilling requires no cleaning in between and the structure of the columns allows for efficient, repeated distilling
- Column distilling results in more neutral, higher ABV spirits than pot distilling
Pot still
- Primary fermented liquid (wash) is heated up
- Ethanol evaporates before water, travelling in a cooling tube and back into another vessel to condense
- Compounds called congeners (tannins, methanol etc.) also evaporate during distilling and can impact the flavour
Art of distilling is making sure to get the right amount of alcohol and any desirable congeners/flavours in the final product
Different sorts of distillations
- Malt wine
- Barley, corn or rye
- Old jenever & whisky - Grain Alcohol
- Unmalted grain
- Jenever, dry gin & whisky - Wine alcohol
- Fermented grape juice
- Cognac & brandy - Beetsugar
- Beet sugar
- Liquors & jenever - Cane sugar
- Cane sugar
- Rum
Difference Old and Young Jenever and Korenwijn
Old Jenever = made from at least 15% malt wine, but not more than 20 grams of sugar per liter
Young Jenever = can contain no more than 15% malt wine, and 10 grams of sugar per liter
Korenwijn = very old style , contains between 51% and 70% malt wine, and up to 20 grams of sugar per liter
Gin
A light-bodied, liquor made of a mash of cereal gran, usually corn, rye, barley and wheat.
The main flavour an aroma notes are contributed by juniper berries
Vodka
Clear liquid consisting mostly of water and ethanol purified by distillation - often multiple distillations - from a fermented substance, such as grain (usually rye or wheat), potatoes or sugar beet molasses
- alcohol percentage 40-50%
Types of whisky
Scotch Whisky - malted barley over peat fire
Irish Whiskey - malted barley without peat fire
Canadian Whisky - mostly rye
American Whiskey - barley, maize and rye
Whisky production process
- Malting (the process which converts barley to malt)
- Mashing (produces wort (sugar solution) from crushed malt)
- Fermentation (produces wash (weak, crude, impure spirit) upon the introduction of yeast in Wort)
- Distillation (strengthens and purifies the spirit contained in the wash
- Maturation ( turning raw spirit into whiskey
- Botteling
Difference between Rye whisky and Bourbon
Rye whisky
- peppery flavour
- bitter quality
- contains at least 51% rye
Bourbon
- contains at least 51% corn
- heavier bodied than rye
noticeably sweeter
Rum
Rum is made from sugarcane and by products (such as molasses & sugarcane juice), by a process of fermentation and distillation
Grades of rum
The grades and variations used to describe rum depend on the location that the rum was produced
- light
- gold
- spiced
- dark
- flavored
- overproof
- premium
Cognac
Name is protected under French law, main requirements
- must be made from specific grape varieties
- must be twice distilled in copper pot stills
- must be aged in oak barrels for at least two years
Qualifications
VS - Very Special (at least two years old or three star)
VSOP - Very Superior Old Pale (includes “old” or “reserve”)
XO - Extra Old (at least six years old, includes “Napoleon” or “Old Reserve”
Quality indicators for Cognac and Armagnac
E = Especial S = Superior F = Fine P = Pale V = Very X = Extra O = Old C = Cognac
Fruit spirits (eau de vie)
Calvados = apple Pommeau = apple, calvados Framboise = raspberries Kirsch = cherries Mirabelle = plums Poire William = fermented pear Slivovitz = fermented plums Quetsch = red plums
Tequila
- all tequila is mezcal
- Tequila Is legally required to be only 51% blue agave
Blanco, Silver or white tequila
A clear spirit that can be either 100% agave or mix. “Aged” no more than 60 days in stainless steel tanks
Joven or gold tequila
Unaged tequilas that are typically mixes and have been coloured and flavoured with caramel, oak extract, glycerine, syrup or other additives
Reposado tequila
aged in wood casks for a minimum of 2 months and many are aged from 3-9 months
añejo tequila
“Old” tequila. These tequilas are aged for a minimum of 1 year to produce a dark, very robust spirit. some of the best añejos spend between 18 months and 4 years in the barrel
extra-añejo tequila
aged over 4 years in barrels
Liquors & cordials
sweetened extract flavoured spirits. Infusion, percolation, distillation
- citrus = cointreau, Grand Marnier
- chocolate = crème de cacao
- coffee = Kahlua
- cream = baileys
- herb, fruit, nut = Malibu
- whisky based = Drambuie
Beer - hops
hops is a flowering vine that grows in mountains. A hop can be used for bettering, as an aromatic, or as a flavouring
Beer - malt
- Pale malt = the most commonly used form, being ideal for all types of beer
- Amber (and brown malts) = made by heating the barley to higher temperatures giving a copper-red color to any beer used in
- chocolate malt = is kilned longer for an even darker color and more complex flavour
- Black malt = darker still with a powerfully bitter flavour
bottom fermented
- contains more Co2
- gold yellow color
- fermentation between 4-10 weeks
- temperature of yeasting between 7-12 degrees
- yeasting process takes place in the bottom of the tank
top fermented
- 1st fermentation is between 3-5 days.
- 2nd fermentation is between 3-4 weeks
- temperature of yeasting 15-20 degrees
- maturation is 1-2 months
- yeasting process takes place on top of the tank
Lager (beer)
bright, clear-bodied beer. a bottom fermented brew
Ale (beer)
Aromatic malt brew usually fuller-bodied, darker, and more bitter than lager. A ‘top fermented’ brew
Stout (beer)
a very dark beer, sometimes sweetish and quite strong with a pronounced hops taste
Porter (beer)
a type of ale with a rich, heavy foam. Sweeter than ale ale. Not quite as strong as stout.
Pilsner (beer)
these are bright, layered beers
Bock beer
a strong style of lager beer originally seasonal
malt liquor
a beer with considerable variation from light to dark color, and from a strong, hoppy flavour too little. Higher alcoholic content than most other beers
sweet beer
a combination of fruit juice and beer. Sweeter drink and higher alcoholic content than lagers
Sake
a type of beer that is a re fermented rice brew of higher alcohol content
light beer
lagers, lower in alcohol and calories, mild in taste
low-alcohol beer
similar to light beer, but contains even less alcohol and fewer calories
