The Complete Book of Spirits

by Dias Blue, Anthony

• ISBN13: 9780060542184
• ISBN10: 0060542187
• Format: Hardcover
• Copyright: 2004-10-26
• Publisher: HarperCollins Publications

Summary

The author of "The Complete Book of Mixed Drinks" now offers a comprehensive guide--complete with indispensable recipes--to the many varieties and brands of liquors and spirits on the market.

Table of Contents

Introduction	1	(8)
Vodka	9	(33)
Aquavit	42	(5)
Gin	47	(22)
Rum	69	(35)
Tequila	104	(33)
Scotch and Irish Whiskey	137	(44)
North American Whiskey	181	(29)
Brandy	210	(46)
Liqueur and Bitters	256	(45)
The Well-Stocked Bar	301	(8)
Bibliography	309	(4)
Index	313

Excerpts

The Complete Book of Spirits
A Guide to Their History, Production, and Enjoyment

Chapter One

Vodka

In the past several years vodka has become the bestsellingspirit in the world, and its popularity is still growing. In theUnited States sales have reached beyond the forty-million-casemark and show no signs of abating. There are more than threehundred brands of vodka currently sold in the United States.What makes vodka so popular? Perhaps its versatility is a factor.Vodka can be infused with flavors, mixed in cocktails, appreciatedneat or over ice. It can be sipped or slugged. It is famous as anaccompaniment to caviar, and complements rich and spicy food. Itcan be made from almost any agricultural ingredient; grain, vegetable,even fruit. It has a mysterious history and inspires greataffection; its name even means "dear little water" in Russian,shortened from zhizennia voda, "water of life." To some, it seems,vodka is as necessary as water.

WHAT IS VODKA?

In Russia and Poland vodka has many nicknames, such as "HotWater," "the Monopolka," "the Bubble," "Crankshaft," "the Bitter Stuff," "the White Stuff." The United States Alcohol and TobaccoTax and Trade Bureau, though, defines vodka as "neutral spiritsdistilled from any material at or above 190 degrees of proof,reduced to not more than 110 nor less than 80 degrees of proof,and after such reduction in proof treated by one of the three methodsset forth therein so that the resulting product would be withoutdistinctive character, aroma, or taste." Federal regulationsalso require that the distillate, after treatment, be stored only inmetal, porcelain, or glass containers or paraffin-lined tanks.

Vodka is made from a fermented mash, water, and ethyl alcohol.Unlike other spirits, which are defined by how and wherethey're made (brandy has to be made from fruit, rum from sugarbeets or cane, tequila from the juice of the blue agave; Scotch hasto come from Scotland and cognac comes only from France) vodkacan be made anywhere from any raw carbohydrates that will ferment.Grains such as rye, corn, or wheat, or produce such aspotatoes, beets, or sugar beets, can be the mash base for vodka.There is even a classy French grape vodka. The organic congenersthat give character to Scotch, bourbon, tequila, and brandy are filteredout of vodka by a charcoal filtration process. Fuller's earth,quartz sand, and even diamond dust have also been used in thefiltering process, in the effort to create a mystically "pure" vodka.In fact, there is no such thing as absolutely pure vodka. The traceelements that remain after the filtration help give each vodkabrand its unique character.

PURE, CLEAN WATER

Water is the single most important ingredient in vodka and the onethat lends this refined spirit most of its character. The Russiansclaim that "living water" from their rivers and lakes is what makestheir vodkas stand apart from those produced elsewhere. Thequest for pure water has taken the Finns to underground streams,inspired the Americans to invent more elaborate water softenersand filtration systems, and even led one producer to melt chunksof ancient icebergs with the theory that the older the water, thepurer it will be. One company in Poland uses a water-softeningsystem to create its unique "water."

Standard U.S. production of vodka often includes the purchaseof neutral grain spirits at a high proof (190 or above), which arethen filtered, diluted to bottle strength, labeled, and shipped.Producers of imported vodkas and smaller-batch vodkas maketheir neutral grain spirit from scratch so they have complete controlover the process from the beginning to end. Some of the new small-batch vodkas include Teton Glacier Potato Vodka from Idahoand Tito's Handmade Vodka from Texas. The field is being redefinedagain by larger brands such as Grey Goose, from France, andChopin and Belvedere, both from Poland. There are also currentlyvodkas from many places with no traditional history of vodka production,including Scotland (Brilliant and Hendricks), Denmark(Frïs, Danzka, and Danaka), and Ireland (Boru). Add recentlyarrived Mor and Stön from Estonia and Zyr and Charodei fromRussia, and you have an enormous selection of premium spirits toexplore.

FLAVORED VODKAS

While gin and aquavits can be considered a form of flavoredvodka, it wasn't until 1996, when Stolichnaya introduced StoliLimon, that distillers began to add everything from peppermint topineapple to their vodkas. The trend created a whole new rainbowera of mixed drinks such as the blood orange vodkatini and thekey lime vodka gimlet. In the fifteenth and sixteenth centuriesRussians mixed vodka with sweet syrup for women (men weresupposedly macho enough to drink theirs straight up), and theyhave also infused vodkas with spices and fruits for centuries.However, it would take another four hundred years for the practiceof flavoring to catch up with the West.

Now flavored vodkas have become very popular on the cocktailcircuit. Distillers all over the world are adding natural flavoringmaterials to their spirits, with and without sugar. It's clear that flavoredvodkas are here to stay. When vodka is flavored, the name ofthe flavoring must appear on the label. Almost any spice, flavoring,or fruit can be infused into vodka. Some of the more popular flavoringsare bilberry, blood orange, butterscotch, capsicum pepper,cherry, chocolate, cinnamon, clove, cranberry, currant, grapefruit,jalapeño, lime, lemon, Madagascar vanilla, mandarin orange, nutmeg,and raspberry. Depending on the brand and the sugar added,these flavors can range from too sweet to subtle. Some will provedelightful for sipping, while others are best served with mixers.

A RUSSIAN HISTORY OF VODKA

Vodka, an original eastern European beverage, appeared in eitherRussia or Poland around the thirteenth century. Much like itsnearest relation, gin, this white spirit was originally used medicinally ...

The Complete Book of Spirits
A Guide to Their History, Production, and Enjoyment. Copyright © by Anthony Dias Blue. Reprinted by permission of HarperCollins Publishers, Inc. All rights reserved. Available now wherever books are sold.

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Excerpted from The Complete Book of Spirits: A Guide to Their History, Production, and Enjoyment by Anthony Dias Blue
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