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25 Cards in this Set
- Front
- Back
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Who 'invented' gin? |
Arnold of Villanova |
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What were the 2 towns largely involved in the Genever trade in the 1600's?
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Rotterdam- a port city and center of international commerce and spice trade. |
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What was a driving factor in the London gin craze of the early 1700's? |
The English government was subsidizing distillation from grain as a measure to reduce imports of French brandy. It got out of hand.
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Describe moutwijn.
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A base for blending genever.
A pot-stilled product of rye, barley malt, and often corn or wheat. Aromatized with juniper berries and sometimes other spices. |
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Describe corenwijn.
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Oldest style of Genever. |
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What is oude? |
"Old" genever
Uses less moutwijn and more column spirit in the blend. Light bodied, heavily botanical, often aged and sweetened. |
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What is jonge?
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"Young" genever |
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Describe New Western gin.
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Gins made with less juniper, and a possible range of non-traditional botanicals (cucumber, lavender, grape blossoms).
Basically defined by Ryan Magarian: gins that, while embracing juniper, focus as much or more on their complement of other botanicals. |
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Define London Distilled (Dry) Gin
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A type of Distilled Gin.
Must be Distilled to a minimum 70% abv, then redistilled in a traditional (pot) still with botanicals that are all natural plant materials, of which Juniper must be predominant. |
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Where can London Dry gin be made?
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Anywhere as long as it follows strict rules defined by the EU.
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Where are the PDO's in the EU for gin and Genever?
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Plymouth England
Genever/Genievre/Jenever in The Netherlands or Belgium 2 in Germany 1 in Spain 1 in Lituania 5 in Slovakia |
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When did Smirnoff begin? |
1934, just after the end of Prohibition.
Rudolf Kunett, a Ukranian immigrant set up shop in Bethel Connecticut. |
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What was the big push for Vodka into the mass market in the US?
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The alliance with Russia in WWII. It was patriotic. |
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What is Baijiu? |
A Chinese distillate based on grain, sorghum, and rice. They all utilize the Eastern method of converting starch to sugar for fermentation. This produces liquors that are complex, funky and sometimes off-putting. |
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What are the major styles of baijiu? |
Baijius are subdivided into categories based on xiang, or aroma. There are 4 major styles. They are:
jiang xiang (thick sauce aroma)
nong xiang (strong or pungent aroma)
quing xiang (light aroma)
mi xiang (rice aroma) |
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Describe jiang xiang baijiu. |
Sauce Aroma. Based on wheat and sorghum.
Complex and expensive production processes, when properly made can be quite refined and rich, yet undeniably fragrant.
Think soy sauce, pineapple, hints of anchovy.
Specialty of southern Sichuan and northern Ghizhou.
Dominant brand is Kweichow Moutai.
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Describe nong xiang baijiu. |
Strong/pungent aroma .Sharper and less rich than the jiang xiang style. Primarily sorghum based.
Can be the most challenging spirits for foreigners.
"kerosene" "old socks" "baby poop" "fermented underwear"
At their best, these spirits are funky, but clean.
Leading brands include 2 from Sichuan: Wu Liang Ye, and Shui Jing Fang |
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Describe quing xiang baijiu. |
Light aroma. Sorghum based. Northern China.
Similar in aromas as the pungent style, just less of everything-- including cost and labor invested.
Beijing's Ergoutou is the leading brand, being clean and grainy. |
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Describe mi xiang baijiu. |
Rice aroma. Rice based. Southern China.
More closely related to the spirits (sochu/soju) of Southeast Asia, Japan, and Korea. |
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What drives the conversion of starches to sugars in Eastern methods of grain fermentation? |
Aspergillus oryzae. A fungus.
qu mei jun in Chinese
koji in Japanse. |
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Describe the large fermentation starter for the Eastern fermentation method. |
The jiu qu or qu comes in two sizes.
Large qu are made by molding a wheat flour paste into a moist, carry-on sized brick. Sometimes qu for quing xiang (or light aroma) have ground peas mixed in as well.
These bricks are wrapped in straw and allowed to mold and ferment over a couple weeks, becoming rich in fungus, yeast, and enzymes crucial for grain fermentation.
Then, they are stacked in dry, closed rooms where the heat from fermentation dries out the bricks on top of the stacks.
Flip the stacks a few times, and we're left with big crumbly grain fermentation starters.
Large qu are used for jiang, nong, and quing aroma baijiu. (sauce, strong, and light)
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Describe the small fermentation starter for the Eastern fermentation method. |
In Southeastern China, the qu is made by moistening rice and rolling it into small balls around a core of medicinal herbs.
The balls are allowed to mold and ferment, building up fungus, yeast and enzymes to enable grain fermentation. They are then dried to become crumbly. |
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How is baijiu made? |
the short version:
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Describe Akvavit or Aquavit |
Characteristic spirit of Scandinavia. Usually distilled from potatoes, sometimes grain.
Distilled to neutral grain levels, and distilled a 3rd time with aromatics (caraway, anise, dill). Occasionally the aromatics are infused after distillation.
Production is not unlike gin, but require more care in mixing. Some see barrel aging.
Generally very well distilled: clean and refreshing with vibrant caraway. |
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Describe Shochu or Soju |
Unaged or lightly aged. Produced from grain-- mostly rice, with smaller percentages of barley, wheat, buckwheat, and/or sweet potatoes.
In Japan schochu is a craft-made product, sometimes deliberately distilled to low proofs (~20% abv) so the subtleties are not lost.
In Korea there are two kind of soju: "diluted," a cheap industrial product of high proof (~45% abv) "distilled," a lower proof craft product (~35% abv) |
