FAQs
Is it spelled Whisky or Whiskey?
Although both variants are correct and both will fetch you the same delicacy, if it comes from a country whose name has letter ‘e’ e.g. Ireland, then it is spelt WHISKEY. In all other cases, it goes as WHISKY.
As long as the bottle’s seal isn’t compromised, the rum will be as good 20 years from now as it is today. After the bottle has been opened, its shelf life stays indefinite, however much depends upon the storage condition of the rum.
The scotch is made in Scotland from malted barley. It has to be aged in oak barrels for at least 3 years. Also, every bottle has an age statement which indicates the youngest aged whisky used to make that particular blend.
Distilled from corn, bourbon should have at least 51% corn to be called so. It is commonly made in Kentucky, the eastern state of USA. It is aged in a new oak barrel without any minimum aging period. It should be bottled at 80 proof or more.
Tennessee whiskey is technically classified as bourbon, but it requires to be filtered by Lincoln County Process where it is filtered through sugar-maple charcoal. This process imparts a sweet taste to it. It can only be made in entirely new oak barrels.
Scotch is produced in 6 main regions of Scotland. These are Lowlands, Speyside, Highlands, Campbelltown, Islay and Islands.
Whisky is produced by distillation through a batch process in pot stills. It is commonly produced in Scotland, Ireland, Canada, Japan & the USA.
Creation of fermented drinks, produced from sugarcane juice, is believed to have first occurred in ancient India or China and spread from there. An example of early drink, called brum, was produced by Malay people. It dates back to thousands of years ago.
In 17th century, the first distillation of rum took place on the sugarcane plantations of the Caribbean islands. The slaves working there discovered that molasses, which is a by-product of sugar refining process, fermented into alcohol. This alcoholic by-products, when distilled, concentrated the alcohol and removed impurities, resulting in the first true rums.
As long as the bottle’s seal isn’t compromised, the rum will be as good 20 years from now as it is today. After the bottle has been opened, its shelf life stays indefinite, however much depends upon the storage condition of the rum.
Gold rums are mostly used in cocktails. Bacardi Gold is quite common ingredient in cocktails like Bacardi Gold & Cola, Banana Colada, Barbados Planter’s Punch, Bongo Cola, El Salvador, Galliano Daiquiri etc. Bacardi 8 is another option which can be used.
Cocktails like Goombay Smash #3 use Bacardi Gold as well as Bacardi Coco rums. Similarly, cocktail named Hustler uses gold rum and white rum. Captain Morgan, Bacardi Superior, Malibu etc. are other choices you can experiment with.
Alcoholic drinks having high level of congeners (toxic chemicals like methanol, is pentanol and acetone) seem to intensify hangovers. Whisky, cognac and tequila have high level of congeners as opposed to colorless drinks like vodka, gin and rum.
Rum hangovers occur after too much consumption of it. Depending on the amount of rum ingested, the rum crapulence may last for few hours to few days. So, it is all about how much of it you think is too much!
It is generally regarded that vodka originated as early as 8th or 9th century in either Poland or Russia. The name ‘vodka’ means ‘water’ in Russian language. Irrespective of when or where it originated, it was present in Russia during 14th century.
Vodka can be made in any country today. Its main producers are Russia, the USA, Poland, Ukraine, Sweden, France & Netherlands.
It can be made from practically anything which can be fermented to make alcohol but it is chiefly produced from potatoes, sugar beet molasses and cereal grains. Every ingredient substantially influences the flavor of resultant vodka.
Although the subtle sweetness of the corn and wheat vodkas makes them valuable, potato vodka is very neutral in taste making it ideal for mixed drinks. Some of the brands that use potatoes to make vodka are as follows:
- Karlson’s Gold Vodka (Swedish)
- Claremont Vodka (the USA)
- Vesical Vodka (Polish)
- Woody Creek Colorado Vodka (the USA)
- Luksusowa Vodka (Russian)
- Chopin Vodka (Polish)
- Vikingfjord Vodka (Norwegian)
Pinnacle of perfection for vodka-makers? Here is a list of the best vodka brands:
- Stolichnaya Red, Gold, Elit or Blue Label (Russia)
- 42 Below (New Zealand)
- Smirnoff (Russia)
- Ketel One Vodka (Holland)
- Grey Goose (France)
- Absolut (Sweden)
- Belvedere (Poland)
- Chopin Vodka (Poland)
- Chase Vodka (England)
- Zyr (Russia)
- Winter Palace (France)
- Ciroc (France)