Rum, Tequilla, Mezcal Flashcards
What is the difference between rum, rhum agricole, and cachaça?
Classic rum is distilled from fermented sugarcane products, usually molasses, a syrupy byproduct of refining cane or beet sugar. In the U.S. and many other countries, rum must derive from cane, not beet.
Rhum agricole differs from rum in that it’s distilled directly from pressed cane sugar instead of fermented juice or cane byproducts like molasses, and it usually comes from French-speaking Caribbean countries. Agricole” means “agricultural” in French. Really taste the terroir, generally a grassy, slightly funky profile.
Cachaça is like rhum agricole, in that it can only be distilled from sugarcane juice; but, like rum, that juice must be fermented. Alcohol levels have to register between 38 and 48 percent by volume, as opposed to rum’s usually higher content.
Define Rum
A distilled spirit produced from fermented sugarcane or molasses (a byproduct of processing sugarcane into sugar.
What are the four major styles of rum?
Light rum
Dark rum
Demerara rum
Rhum agricole
*spiced rum a style?? (Rum flavored with spice or fruit)
How is most light rum distilled and filtered?
by the continuous method and filtered with charcoal after a short period of cask aging to remove any color it is best suited for mixing, as it has little character.
**Some light styles, such as Mount Gay from Barbados, are golden in color and have gained complexity from time in cask.
What is Demerara rum?
a light rum style unique to Guyana, where the spirit is distilled from molasses and sometimes aged for over a decade prior to release.
What is Cachaça?
Brazilian spirit that provides the base for the caipirinha cocktail, is produced from fermented sugarcane and is essentially light rum.
Describe dark rum
How is it distilled?
Dark rum is fuller in body, obviously darker in color, and dominated by more complex caramel notes, rather than the simple suggestion of sweetness in most light rums.
—Quality dark rums, such as those produced in Jamaica, may be distilled twice in pot stills and aged for a number of years prior to release; this darkens the spirit but the final color is almost always achieved by adding caramel.
What is Rhum agricole?
How is it distilled?
French style, produced mainly on Martinique
—Rhum agricole may only be produced from sugarcane juice; column distillation is mandated in Martinique.
What is the southernmost AOC in France?
Martinique AOC can claim to be the southernmost Appellation d’Origine Contrôlée in France, despite its location in the sunny Caribbean.
-produces Rhum agricole
Where is Tequilla primarily produced?
Where else may it be produced? (4)
Western state of Jalisco.
—The states of Guanajuato “guan-NA-HA-toe”
Tamaulipas “TAM-o-LEE-pas”
Nayarit “na-ja-REET”
Michoacán “MEECH-o-ah-CAN”
What ingredient is tequila produced from?
What is the best Tequila produced with?
What is mixto?
What does the law mandate in terms of minimums?
- fermented juice of the cooked piña (pineapple); the heart of the blue agave plant.
- the best Tequila is actually produced with 100% blue agave juice;
Mixto- any tequilla not 100% agave; most tequila is mixta.
law mandating a minimum 51% blue agave—other sugars make up the remainder of the ferment.
How is tequila distilled?
occurs in a traditional pot still (twice) or by the continuous method.
Tequila DO requirements:
Alcohol content?
Label Designations?
Alcohol content: 35-55%
—Blanco/Silver Tequila
—Oro/Gold Tequila: Spirit enhanced by “mellowing” with caramel coloring or oak extracts.
—Reposado (Aged) Tequila: Aged for a minimum of 2 months in oak or encino oak containers.
—Añejo (Extra-aged) Tequila: Aged for a minimum of 1 year in oak or encino oak barrels. Maximum barrel size is 600 liters.
—Extra Añejo Est. 2006 (Ultra-aged) Tequila: Aged for a minimum of 3 years in oak or encino oak barrels. Maximum barrel size is 600 liters.
—100% Agave: Tequila that does not include sugars from any source other than blue agave.
Why would some prefer younger tequila over longer aged tequila?
Some purists prefer younger tequila, where the oak does not mask the intrinsically salty, grassy character of the spirit.
What is the difference between Tequila and Mezcal?
How Tequila is different from Mezcal 3 P’s:
Plant
Place
Production
Tequila is technically a mezcal. Tequilla is made from a single type of plant, blue agave (agave tequilana)—can can only be prduced in the state of Jalisco and in small parts of four other states.
Mezcal piñas are baked slowly in underground pits, rather than steamed. Mezcal agave takes on the aromas and flavors imparted by the burning wood and the earth cover. Tequila agave have no such influences.
