Spirits Flashcards
State the ingredients allowed in the Bavarian Purity Law of 1516
Beer Ingredients:
- Barley malt
- Yeast
- Water
- Hops
Name the 2 main categories of beer
Lagers: Pilsner, Bock
- bottom fermenting yeast
- cool, slow fermentation
- typically lighter in color, body, flavor and alcohol
Ales: Pale Ale, Stouts (Guiness)
- top fermenting yeasts
- warm, fast fermentation
- typically fuller in color, body flavor and alcohol
Steps of Beer Production
- Harvest barley
- Germination - leave barley in warm/humid environment allowing the grains to sprout
- Kiln - to stop germination and possible toast the malt
- Grind into powder
- Steep - in warm water to extract maltose sugar creating wort (
- Boil - add hops and boil the wort, activating hops antibacterial properties and stabilizing the beer
(Hops - flour) - Yeast - add yeast
- Alcoholic fermentation
- Filter, pasteurize, bottle
Define wort and explain the role it plays in beer making
Wort is the sweet, malty liquid that begins by converting the starches of malted grains into sugar
Cognac (Brandy)
Brandy from the Cognac region in Southwest France
Brandy distilled from grapes: Ugni Blanc & Colombard
Distillation:
- 2 distillations in Copper Charentais Pot Still
First distillation - only 28-32%
Cognac Producers: Hennessy Rémy Martin Courvoisier Hine Delamain Martell
Cognac aging:
- 3 Star/VS/de Luxe: 2 years minimum
- Supérieur: 3 years minimum
- 5 Star/VSOP/Ríserve: 4 years minimum
- VVSOP/Grande Ríserve: 5 years minimum
- Napoléon/XO/Royal/Vieille Ríserve: 6 years minimum—> NOW 10 years minimum aging since 2018
Cognac Zones:
- Borderies
- Grande Champagne
- Petite Champagne
- Fins Bois
- Bons Bois and Bois Ordinaires
Armagnac (Brandy)
Brandy from France - made from Ugni Blanc grapes
Main Grape: Ugni Blanc grape
Other Grapes: Baco Blanc, Folle Blanche, Colombard
Distillation: 2 types
- 1 distillation: Copper Continuous Still
- 2 distillations: Copper Pot Still
Producers: Château de Laubade Darroze Château du Tariquet Château de Briat Jean Danflou (négociant)
Armagnac Zones:
- Bas Armagnac
- Ténerèze
- Haut Armagnac
- Blanche Armagnac AOC
Differences from Cognac: Climate, Soil, Cooperage, Coloring
Armagnac aging:
Calvados (Brandy)
Brandy from Normandy, France - Apple cider distilled into brandy
made from distilled apple cider (50-60 varieties of apples used)
Best appellation: Pays d’Auge
Zones:
Calvados Producers: Boulard Adrian Camut Domaine DuPont Lemorton Busnel
Calvados Zones:
- Calvados AOC
- Calvados Pays d’Auge AOC
- Calvados Domfrontais AOC
Calvados aging: Fine/Trois Pommes/VS: minimum 2 years Vieux/Riserve: minimum 3 years VO/VSOP/Vieille Reserve: minimum 4 years Goes d’Age/XO/Tres Vieux: minimum 6 years
Bourbon (Whisky)
- made from at least 51% corn (most are made from around 70% corn)
Pot stilled and aged in charred white American oak
Peat
Fossil-fuel like soil made up of decaying plants and animals compressed in wet, bog land areas.
It burns incredibly well and as such is used to dry grains. That’s why peat is used in some whiskies alongside a smokiness from the burning process. Since it comes from the ground and is very soil like, it imparts earthy, dew-covered grassy notes
Peat is thousands of years worth of decaying vegetation, animals and moss which have evolved into layers
Wine based brown spirits
Cognac - Ugni Blanc and Colombard
Armagnac - Ugni Blanc grape
Calvados - Apple cider
Wine based white spirits
Eaux-de-Vie
Grappa
Marc
Beer based white spirits
Gin
Vodka
Lighter Rums
Lighter Tequilas
Beer based brown spirits
Bourbon Tennessee Canadian Scotch - distilled beer Irish
Scotch (Whisky)
Scotch is a type of whisky
Produced in Scotland
Made from Barley steeped in water and then toasted
Scotch Regions
- Islay
- Highland - Oban
- Speyside - Macallan
- Campbeltown
- Lowland
Type of Scotch:
- Malt Whisky - Macallan
- Blended Scotch Whisky - Johnny Walker Red, Black, Green, Gold, Blue Label
Macallan is a malt whisky from Speyside, Scotland
Junmai
Pure rice wine, no adding of distilled alcohol to the rice
Honjozo
A small amount of distilled alcohol is added to the sake rice
Daiginjo
At least 50% of rice polished away
Ginjo
At least 40% of rice polished away
Shu
At least 30% of rice polished away
Nigori
Milky, unfiltered “cloudy” usually sweet sake
Explain what hops are and their use in beer making
Hop is flour and The bitterness helps balance the sweetness of malt and help stabilize the beer
Hops are the green cone-shaped flowers. The are the source of bitternes, aroma and flavor in beer.
Sake
A fermented rice beverage
Usually 6-20% alcohol
Kura
Beer brewery in Japan
Koji
Is a fungus that produces enzymes necessary for breaking down rice starch into fermentable glucose in sake production
Sake quality levels
Shu - 30% of rice polished away Ginjo - 40% of rice polished away Daiginjo - 50% of rice polished away Junmai - pure rice wine Honjozo - a small amount of alcohol is added
Moscow Mule
Vodka 2oz
Lime juice .5oz
Ginger Beer 4oz