B
LENDED WHISKY is produced by blending whiskies from different barrels produced at different distilleries. There are 3 kinds of blended whisky. Blended malt scotch whisky: Formerly called vatted malts, these are a blend of single malts from two or more distilleries. Companies such as Compass Box purchase whiskies and blend them to create new products with certain characteristics. Blended grain scotch whisky: A blend of single grains from two or more distilleries. Single grains are usually known for being light and mild, but some distilleries produce exceptional grain whiskies. Blended scotch whisky: What many consumers think of when they hear the word blend, blended scotches comprise 90% of the scotch category in sales. A blended scotch is a mix of both malt whiskies and grain whiskies, sourced from several different distilleries.
BLENDED WHISKY
I
RISH WHISKEYS are legally defined that they must be made and aged in Ireland. The resulting liquid must also be distilled from grains at a strength of no less than 94.8% ABV (189.6 proof) and aged in wooden barrels no larger than 185 gallons for a minimum of three years. One of the primary differences between Irish whiskey and Scotch is the types of grains that are used in the recipe. Both malted and un-malted barley are acommon in Irish whiskey. Corn, wheat and rye can be added to recipes as well.
IRISH WHISKEY
S
INGLE MALT WHISKY is a whisky produced exclusively in pot stills at one distillery from only malted barley and water is called a single malt. The single in this case refers to the distillery, not a grain type or barrel. While single malts are not blended with other whiskies made from various recipes, a bottle does contain a blend of the same Scotch recipe produced in different years and aged for various amount of time. This process is conducted by a master blender to insure a consistent flavour profile over years. The age statement on the bottle must reflect the youngest whisky used in the blend.
SINGLE MALT WHISKY
W
HISKEY LIQUEURS are, simply, any sweetened or flavoured spirit that starts with a whisky (or whiskey) base.
WHISKEY LIQUERS
A
MERICAN WHISKEY’S like all other whiskeys are distillates of a cereal mash. In each type of whiskey the mash bill of cereals is different but the production process is similar. Bourbon must be made from a minimum 51% corn, Rye Whiskey must be made from a minimum 51% rye, Wheat Whiskey must be made from a minimum 51% wheat, Corn Whiskey from a minimum of 80% corn, Tennessee Whiskey must be made from a minimum 51% of one grain at less than 80% abv and distilled in Tennessee. It must go through the Lincoln County Process of filtration through sugar-maple charcoal.
AMERICAN WHISKEY
RYE WHISKEY’
J
APANESE WHISKIES are crafted in the Scottish style. One regularly hears them described as being smooth, but that is doing them an injustice. Light sherry and floral notes, sometimes they have been peated for a smoky, quasi Islay style. The burgeoning whisky Japanese industry has been largely attributed to its two founding fathers: Shinjiro Torii and Masataka Taketsuru. Shinjiro established the Suntory brand, founding the first distillery in Japan in 1923, Yamazaki in the Vale of Yamazaki. Taketsuru founded Yoichi on Hokkaido eleven years later. Today, Japanese whiskies are becoming increasingly popular and in a style of their own.
JAPANESE WHISKEY
G
IN is made from the distillation of white grain spirit, botanicals and juniper berries, which provide its distinctive flavour. Each distiller has their own secret recipe of botanicals so all gins will have a different taste. Enjoying a massive resurgence in popularity in recent years there are now some truly unique gin’s available on the market.
GIN
R
UM is a distilled beverage made from sugarcane by-products such as molasses and sugarcane juice by a process of fermentation and distillation. The distillate, a clear liquid, is then usually aged in oak and other casks. While there are rum producers in places such as Australia, India, Reunion Island, and elsewhere around the world, the majority of rum production occurs in and around the Caribbean and along the Demerara River in South America.
WHITE RUM
GOLDEN RUM
SPICED RUM
DARK RUM
B
RANDY is any distilled spirit made from fruit juice. The fruit is crushed to remove its juice, which is then fermented to make a fruit wine. The wine is then distilled to make brandy. Some brandies are aged in wooden barrels; others are unaged.
BRANDY
C
OGNAC, named after the town of Cognac in France, is a brandy, which is produced in the region surrounding the town. It must be made from at least 90 percent Ugni Blanc, Folle Blanche, or Colombard grapes. The rest of the cognac can consist of ten selected grapes. However, most cognac is made from Ugni Blanc only. It must be distilled twice in copper pot stills and aged at least 2 and 1/2 years in oak barrels in order to be called cognac.
COGNAC
A
RMAGNAC is from Gascony and like Cognac is a grape brandy. The climate here is hotter & the soil is very different, the result is that Armagnac tends to have a fuller flavour than Cognac & is often deeper in colour.
C
ALVADOS is a brandy from a limited and strictly controlled area of Normandy in north-west France, where the temperate maritime climate has long been perfect for fruit orchards. It is made from apples and/or pears and aged in oak barrels for a minimum of two years.
ARMAGNAC & CALVADOS
V
ODKA is typically a colourless liquor, usually distilled from fermented grain but also from other raw materials. The word is a diminutive of the Slavic word “voda” for “water”. Perhaps most popular of the spirits due to its variety of uses, it is often used as the base in cocktails.
VODKA
FLAVOURED VODKA
L
IQUEURS have a rich and varies history originating as elixirs created for medicinal use. Herbs, roots, seeds plants and fruit noted for their beneficial properties and steeped in alcohol to aid ingestion. The word liqueur coming from the Latin word Liquefacere which means “to dissolve.� With the passing of time, liqueurs have become leisurely drinks that can be enjoyed at any time although due to their sweet nature have traditionally been consumed after dinner. Modern liqueurs have been created from almost every flavour known to man and the category continues to grow at a fast pace.
LIQUEURS
C
OCKTAIL LIQUERS Cocktail Liqueurs The official definition of a Cocktail according to the modern Merriam-Webster Dictionary is “an iced drink of wine or distilled liquor mixed with flavouring ingredients.” That’s a broad definition, but reflects the modern practice of referring to any drink with 3 or more parts 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.” Having a resurgence in popularity in recent years there are now an amazing array of flavours available to bar tenders, enabling them to create truly interesting & amazing drinks using everything from the classic Crème de Cassis to Liqueur de Coquelicot de Nemours (Poppy).
COCKTAIL LIQUERS
C
OCKTAIL BITTERS are an alcoholic beverage prepared with herbs and citrus dissolved in alcohol. Bitters were first used as a herbal medicinal treatment; they didn’t start out as something associated with alcohol. Bitters were added to alcoholic beverages to provide depth and improve the taste of alcohol because good-quality spirits were not widely available in the 19th century. People soon realized that these bitters added flavour and complexity and many classic cocktail recipe’s call for bitters.
COCKTAIL BITTERS
COCKTAIL SYRUPS & PUREES
C
ACHACHA (pronounced ka SHA sa) is the most popular distilled alcoholic beverage in Brazil, made from sugarcane juice. The legal definition of Cachaça says “Cachaça is the product of the distillation of the fermented sugarcane juice, with alcohol strength between 38% and 51% by volume. Up to 6 grams per litre of sugar can be added”
CACHACHA
P
ISCO is a spirit generally classified as a brandy because it is made from distilling grape wine. It is mainly produced in Chile and Peru, with Peruvian pisco being given numerous awards as one of the best liquors in the world. In its early days, Pisco was made with a wide variety of grapes, giving it too many different flavors to be exported internationally as the market would not accept the wide variety under the same name. For this reason, the Peruvian and Chilean governments set standards as to what kind of grapes could be used to make a brandy that could be labeled as a pisco. In Chile, there are only two regions allowed to make the brandy, but Peru only restricts the grapes that can be used.
PISCO
T
EQUILA No spirit is steeped in so much history, so many myths and legends, as Tequila. Tequila 100% Agave has a special and unforgettable taste that in many ways differentiates it from other distilled spirits. Production is only allowed in certain areas of Mexico, and as the name says, 100% Agave Tequilas are produced only from the distilled spirit of the Blue Weber Agave, a member of the Lily family, and are reduced to bottling strength using only waters sourced from artinisal wells situated at the distillery. In the case of the larger mass produced brands, demineralised water is used instead. Tequila 100% Agave competes with the best of malt whisky’s and cognacs without a doubt. It is best served at room temperature, and sipped from a traditional caballito or snifter glass, to fully appreciate the aromas.
TEQUILA
MEZCAL
GRAPPA
A
BSINTH is a distilled, highly alcoholic, anise-flavoured spirit derived from herbs including the flowers and leaves of the medicinal plant Axrtemisia absinthium, also called wormwood. Although it is sometimes incorrectly called a liqueur, absinthe is not bottled with added sugar and is therefore classified as a liquor or spirit.
ABSINTH
V
ERMOUTH & APERITIFS are fortified wine aromatized with aromatic herbs and spices. There are three general styles of vermouth, extra dry, bianco/white, and sweet/red. Sweet red vermouth is drunk as an aperitif, a drink served to stimulate the appetite before a meal, often straight up, as well as in mixed drinks like the Manhattan. Dry white vermouth, along with gin, is a key ingredient in the mixing of martinis. Red vermouths are sometimes referred to as Italian vermouths and white vermouths as French vermouths, although not all Italian vermouths are red and not all white vermouths are French, in fact as it enjoys a resurgence inpassow popularity vermouths are being made across the world from California to Australia.
VERMOUTH AND APERITIFS