Spirits Flashcards
Definition of Spirit
A distillate of a fermented liquor (wash)
2 types of distillation
- Pot Still
- Continuous Still
Explain Pot Still
- fermented liquor is put into a closed vessel and heated
- alcohol boils at 78C = vapors pass along a closed pipe through cold water condensing into a liquid (the spirit)
- The Spirit contains high proportion of alcohol, gasses, flavouring oils and little water
Continuous Still
Produces a purer spirit containing fewer impurities
2 tall columns:
- Analyser = where the Wash is vaporised by superheated steam
- Rectifier = where the vapors are condensed into spirit
GIN
white spirit produced by distilling a wash from fermented grain, malted barley, maize or rye
flavoured either by passing vapours through the flavourings or by steeping them in a spirit and distilling them in a separate run (distillate is then used to flavour the spirit
Types of Gin
- London dry gin = driest
- Plymouth Gin = less crisp, more aromatic (7 botanicals: juniper berries, coriander seeds, le,mon and orange peels, green cardamom, Angelica roots, Orris root)
- Sloe Gin = sweetened flavoured spirit (sloes = berries)
- Old Tom Gin = softer than LDG
- Dutch Gin / Genever Gin =
oude = from malted barley, wheat, corn and rye
Jonge = best drank neat
Vodka
- distilled in a continuous still
- colourless neutral spirit at 96%
- re-distilled or filtered through charcoal filters to purify the flavour
- addition of distilled water to bring down the strength
- made from Rye, Molasses, a mixture of these or from other grains
Whisky
made by distilling the fermented wash (wort) which is made from unmalted barley, malted barley, maize, or rye and water
4 types of Scotch Whisky
- Single Malt: from malt / double distilled Pot Still
- Vatted Malt: blend of malts from 1 or more distilleries
- Blended: blend of malt and grain whisky
- Single grain: from 1 distillery / from unmalted barley, wheat or corn / distilled in a Continuous Still
5 Scotch producing regions
- HIGHLANDS: 80% total production / 3 subregions: Perthshire / Speyside / Northern Highlands / light and refined, some slightly floral, some smoky, touch spice, full flavoured
- ISLANDS: considered a subregion of Highlands / Arran, Lewis, Mule, Jura, Orkney, Skye, Harris
Stronger peat flavour, most pungent whisky, salty seaweed flavour - CAMPBELTOWN: Considered the centre of whisky production in 1880’s / now just a small subregion of Highlands / light peatiness and saltiness from maturation in proximity to the ocean
- LOWLANDS: lighter, softer than other malt whiskies / slight sweetisdh taste
- ISLAY: most important Scottish Island for whisky / strong peaty and smoky flavour
Malt Whisky production
- Barley is malted by steeping it in water then spread out on a concrete floor in a warm atmosphere
- Grains germinate = converts starches into sugar
- Germination stopped by heating grains over a peat fire = smokiness from peat fire
- Malt is cracked and added to boiling water in a mash tun = sugar and flavours are extracted
- Liquid (wort) is drawn off and fermented with addition of yeast
- Wash is then twice distilled in a Pot Still
Matured for min 3 years in cask / old sherry,barboun casks (also Madeira, port, Cognac, Bordeaux casks)
Irish Whiskey
from a Wash of malted and unmalted barley and some grains
germination is stopped by heating in a closed kiln rather than over a peat fire
usually distilled 3 times (if made by the Pot Still method)
usually not sold until it’s 7 years old
American Rye
min 51% Rye wash / continuous still / aged min 2 years (usually 4) in new charred oak casks / majority Produced in Maryland and Pennsylvania
Canadian Rye
All whiskey is calle Rye Whiskey in Canada / no legal requirements to contain it though
min 3 years aging
Bourbon Whiskey
takes name Bourbon county, Kentucky (95% of prod from kentucky)
min 51% Maize (corn) spirit + Rye, wheat or malted barley
continuous still fermentation
min 2 years maturation in new charred oak casks
Corn Whiskey
USA / made from 80% maize mash
Tennesse Whiskey
sour mash whiskey / made from 51% corn / matured in new charred oak casks / filtered through maple charcoal (only difference from Bourbon)
RUM
spirit distilled from fermented Molasses (syrup byproduct of the sugar industry) or sugar cane
min 3 years aging / uncharred or charred oak casks
- White / Silver = continuous still / 1 year maturation in glass or steel / traditionally in Oak + charcoal filtration to remove colour
- Demerara = From Guyana / wood maturation / caramel added for colouring or filtered to make it lighter
- Dark / Black = fermentation started with Dunder (the lees from the previous year fermentation) / Jamaican
- Golden / Spiced = coloured from oak / spiced from spices or fruit
Brandy
distillation of fermented juice of fresh grapes without the addition of any other spirit
EU law = cannot be distilled above 94.8%
Cognac
- From delimited region of Cognac
- Double distilled / Pot Still
- 8 varieties but 90% must be from: St Emilion (Ugni Blanc), Folle Blanche (Picpul), Colombard
Sub-regions of Cognac
- Grand Champagne *
- Petite Champagne *
- Bordories *
- Fins Bois
- Bons Bois
- Bois Ordinaire / Bois a Terroir
- best = highest chalk content in the soils
Cognac Age Indications
3* or VS = min 2 years (3 in UK)
VSOP = min 4 years
Napoleon = min 6 years
XO = min 10 years
XXO = min 14 years
Armagnac
from Armagnac delimited region / Gers department / south west france
3 subregions:
- Haut-Armagnac
- Bas-Armagnac
- Tenareze
Continuous Still (less plates than normal = less pure than Vodka,Gin)
Armagnac Age Indications
3* = 1-3 years
VSOP = 4-9 years
Napoleon = 6-9 years
XO = min 10 years
Calvados
Fruit spirit (Eaux de vie de Fruit) = Distilled fermented apple juice (cidre) and pear juice (Perry)
Produced in the department of Calvados (Northern France)
3 delimited areas:
- Calvados AOC (Continuous still)
- Calvados Pays d’Auge AOC (double pot still / min 2 years oak age / 40-45% abv)
- Calvados Domfrontais (continuos still / min 30% pears / min 3 years oak age)
Calvados age indications
3* = 2 years
Vieux and Reserve =. 3 years
VO / Vielle Reserve = 4 years
XO / Hors d’Age / Napoleon = 6 years
Age Inconnu = 6 years, may be in excess of 20 years
Vintage Calvados in exceptional years
Mezcal
Mexico / from over 10 varieties of Agave (Maguey)
Hearts of the maguey is baked into rock pits under very hot stones and covered with earth for 2/3 days.
Ground to mash, added to water, fermented slowly in wooden vats , distilled twice
Bottled and aged for 6 months, 1 or 3 years
Tequila
produced only from Agave tequilana. (maguey azul, blue maguey)
Agave matures over 6-8 years / chopped up and steamed / shredded and pressed for it’s juice / sugar and yeast added = Tequila Mixto / no sugar added = 100% Tequila / Fermentation in stainless steel vats / double distilled in pot still to 52-53% abv / Filtered through charcoal / 8 months to 7 years oak aging ( the more it ages, the more golden colour it gets)
Classification of Tequila
- Blanco, Joven, Plata (Silver Tequila) = clear, unaged, but may age for 60 days
- Joven Abocado, Oro (Golden Tequila) = unaged Tequila Mixto + colorant (caramel)
- Reposado = aged for 60 days to 1 year
- Anejo, Extra aged = aged in wood barrels no larger than 600L for minn 1 year
- Extra Anejo, Ultra aged = min 3 years aging
Curado = flavoured Tequila
Sake’
Brewed from fermented Rice / 15-18% abv
Kura = japanese brewery
Purity of the rice = higher quality
Milled rice + water + Koji + yeats = fermentation
Koji = agent that breaks down the starches in the rice into sugar
Rice is washed to get moisture inside, steamed and spread out on tables then dusted with aspergillus oryzae mould powder.
Mould will grow on rice grains which are turned periodically in the next 4 days. More rice is added and fermentation takes place over 2-4 weeks in large tanks.
Shikomi = fermentation
Additional alcohol added at the end of the fermentation
Whole is pressed through sack cloth, filtered and pasturised
Finished Sake is matured for 9-12 months
2 quality levels for Sake
Futsuushi = non-premium, ordinary Sake’
Tokutei meishoshu = special designation Sake’
Types of Premium Sake’ (Tokutei meishoshu)
- Junmai-shu = pure rice Sake’
(rice + water + koji)
seimaibuai (degree of polishing of the rice) = 70% of original size - Honjozo-shu = small amount of brewer’s alcohol added
seimaibuai = 70% - Ginjo-shu = fermented for a longer period at lower temperature, more complex flavour / seimaibuai = 60%
can be made Junmai Ginjo or Honjozo Ginjo (with added alcohol) - Daiginjo-shu = highest quality / seimaibuai = 50% / can be made Junmai or Honjozo (added alcohol)
Sake’ label terms
Genshu = undiluted sake / may reach 22% abv
Kimoto = produced using wild yeasts / hearty flavour
Koshu = aged Sake’
Namazake = unpasturised Sake’ / to be stored chilled to prevent deterioration
Nigorizake’ = unfiltered Sake’ / cloudy
Shizzuku = liquor has been extracted by free running rather than pressing through sack cloth
Taruzake = matured in cypress casks
