Category: amaro

  • Malort Book Review

    This review that I wrote first appeared on AlcoholProfessor.com

     

    Boozy Book Review: Malört: The Redemption of a Revered and Reviled Spirit by Josh Noel

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    Jeppson's Malört is a famously disgusting liqueur from Chicago. It’s the drink that your party friends force you to try when you visit them, or sometimes the drink that a dive bar bartender might give new visitors as an ironic “Welcome to Chicago” shot. You try it, you make a horrified face and usually say something like, “Why does this toxic sludge even exist?” and everyone laughs. The memory and the bitter flavor stick with you for a long time.

    In Malört: The Redemption of a Revered and Reviled Spirit Chicago Review Press (September 3, 2024), Josh Noel traces the path of the liqueur from its 1930s origins to its unlikely rise nearly a century later to its eventual sale to CH Distillery.

    I expected the book to be full of jokes and quotes from people about how bad the liqueur tastes – and it has tons of them, and they are hilarious. What I didn’t expect was for the book to be so engaging and for me to become so invested in the story as Noel tells it.

    How Malört Came to Be

    Jeppson's Malört was a commercialized version of a Swedish bäsk brännvin, a wormwood-flavored liqueur with a medicinal reputation for soothing the stomach (and traditionally for eliminating intestinal parasites). The product was first sold to Chicago’s Swedish expat community as a reminder of similar liqueurs from home.

    The brand was purchased by George Brode, who marketed it to the large working-class Swedish immigrant community of Chicago after Prohibition. He also advertised it as a macho drink, with slogans in the 1950s like, “No woman wets her whistle on Jeppson, that’s a he-man’s prerogative.”

    Most of the book follows the story of Patricia (“Pat”) Gabelick, however. She was hired as Brode’s secretary in 1966, became his longtime mistress, and inherited the brand when Brode died in 1999. At that point, Malört sold very little – the height of its sales was in 1973 when it sold under 4000 cases. By 2000 it was selling sixty percent less than that.

    Ironic to Iconic

    It wouldn’t reach those 1973 levels again for forty years. Malört’s reputation elevation from zero to hero was due in almost no part to Pat Gabelick, despite her being the star player in its story. (She didn’t like it and never drank it but did provide hours of interviews with the book’s author.) With its dated bottle label and bottom-shelf status in Chicago’s neighborhood taverns and liquor stores, young drinkers were intrigued by the mysterious liquid and eventually adopted it as their own.

    Meanwhile, the brand didn’t even have a website, and few people knew anything about it or why it tasted the way it did. (As far as I can tell its only ingredients were wormwood, sugar, and alcohol, so there’s your answer.) However, a few fan pages on Facebook and Twitter sprung up celebrating the “Malört’s face” people make when first trying it. It was young fans of Malört like these that essentially rescued the brand from extinction.

    A Little Help from Friends

    The book details how three key fans volunteered their time and expertise to Pat Gabelick spreading the word of Malört. They built the website, made t-shirts, held promotional events, pitched distributors, and ran social media. They seemed to do everything but control the finances – or receive payment for their efforts.

    Their work ensured that media attention grew, then copycat Malörts were released, and a hostile takeover by a major liquor company disguised as a trademark lawsuit ensued. They fought it off. The brand became more successful than ever, on its way to selling 10,000 cases by 2017.

    It was this story of the wholesome scrappy crew of fans working with an elderly lady to promote a unique local spirit that really hooked me. Author Josh Noel turned what could have been a silly brand history book into an underdog story. I found myself fully invested, rooting for the team to win and for everyone to come out rich and happy.

    That’s not exactly what happened, though. While Pat Gabelick made out well for herself, I wouldn’t be surprised if the people who helped save Malört and build it into a big enough brand to sell for millions are left with a bitter taste in their mouths.

    In Conclusion

    I really enjoyed this book and was impressed by what must have been a tremendous amount of interviewing and research by author Josh Noel. I don’t know if other readers will become as invested in the story as I did or come away with as strong feelings as I now have about it. But much like a typical introduction to Malört, I plan to foist this book upon many of my friends and watch their reactions when they finish.

  • The 2021 Best Drink Books Round-Up

    Makephotogallery.net_1637959840342For the past bunch of years, I've done a round-up of all the drink books (mostly cocktails and spirits) that have come out during the year, in consideration for gifting. I'm not doing that this year, as there are too many cocktail books, and if you want to see them all, you can visit these posts:

    But I decided to do a Best-Of list. Importantly, I must note that I haven't read all of these. I have looked through most, and it's fair to say that I have confidence in these selections. There were some other books that sure sound good but I don't know enough about the book or its author to commit. 

     

     

     

    Do Some Reading

    • 6a00e553b3da2088340282e1130225200b.jpgSomething and Tonic: A History of the World's Most Iconic Mixer by Nick Kokonas [amazon] [somethingandtonic.com]
    • Drunk: How We Sipped, Danced, and Stumbled Our Way to Civilization by Edward Slingerland [amazon][bookshop]
    • A Good Drink: In Pursuit of Sustainable Spirits by Shanna Farrell [amazon][bookshop]

    • A Woman's Place Is in the Brewhouse: A Forgotten History of Alewives, Brewsters, Witches, and CEOs  by Tara Nurin [amazon][bookshop]
    • Girly Drinks: A World History of Women and Alcohol by Mallory O'Meara  [amazon][bookshop
    • Smashing the Liquor Machine: A Global History of Prohibition by Mark Lawrence Schrad [amazon][bookshop]
    • The Thinking Drinkers Almanac: Drinks For Every Day Of The Year by Ben McFarland, Tom Sandham [amazon][bookshop
    • The Oxford Companion to Spirits and Cocktails by David Wondrich, Noah Rothbaum [amazon][bookshop]

     

    Non-Alcoholic Cocktail Books

    • Zero Proof: 90 Non-Alcoholic Recipes for Mindful Drinking by Elva Ramirez [amazon] [bookshop]
    • Gazoz: The Art of Making Magical, Seasonal Sparkling Drinks by Benny Briga, Adeena Sussman [amazon][bookshop]

     

    6a00e553b3da208834026bdeec4e06200c.jpgTopic-Specific Cocktail Books

    • Mezcal and Tequila Cocktails: Mixed Drinks for the Golden Age of Agave by Robert Simonson [amazon][bookshop]
    • The Japanese Art of the Cocktail by Masahiro Urushido and Michael Anstendig [amazon][bookshop]
    • The Way of the Cocktail: Japanese Traditions, Techniques, and Recipes by Julia Momosé and Emma Janzen  [amazon][bookshop

     

    Base Spirits

    • The Big Book of Amaro  by Matteo Zed [amazon][bookshop]

    • The Atlas of Bourbon and American Whiskey: A Journey Through the Spirit of America by Eric Zandona [amazon][bookshop]

     

    6a00e553b3da2088340282e13042ad200b.jpgGeneral Cocktail Recipe Books

    • The Cocktail Seminars by Brian D. Hoefling [amazon][bookshop]
    • HOME BAR BASICS (AND NOT-SO-BASICS) by Dave Stolte [website]
    • The Curious Bartender: Cocktails At Home: More than 75 recipes for classic and iconic drinks by Tristan Stephenson  [amazon][bookshop]
    • Mixology for Beginners: Innovative Craft Cocktails for the Home Bartender by Prairie Rose [amazon][bookshop]
    • Death & Co Welcome Home by Alex Day, Nick Fauchald, Dave Kaplan [amazon][bookshop
    • The Cocktail Workshop: An Essential Guide to Classic Drinks and How to Make Them Your Own by Steven Grasse, Adam Erace [amazon][bookshop]
    • Can I Mix You a Drink? by T-PAIN, Maxwell Britten [amazon][bookshop]

    Beer

    • The Beer Bible: Second Edition  by Jeff Alworth [amazon][bookshop]

    • World Atlas of Beer: The Essential Guide to the Beers of the World by Tim Webb, Stephen Beaumont [amazon][bookshop]

     

    Cocktails and Spirits Books from Previous Years

     

  • The Big Non-Alcoholic Spirits Taste Test

    For a long time I've been tracking the increasing number of non-alcoholic spirits. There are now more than 115 brands on the market. 

    I've also made hundreds of non-alcoholic cocktails with these n/a spirits (mostly Seedlip) for events, when there used to be events pre-Covid. In my opinion, these products do not perform well when you taste them neat, nor when they are mixed with carbonated beverages like soda water and tonic water.

     

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    I have found that taste good when mixed in a basic Daiquiri or with a strongly flavored syrup, as in these recipes I shared a couple years back. Since then, I've received a lot more n/a spirits in the mail – I share new products on Instagram by the way, in case you're not already following the @alcademics account over there. 

    So I decided to lead a tasting of all the non-alcoholic spirits in my house in a Daiquiri format. Actually, I didn't taste them at all – I invited three bartenders over to my house to do it. I made one batch of sweet-and-sour mix (lime, simple syrup) and added equal parts of each n/a spirit to it. The bartenders tasted them all and I wrote down their impressions, which are recorded below. 

    After we tasted all of them, the bartenders went back through and tasted them unmixed. Boy did that ever give different reactions! And that confirmed that trying these products neat really doesn't reveal all that much about how they'll taste mixed. 

    We tried 11 gins or herbal spirits, 2 tequilas, 2 rums, and the Three Spirit line of herbal beverages. 

    The tasting notes are below (from the bartenders, opinions are not mine), and some conclusions I wrote down after the tasting notes. 

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    Gin/Botanical Spirits
    1. Bowser Leaf –
      1. lots of licorice, playdough, elmer's glue
      2. cloves
      3. I like it, I don't think it's a gin though. Little bit of a piney finish, mentholy
    2. Seedlip Spice
      1. cloves, allspice, warm spices, like chai – cardamom,
      2. overpowering in this application but in another application it could be useful
    3. Wilderton Luster
      1. tastes like earl gray tea to everyone – tannic drying oversteeped tea
      2. acid- citric acid
      3. very low rated
    4. Sipsong Indira Tea
      1. cumin? culinary spice , caraway
      2. not so aggressive after a couple of sips
      3. "that doesn't taste like gin" – taste like Kummel
    5. Seedlip Garden
      1. they all identified it blind as seedlip garden
      2. it's its own flavor; not trying to be gin
      3. everyone enjoys
    6. Lyre's London Spirit
      1. this is bangin' i like this; banana candy; banana runts
      2. real bitter finish though,
      3. tastes like candy but that's a hard finish
      4. (turns out the finish is quinine)
    7. Damrak 0.0
      1. most like water to me
      2. a touch of apple and pear but that could be me grasping
      3. it lets the citrus shine
      4. expensive water
    8. Ginnocense
      1. taste reminds me of something chewy
      2. playdough on the nose
      3. taffy notes
      4. not gin-like
    9. Wilderton Earthen
      1. omg why! terrible
      2. cinnamon ret hots – dried out,
      3. not good in a daiquiri
      4. "sour cinnamon" and that doesn't go well together
    10. Seedlip Grove
      1. it's bitter, resiny
      2. I would not be surprised if this is what  juniper does in water distillation
      3. Musty, like when you walk into a thrift store
      4. Tastes more like gin – resiny but mellow; not the bright herby of the gin but not citrusy
      5. "interesting" i don't dislike it; it's weird, need a better application for it
    11. Fleure Floral Blend
      1. neutral
      2. wood thing going on, woody
      3. a finish more than a flavor; i don't get much
     
    Rum
    1. Fleure Spice Cane Dark Roast
      1. smells like rum, spiced rum, bubblegum
      2. smells like coffee cake
      3. workable as a rum; but rum is easier than other spirits
      4. sweeter – i feel like this has sugar in it
      5. I dont hate it but it tastes like coffee
    2. Ritual Rum Alternative
      1. banana bread
      2. tropical fruit
      3. cadaverine /decay
      4. I lke this! tastes like a daiquiri, butterscotch, caramel, but good in a daiquiri
      5. Everyone enjoys and prefers this one
     
    Tequila/Agave
    1. Fleure  Smoked Agave
      1. liquid smoke
      2. i don't hate that
      3. burnt rubber but not in a bad way; iodine
      4. everyone likes it !  – but not on its own; in this margarita
    2. Ritual Tequila Alternative
      1. "it has the cuervo smell"; mixto
      2. taste is more fruity but it smells like tequila – "smells like bad decisions"
      3. there's actual heat – spicy note – too spicy – spicy margarita
      4. pepper spice; not alcohol spice – too much of the spicness; maybe better in a long drink; if it was intended as a spicy margarita it would be fine
      5.  
     
    Liqueur Fleure Raspberry Blend
      1. soapy
      2. raspberries and violets
      3. pink lemonade –
      4. could use it as a modifier but not a base spirit – but cheaper to use raspberries in a cocktail rather than this product – could be useful as a martini style drink where you don't want to add sugar
     
     
    Herbal Liqueurs (these were tasted neat; not in a Daiquiri)
    1. Three Spirit Livener
      1. smells like tea, tastes a little like prune juice
      2. not a fan of this
      3. tons of warm spices
      4. capsaicin
      5. 1 didn't hate it, 2 hated it
    2. Three Spirit Social Elixir
      1. molasses
      2. bitter, burnt caramel
      3. not pleasant
      4. i could sub that for Averna in a cocktail
    3. Three Spirit  Nightcap
      1. something sour in the smell
      2. kinda like it – juicy
      3. spice in all of them, well integrated
      4. favorite of the Three Spirit line
      5. after-dinner beverage, one bartender would serve it as a digestif to a non-drinker after dinner

    Conclusions of this Tasting:

    • This is a good way to taste/compare these products. When we went back through to taste them neat, bartenders had some radically different opinions; particularly with regard to the spicy notes that may have gone unnoticed mixed. 
    • Lyre's London Spirit- people liked flavor a lot but didn't like the quinine finish at all.
    • Seedlip Garden was enjoyed and identified easily – the favorite product of the whole tasting.
    • Seedlip Grove was considered interesting and generally well-received.
    • Every one wished there was juniper present in the gins, and found that none had any detectable. So none were really gin substitutes.
    • "I wish more of them were better" said one bartender. 
    • The rums and tequilas overall tasted more like their alcoholic versions. 

     

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  • Genepy Liqueur Versus Artemisia Genepi

    WormwoodsWhen I was studying the various types of wormwood used in spirits earlier this year, I got a bit confused about Genepy/Genepi. All wormwood is a member of the artemisia genus. 

    • Artemisia Absinthium = Grand Wormwood; used in absinthe
    • Artemisia Pontica = Roman Wormwood; small absinthe; often used in vermouths
    • Artemisia Vulgaris = Common Wormwood; mugwort; used in Herbsaint, vermouth, and other products
    • Artemisia Genepi = Genepi, used in Genepy liqueurs

    After laying that out, I came to learn that there is a difference between artemisia genepi and genepy liqueurs, thanks in large part to Stephen Gould of Golden Moon Distillery. He makes a genepi called Ex Gratia

    According to Gould and supporting evidence from elsewhere on the internet, Genepy liqueurs can be made from not just artemisia genepi, but basically any artemisia that's not grand wormwood; often several of them mixed together. Gould clarified a working definition of genepy liqueur for me in email:

    Any liquor/liqueur made with any member of the artemisia family, except artemisia ab. (Grand wormwood) would be considered a Genepi … the exception being Amaros where the various types of wormwoods are a supporting flavor.

    SpiritsGould also wrote a profile of artemisia species for a 2014 edition of Distiller magazine. It no longer appears to be online (I think they're working on getting the archives up in a readable format so maybe it will return in the future), but he wrote:

    Genepi
    Genepi (or Genepy) are liqueurs typically made using “lesser”
    wormwoods (such as petite/roman wormwood, sea
    wormwood, black wormwood or rock wormwood), either
    alone or in combination with other spices and botanicals.
    These liqueurs are produced throughout the alpine areas of
    Europe and are referred to by a variety of names. They are
    commonly referred to as genepi in the Alps and Pyrenees
    mountains. The word genepi is often also used to refer to
    various wormwood plants as well, especially in France and
    the French-speaking cantons of Switzerland.

     

     

    Some of the "lesser" wormwoods include Sea Wormwood – Artemesia Meritima; Rock Wormwood – Artemesia Rupestris; Yellow Genepi –
    Artemisia Umbelliformis; plus the Artemesia Genepi itself.

    Gould also included a recipe for a Genepi from a handwritten distiller's note circa 1800 [excerpt]: 

    Genepi des Alps
    Take of the common and sea wormwood, dried, of each ten
    pounds; of sage, mint, and balm, dried, of each twenty handfuls;
    of the roots of galangal, ginger, calamus aromaticusm and
    elecampane, of the seeds of sweet fennel and coriander, of each
    three ounces; of cinnamon, cloves, and nutmegs, the lesser cardamoms
    and cubebs, of each two ounces. 

     

    ImageThe reason that this came up is there is a second American-made genepy coming out. As I posted in New Booze yesterday, the Bittercube folks are releasing a genepy liqueur to the Midwest US this year with a larger launch in 2019. They describe the new product as:

    Heirloom Genepy was developed in the Bittercube apothecary and gathers inspiration from a variety of Artemitis plants, while bridging the gap between robust varieties and more subtle variations. With respect for the category, this modern Genepy was formulated with bright alpine botanicals, and mellowed with honey. 

     

    Long story short: artemesia genepi may or may not be in genepy liqueurs, which are flavored with non-absinthium artemisia species. It would be fun to compare various genepy liqueurs to see how they're interpreted by these different distillers. 

     

  • A Guide to Botanicals Used in Cocchi Aromatized Wines & Vermouths

    I had the pleasure of visiting the winery and distillery for Cocchi in Piedmont, Italy. More on the visit in a later post, but for now I wanted to share a bunch of images I took of botanicals used in the production of their products. 

     

    Cocchi products

     

    American readers will be familiar with Cocchi Americano, Cocchi Vermouth di Torino, and their Barolo Chinato. 

    I've been studying a lot of these botanicals lately, and found the write-ups on these from the tasting room to be very good. So I'll just post them here for future reference (yours and mine). Note that there is some good information on a few of these at the Cocchi website

    You might also check out this similar guide I did from a visit to Martini vermouths: A Visual Guide to Herbs Used to Make Vermouth.  

    All of the below images were taken at the Cocchi winery in Italy. 


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  • Campari Production Info: Extraction, ABV, Coloring, and Fining

    At this year's Tales of the Cocktail, I went to a terrific seminar called Til The Bitter End, lead by Audrey Fort of The Rooster Factory brand development agency.

    I also gave a seminar about bitterness at Tales, with an emphasis on understanding the flavor of different bittering agents. This seminar, on the other hand, was about bitterness in general and measuring the impact of bitterness in different spirits in particular.  Though I researched the heck out of my own seminar, I also learned a ton in this one. 

    One of the panelists was Mike Capoferri, Italian Portfolio Ambassador for the Campari Group. I'd not met him before and his part of the presentation was great. While Campari, the liqueur, doesn't disclose any of the ingredients in the bottle that make its distinctive flavor, Capoferri was able to share some of the very complicated production processes that go into it. And they're so complicated that it wouldn't matter if they disclosed every ingredient. 

    So first, some technical terminology that I'd not seen in this way before, defining various extraction techniques depending on whether it's done in alcohol or water: 

    Bitter flavors extraction

    One thing he mentioned in the seminar is that bitter compounds are not soluble in high-ABV alcohol. And I learned in the preparation for my own seminar that bitter flavors do not generally distill. That's why most bitter ingredients are macerated in the spirit rather than redistilled like gin. (In the case of Cointreau, I learned when I visited the distillery a few years ago, they distil their bitter oranges that have been macerated with pith in order to remove bitterness from the infusion.)

    Essential oils (like from the peels of those oranges in Cointreau) on the other hand do distill well, and are soluble in high-ABV alcohol. 

    Within the Campari portfolio, Averna is a simple extraction of botanicals in high proof spirit, so the result is a not-super-bitter amaro. 

    Braulio, in contrast, is macerated at a lower proof, to enhance the bitter flavors.  

     

    Anyway, those maceration techniques are used in the production of Campari:

     

    Campari Production

    I'm glad to see Campari isn't just  Herbs -> Infusion -> Filtration -> bottling. I like it when things are interesting. 

    Three important observations (of mine) from this:

    1. "1 of 8 Colorants": As I revealed on this blog post about how Campari is made differently around the world, insect-based natural cochineal coloring seems to have been replaced by artificial coloring in most parts of the world, but not all. The post identified some of the ways that the red coloring is labelled – and now we know there are eight variations (or at least there were at the time this slide was made)!
    2. "1 of 5 ABV's": Also on the blog post we knew there were different ABVs. I'm surprised there are only 5. But on the other hand, 5 ABVs times 8 colorants means they could make up to 40 variations of Campari. 
    3. "Fining": On that same blog post, we saw from the bottle in Jamaica that Campari "contains eggs." I am pretty darn sure that is from the fining process (also used in beer and wine) that brings the liquid to clarity. The only thing to note here is that they use the term "fining" rather than "filtration" which helps build our case.  To repeat from that blog post, even though in most countries Campari is no longer colored with insects, it is still almost assuredly not vegan.  

    So, that was awesome. Thanks to Audrey Fort and Mike Capoferri for the info. 

     

     

  • A Little Overkill at my Tales of the Cocktail Seminar on Bitter Flavors

    This year as usual I gave a seminar at Tales of the Cocktail (well this year I gave one myself and then was on a panel for another one; this post is about the one I gave solo). This one was called Bitter Flavors: Taste the Rainbow. 

     

    bitter samples

    The idea was to give everyone information and tasting on individual bitter flavors- particularly the major ones of quinine/cinchona, wormwood, gentian, and rhubarb- because so often they're mixed together in amari and bitters. I chose for my tasting spirits that I thought were most indicative of the bitter flavors:

    • Rhubarb: Zucca (they sponsored the seminar)
    • Wormwood: Amaro Alta Verde 
    • Gentian: Saler's Gentiane
    • Cinchona: Kina Aero d'Or

    Plus Zucca wanted to feature a couple of cocktails, so at just 1 sample of each type of bitters I was worried that I wouldn't be able to ensure everyone could really isolate each type of bitter flavor. 

    So, as is my way, I panicked and went way overboard on homemade samples. By the end, everyone at their seat had 2 cocktails, 4 bitter beverages, 10 microtubes of bitter tasting samples, and 5 bitter solids. 

     

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    The preparation took me (along with help from my pal Maria) dozens of hours. I made infusions of various bitter flavors in alcohol, then diluted those down with water so they were essentially non-alcoholic. Then we put them all in microtubes and the solids in little baggies (luckily I live near a bong store), labelled them all, and then made an index and assembled ziplocks of everything. 

     

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    Oh, and I also created a print-out of most popular vermouth and amaro brands, and what the known and suspected bittering agents are in each. That project took me another 20 hours or so. Sometimes I think I might go too far.

    So during the seminar we now had plenty to taste and in the case of those big four bitter flavors, a finished product to confirm that taste in a product they could find on the shelf. The seminar seemed to go really well (we'll see when I get the reviews back) and I certainly felt everyone got their money's worth- a big fear of mine when I'm presenting. 

    Camper English at Tales of the Cocktail

    (photo stolen from Maggie Campbell)

    Camper English at Tales of the Cocktail

    I'm not sure that I'll ever do this seminar again in this format, but I may put together an ebook of some sort with the information from the seminar in it. 

     

     

     

  • Bitter Ingredient Flavors and Use from Martini Vermouth Masters

    Bitter martiniAt this year's Bar Convent Brooklyn, I had the opportunity to sit down with Ivano Tonutti, Master Herbalist for Martini & Rossi (and Bacardi products generally) and Giuseppe "Beppe" Musso, Master Blender of Martini & Rossi.

    The timing was excellent, as I am preparing to give a talk on bitter ingredients for Tales of the Cocktail, and they were in town promoting the newish Martini & Rossi Riserva Speciale Bitter Liqueur. 

    The Bitter is part of the new premium Riserva line, along with Rubino (red) and Ambratto (white) vermouths. We spoke primarily about the new Bitter and and plants used in the Riserva line; but in some cases we were generalizing beyond that. So please consider this general information rather than super specific to any one product. 

     

    General Stuff

    • The goal in using different bittering agents is to create a rounded bitter experience with multiple parallel bitters rather than a single-note bitter. 
    • Speaking of single-note bitter, they indicated quinine/cinchona bark pretty much gives that. 
    • When speaking about how different bittering agents impact the flavor, Tonutti would intuitively point to certain parts of his face, indicating where the individual bitter most impacts the palate – for example cinchona is a singular bitterness felt most in the far back of the mouth, different artemisia species were more forward. Gentian and rhubarb root impact the middle of the mouth more. It's interesting to see as we know the "tongue map" is false but yet we feel the impact of different bitter flavors in different parts of the mouth.
    • They use all dried herbs, rather than fresh, for all the many Bacardi products (including things like Bombay, etc.) with the exception of some fresh citrus peels in Oxley gin. Dried herbs are used to ensure consistency and can be more easily measured for water content, etc. 
    • All these bitter agents are infused rather than distilled into products (we're talking about the Riserva line). 
    • They use only yellow gentian root – not the blue stemless gentian that a few producers use. They prefer French gentian as it's particularly bitter and more aromatic than from other places. They say the blue gentian is not super bitter, and it can be thought of more like an herb with root rather than just the root. 
    • Holy thistle is used in salads. In their products, it's used to impart mouthfeel, not bitterness. It is used in most of Martini's products. 
    • Dandelion – Leaves, not roots, are used. In production, leaves must be dried immediately after picking. 
    • Roman Chamomile – The bitterness of it depends on the extraction technique (lower ABV extraction is better for bitterness in general, they say) and the concentration. (I asked about this as I've made chamomile infusions in the past and none were bitter.) 

    Artemisia

    • Between the Rubino and Ambratto there are different ratios of the three artemisia plants used – absinthia, pontica, and vulgaris. (grand/common, lesser/small, mugwort)
    • Absinthium – boldest, bitterest, with a delicate herbal flavor
    • Pontica – herbal and floral, a signature note of Martini vermouth, top note
    • Vulgaris (aka mugwort) – aromatic, with a different and milder expression of bitterness. 

    Barks

    • As noted, Cinchona bark gives a back-palate discreet bitterness.
    • Columba bark is an aromatic bitter with mid-palate bitterness.
    • Angostura bark is between cinchona and columba in its bitterness. 
    • Red cinchona (succirubra) is more bitter than yellow, with higher amounts of quinine, but they describe the flavor as more boring.
    • Yellow cinchona (calisaya) they get from Ecuador. It is slightly aromatic, but there is less of it available on the market. This is used in Ambratto and probably other products. 

    Safety Stuff

    • The amount of thujone in artemisia and quinine in cinchona bark are regulated. They say that their approach to this is to get as far under the legal limits of the active substances as possible. For example, their artemisia providers grow a strains of the plants with super low thujone content, and though they may be plants like grand wormwood that supposedly have a lot of it, they use varieties that don't. Thus if the legal limits of thujone were ever lowered, or as in the case of the US where the legal limit is lower than in the EU, they don't have to worry as they're not close to the limits.
    • For quinine, there is a legal limit of 83 ppm allowed. That is just for quinine, not for quinidine and the other (two, I believe) active alkaloids present in cinchona bark. Tonutti said that rather than counting just the quinine, they keep the total number of all the alkaloids under the 83 ppm limit.  
    • Calamus is banned in the US and in Australia by name, meaning you cannot use it in a product's formulation at all, while in Europe and other countries, you may use the plant as long as the beta asarone levels are kept below a certain amount. [They noted the nonsensical nature of this, as if the problem with calamus is beta asarone, they why not limit the beta asarone?] Thus there are formula differences in some of their products in different countries. They also keep the beta asarone way below the legal limits in Europe anyway. 

     

    This may all seem like random stuff to you, but it was extremely helpful for the talk I'm preparing!

     

    For those of you new to these products, here's the basic info from the brand:

    RISERVA SPECIALE BITTER

    The new Bitter joins the Riserva Speciale Rubino and Riserva Speciale Ambrato as part of a dedicated craft of exceptional Italian Aperitivi for bartenders and drinks enthusiasts. To develop the new Riserva Bitter, MARTINI & ROSSI used 100% natural ingredients and the original 1872 recipe, created by MARTINI & ROSSI founder Luigi Rossi, as their inspiration. MARTINI & ROSSI Master Herbalist, Ivano Tonutti, has carefully selected three rare botanicals (Saffron, Angostura and Columba), to deliver a unique richness and complexity to its taste profile through different dimensions of bitterness. The Bitter is also rested in the same Tino cask that is used for MARTINI & ROSSI Riserva Speciale Vermouth di Torino extracts and shares the vermouth’s common botanical, Italian Artemisia, allowing its unique complex bitter taste to perfectly complement it. ($26.99)

    RISERVA SPECIALE RUBINO

    The small parcels for full-bodied Langhe DOC Nebbiolo wines used to create MARTINI & ROSSI RISERVA SPECIALE RUBINO are blended with extracts of Italian Holy Thistle and Red Sandalwood from Central Africa to deliver a bright ruby red vermouth, which inspired the name of the expression. The delicate balance of botanicals creates a full-bodied herbal and complex style of Vermouth di Torino with a long aftertaste. ($14.99)

    Ambrato packshotRISERVA SPECIALE AMBRATO

    The floral and aromatic blend of small parcels of Moscato d’Asti DOCG wines, used to create MARTINI & ROSSI RISERVA SPECIALE AMBRATO, produces a beautifully honeyed Vermouth di Torino. The yellow Cinchona bark from Ecuador and Chinese Rhubarb create a light bitter taste profile that aromatizes and elevates the flavors of the wines. ($14.99)

     

  • Campari is Made Differently Around the World: Cochineal, Coloring, ABV, & Eggs

    15541338_1840521116237235_1944647162307011240_nI was researching a few different topics and stumbled upon an interesting observation: Not only is Campari sold at a wide-ranging variation of alcohol percentage in different countries, the coloring used to make its signature red is different depending on the country. 

    As many people know, Campari was traditionally colored with cochineal, a scale insect native to South America that grows on the prickly pear cactus. (Cochineal is still used in many products today, as it is a natural coloring and doesn't need to be labelled as the unsightly 'artificial coloring'.)

    In 2006 cochineal was discontinued – but as it turns out, not everywhere. In the United States and it seems most countries, Campari now uses artificial coloring. Depending on which country one is located in, that coloring must be declared in different ways, so what is merely "artificially colored" in the US is labelled as three specific coloring agents in one country, and none at all in others.  

    But in at least one country, cochineal is still used. 

    In the United States, Campari is sold at 24% ABV and the coloring is listed as "artificially colored."

    Campari usa

     

    In France, the ABV is 25% and the colorings are listed as E122, E102, and E133. 

    Campari france 3 colors

     

    Next door in Spain, no special colors are labelled, but it's also sold at 25% ABV.

    Spain Campari 25 percent

     

     It appears it is the same in Argentina (with INS instead of E numbers), but the proof is 28.5%.

    Campari argentina

     In Brazil it is the same, and labelled gluten-free. 

    Brazilian Campari bottle

     

    In Toronto, it is sold at 25% and the color is merely misspelled (kidding!) as "colour."

    Toronto colour

     

    In Australia, it is sold at 25% with no special color labelling. 

    Australia campari

     

    In Malaysia it is the same – 25%, no color labelling. 

    Malaysia campari

    In Japan, it appears to be sold at 25%. Anyone ready Japanese and can tell me if it says anything about coloring or eggs? 

    (One reader responds: "Red #102, Yellow #5, Blue #1. Don't see any mention of eggs.")

    Campari Tokyo2
    Campari Tokyo2
     

    In Israel, it's sold at 25% ABV with E122, E102, and E133 listed as colorants.

    Campari_Israel

     

    In Iceland, it's sold at 21% ABV with no special color labelling. 

    Campari Iceland

     

    Now here's where it gets really interesting.

    I was wondering if the Swedish government website was merely out of date as it lists the coloring as E120 – that's cochineal(!), but a friend just picked up a bottle recently and cochineal is still in Campari in Sweden. Additionally, it is sold at 21% ABV. 

     

    Campari sweden cochineal still

     

    Update: A twitterer sent me a pic of bottles from Mexico – they also have cochineal! See the E120:

    Campari in Mexico E120 coloring

     

    And even more interesting is this bottle of Campari from Jamaica. Hold onto your butts:

    1. "Blended and bottled in Jamaica… by J Wray & Nephew" [Campari now owns JW&N]
    2. 28.5% ABV
    3. "Contains Egg"

     

    Jamaican campari contains egg

    CONTAINS EGG. Folks, that is some interesting news right there. Typically when eggs are used in wine, beer, and spirits (that aren't egg-based liqueurs), the eggs have been used in the fining process that helps filter the products to clarity. I think it's fair to assume this is how eggs are used in Campari. 

    My guess would be that because Jamaica has a Rastafarian community, many of which are vegans, products fined with eggs are required to be labelled. 

    What this means though, is that even though they took out the cochineal insect coloring (except in Sweden and Mexico apparently), Campari, at least in Jamaica, is still not vegan. 

    The question remains what it is in the rest of the world – I would bet that Campari is still not vegan

     

    Keep in mind that much cane sugar is whitened using bone charcoal, so any liqueur or sweetened alcohol has an okay chance of being non-vegan. 

     

    Thank you to my Facebook and Twitter friends from around the world who shared their bottle images. If you live in another country not mentioned here, please send me your bottle image to add to this discussion. Thanks! 

     

     

     

     

  • All the Cocktails and Spirits Books Published in 2016 for Reading or Gifting

    I love books! Here are all the books on cocktails and spirits I know of (please do comment if I've missed something) published this year. Give some gifts or just stock up on your winter reading for the cold months. I've got stacks to get through myself.

     

    Whiskey Books

    6a00e553b3da20883401b8d22461da970c.jpgBourbon: The Rise, Fall, and Rebirth of an American Whiskey by Fred Minnick 

    More Kentucky Bourbon Cocktails by Joy Perrine and Susan Reigler 

    The Big Man of Jim Beam: Booker Noe And the Number-One Bourbon In the World by Jim Kokoris  

    Whisky Japan: The Essential Guide to the World's Most Exotic Whisky by Dominic Roskrow 

    Iconic Whisky: Tasting Notes & Flavour Charts for 1,500 of the World's Best Whiskies by Cyrille Mald and Alexandre Vingtier

    Whiskey: A Spirited Story with 75 Classic and Original Cocktails by Michael Dietsch

    The Manhattan: The Story of the First Modern Cocktail with Recipes by Philip Greene 

     

     

    Miscellany 

    6a00e553b3da20883401bb09376999970d.jpgMade of Iceland: A Drink & Draw Book  by Reyka Vodka, Snorri Sturluson 

    Inside The Bottle: People, Brands, and Stories  by Arthur Shapiro 

    The Craft Cocktail Coloring Book by Prof Johnny Plastini 

    Drinking with Republicans and Drinking with Democrats by Mark Will-Weber 

    The Moonshine Wars by Daniel Micko

    Drinks: A User's Guide by Adam McDowell

    Shrubs: An Old-Fashioned Drink for Modern Times (Second Edition) by Michael Dietsch 

    A Proper Drink: The Untold Story of How a Band of Bartenders Saved the Civilized Drinking World by Robert Simonson 

     Colonial Spirits: A Toast to Our Drunken History by Steven Grasse  

    DIY Bitters: Reviving the Forgotten Flavor – A Guide to Making Your Own Bitters for Bartenders, Cocktail Enthusiasts, Herbalists, and More by Jovial King and Guido Mase  

    Amaro: The Spirited World of Bittersweet, Herbal Liqueurs, with Cocktails, Recipes, and Formulas by Brad Thomas Parsons 

    Drink Like A Grown-Up by The League of Extraordinary Drinkers 

    The Coming of Southern Prohibition: The Dispensary System and the Battle over Liquor in South Carolina, 1907-1915 by Michael Lewis

    American Wino: A Tale of Reds, Whites, and One Man's Blues by Dan Dunn 

    Distilled Stories: California Artisans Behind the Spirits by Capra Press

    Building Bacardi: Architecture, Art & Identity by Allan T. Shulman 

    Craft Spirits by Eric Grossman 

     

     

    Cocktail Books, General

    6a00e553b3da20883401bb08fac9f3970d.jpgCocktails for Ding Dongs by Dustin Drankiewicz (Author), Alexandra Ensign (Illustrator)

    Zen and Tonic: Savory and Fresh Cocktails for the Enlightened Drinker by Jules Aron 

    Pretty Fly For a Mai Tai: Cocktails with rock 'n' roll spirit   

    Cocktails for Drinkers: Not-Even-Remotely-Artisanal, Three-Ingredient-or-Less Cocktails that Get to the Point  by Jennifer McCartney 

    Aperitivo: The Cocktail Culture of Italy by Marisa Huff 

    The Complete Cocktail Manual: 285 Tips, Tricks, and Recipes by Lou Bustamante and the United States Bartenders' Guild 

     Shake. Stir. Sip.: More than 50 Effortless Cocktails Made in Equal Parts by Kara Newman

    101 Cocktails to Try Before you Die  by Francois Monti 

     Drink Like a Man: The Only Cocktail Guide Anyone Really Needs by Ross McCammon and David Wondrich

    The New Cocktail Hour: The Essential Guide to Hand-Crafted Cocktails by Andre Darlington and Tenaya Darlington 

    Spritz: Italy's Most Iconic Aperitivo Cocktail, with Recipes by Talia Baiocchi and Leslie Pariseau  

    Eat Your Drink: Culinary Cocktails by Matthew Biancaniello 

    Cannabis Cocktails, Mocktails & Tonics: The Art of Spirited Drinks and Buzz-Worthy Libations by Warren Bobrow

    Tiki with a Twist: 75 Cool, Fresh, and Wild Tropical Cocktails by Lynn Calvo and James O. Fraioli 

     

     

    Cocktail Books from Bars or Places

    6a00e553b3da20883401bb094fd3d5970d.jpgThe Canon Cocktail Book: Recipes from the Award-Winning Bar by Jamie Boudreau  and James O. Fraioli 

    Regarding Cocktails by Sasha Petraske and Georgette Moger-Petraske 

    Brooklyn Spirits: Craft Distilling and Cocktails from the World's Hippest Borough By Peter Thomas Fornatale and Chris Wertz

    Smuggler's Cove: Exotic Cocktails, Rum, and the Cult of Tiki by Martin Cate and Rebecca Cate

     Cuban Cocktails: Over 50 mojitos, daiquiris and other refreshers from Havana

    Brooklyn Bar Bites: Great Dishes and Cocktails from New York's Food Mecca by Barbara Scott-Goodman

    The Waldorf Astoria Bar Book by Frank Caiafa 

    Lift Your Spirits: A Celebratory History of Cocktail Culture in New Orleans by Elizabeth M. Williams and Chris McMillian

     

     

    Science!

    6a00e553b3da20883401b7c893f3cb970b.jpgShots of Knowledge: The Science of Whiskey by Rob Arnold and Eric Simanek

    Distilled Knowledge: The Science Behind Drinking’s Greatest Myths, Legends, and Unanswered Questions  by Brian D Hoefling  

     

     

     

    Classic Cocktail Book Reprints

    THE HOME BARTENDER'S GUIDE AND SONG BOOK {By Charlie Roe and Jim Schwenck}

    AMERICAN BAR {By Frank P. Newman}

    LOUIS' MIXED DRINKS {By Louis Muckenstrum} 

     

     

    Beer (A few beer books slip through the cracks and come to me)

    The United States of Beer: A Freewheeling History of the All-American Drink by Dane Huckelbridge 

    The Beer Geek Handbook: Living a Life Ruled by Beer by Patrick Dawson  

     

     MY BOOK! 

     Please consider supporting Alcademics by  purchasing a copy of my book Tonic Water AKA G&T WTF. It's a gift to yourself, and a gift to me.

    Tonic water aka gandt wtf by camper english cover

     

     

    Want to see some of the previous years' books? Well, here they are:

    More Than 40 Drink Books Published in 2014 for Reading or Gifting

    All the Cocktails & Spirits Books Published in 2015, For Reading or Gifting