Brandy and Cognac – Who Knew

Contrary to what you may have heard there are actually only three types of alcohol sold in bars, taverns and liquor stores. Beer, Wine and Spirits – that’s it! Beer is water mixed with cereal grains - such as malts, barley's and corn – and then its let to ferment. Wines comes from grapes or some other type of sugary fruit which are also let to ferment. Finally there are spirits. Spirits are commonly a mixture of water and cereal grains - such as malts, corn, rye, wheat, barely or even potatoes as in the case of vodka; however instead of letting the mixture ferment the mixture is distilled. The distilling process heats the mixture to produce vapors which are captured and then run though a series of metal coils to collect the moisture after the vapor cools. (some call this a still).

Trivia # 1 Most people aren’t aware of this but the production of alcohol is really a function of yeast. Yes yeast! Yeast is included in each mixture above and it is the yeast that breaks down the sugars in the grains and juices to produce the alcohol. Without the yeast neither fermentation or distillation would produce any alcohol of value.

Trivia # 2 The highest alcohol content that natural fermentation can achieve is about 18%. Its bio-chemically impossible to get a beer or wine with a higher proof than18% by using a ‘natural fermentation’ process.

Trivia # 3 12 ounce Cans of Budweiser, Miller or Corona etc. roughly have approximately 5% alcohol by volume (ABV). So if you ever see a beer advertised with 65% alcohol - rest assured that extra alcohol was added by some non-natural process.

Trivia # 4 Most wines are generally bottled at around 18% proof.

Trivia # 5 However, when a beverage is distilled it is possible to achieve an alcohol content of up to 200% proof; however most, distilled spirits are sold around 80 proof, 84 proof and 100 proof. Why? Because any higher alcohol proof would taste horrible; it would be like drinking kerosene.

Now here’s really great trivia about two misunderstood alcoholic beverages: Brandy and Cognac - both of which are distilled and therefore classified as spirits. Sadly most people don’t appreciate Brandy and Cognac but that I think that is simply a maturity factor. The older one gets the more they appreciate a good Brandy or Cognac.

Some people say Brandy taste like fruit and often cite apricots, oranges, and lemons; whereas Cognacs are said to have the flavor of flowers or spices – spices like nutmeg and cinnamon. Why is that?

Trivia # 6 Both Brandies and Cognacs start off pretty just like a wine. Brandies are fruit juices (any kind) - grapes and sugary fruits are mashed and their juices are distilled to make Brandy. Ever heard of blackberry Brandy, blueberry Brandy or apple Brandy?

Cognac, on the other hand, is only made from the juices of only “white grapes”.

Trivia # 7 Brandy can be produced anywhere in the world.

Trivia # 8 Not so with Cognac. Cognac can only be produced in France.

Remember from my previous articles we learned that Champagne can only be produced in France, Scotch can only be made in Scotland and Tequila can only come from Mexico? Well Cognac can only come from southwestern France.

Trivia # 9 The juice from the white grapes for making Cognac are distilled – not just once … but twice. And get this – they can only be distilled from October 1st to March 31st. 

Trivia # 10 Most Cognacs are blended – which means a variety of distilled white grape juices are mixed together (just like with a Scotches are blended ) to form the cognac.

There are a few single blend Cognacs made, but few ever people drink them. They are way to expensive and they’re not that much appreciable better then blended Cognacs.

Trivia # 11 To make a Cognac a special committee is assembled. The committee must meet between 11 am to 1 pm and will taste approximately 40 different blends of Cognacs and “Cognac Eaux de Vies," (that’s the name given to the initial Cognac spirit produced by distilling). The committee’s job then is to decide which Cognac flavors should be mixed together to create the new Cognac blend.

Trivia # 12 To be a member of a Cognac Tasting Committee, a person must be a Master Cognac Blender – and it takes 10 years of extensive training to become a Master Cognac Blender.

Trivia # 13 Cognacs, like most distilled spirits, are aged. Aged in wooden barrels. Cognac must be aged in barrels made of only French Oak. After the Cognac has been aged there are one of three official designations it can receive: VS, V.S.O.P. or X.O.

After two years of aging a Cognac blend is labeled "VS” (for Very Special)". A Cognac blend that has been aged for a minimum of at least four years is labeled V.S.O.P. (for Very Superior Old Pale). Finally, the designation X.O. (Extra Old) is applied to a Cognac blends that have all been certified to have been aged for a minimum of at least six years in French Oak barrels .

Unfortunately, many people think Cognac is just for sipping after dinner or when sitting by a warm fire on a cold winter night. That’s not true. There really are some great tasting cognac cocktails. If you are not familiar with a Cognac cocktail then I encourage you to try one. My suggestion would be to try a ‘A Sidecar’. However, I caution you – only order a Sidecar from a fine bar or restaurant. Smaller bars and taverns will typically substitute a Brandy rather then use Cognac as its primary cocktail ingredient.

There is so oh so much more I would like to share about Brandies and Cognacs but I will have to save that for a future article. Now if you remember just one thing from this article – let it be this – all Brandies and Cognacs pair wonderfully with any type of rabbit dinner. Thanks for reading this article. Ralph’s Rabbit Ranch

The 3M Test” for Small Bars and Local Taverns

When small bar and local tavern owners are experiencing financial troubles it’s important to cut to the chase quickly. Success with a bar is more than just pouring beers and dispensing booze. Some people are not able to accept all the demands of operating and maintaining a bar; they burn out after a few years or lose their business focus. 

Some bar and tavern owners know they should get out of the business; however for whatever reasons they stick in it and wear down the imagine of their bar or tavern to a point where it’s almost impossible for them to repair it.

Many small bar and local tavern owners spend up all their good will and create negative baggage in the communities they reside. It’s inconceivable some bar owners can ever change the way they do business. When situations like this are obvious the only recommendation I can make is “sell you bar or tavern and leave the community”. By selling your failing bar or tavern to someone new, someone with fresh ideas, someone willing to provide a valuable service to the community and someone who really wants to make money everyone wins.

The litmus test I use to determine if a bar or tavern can really make money is based on Ockham’s razor. If you are not familiar with Ockham’s razor let me briefly explain. Ockham’s razor is a term used in natural science to explain the reason(s) for taking a proposed course of action when confronted with a perplexing problem. 

Though Robert Ockham is given credit for initiating this term in the 20 Century the concept actually goes back to ancient Greece. The razor states that after all explanations for a problem are stated - always look for the simplest solution. Don’t complicate the process if you want to make money with your bar or tavern.

I call my Eba G. litmus test the 3M’s assessment. Using the 3M’s I can quickly assess why a small bar or local tavern is struggling. The 3M’s give me a starting point to decide how to precede with a corrective action plan.

The first M refers to the Management plan. Do bar or tavern owners in trouble have a written management plan or is it just in their head? For example are employee work schedules published in advance or are they written as needed? Is there a written bar clean-up up schedule with duties assigned to various staff or do owners just performed all clean up when they have time? Is there a written inventory control plan that dictates the what types and what quantities of products should be on hand or does the bar owner and staff just “wing it”?

The second M is the Marketing Plan. Other than an obligatory listing in the yellow pages does any real marketing take place? Are ads run and news releases sent to the local media outlets on a scheduled basis regarding upcoming events? Is there a plan for community sponsorships? What is the bar or tavern’s target market? Is there a “personal” Face Book and “business” page? Sometimes the question is - does the bar owner know what Face book is? Has the bar or tavern created a Linked In page, an About Me page or a Twitter account – all of which are free? What message is left on the bar or tavern’s voice mail recorder? Does the bar or tavern have an email account or is the bar owners person email account used for business? When do unique events and special celebrations occur? Are they planned out in advance or just thrown together haphazardly at the last minute? How are promotional pieces and give-a-ways purchased and distributed?

The final M is what the Money plan is. Does a bar or tavern have a written financial plan? Are operating funds budgeted and segregated? Are capital improvement accounts restricted? Are their special accounts for maintenance and petty cash? When expenses occur do they come out of the till? Out of the owner’s personal account? Or business accounts?

When I understand the 3M’s behind a small bar or local tavern I have a basis to use Ockham’s razor and can create a corrective action plan to either make the bar or tavern owner money or suggest he or she get out of the business.

Just remember if you are not making money with your small bar or local tavern – something is wrong. Either get out of the business or call Eba G. to get you on the road to profitability.

Interesting and Important History Lesson

In 1911, Turkey established gun control. From 1915 to 1917, 1.5 million Armenians were exterminated.

In 1929, the Soviet Union established gun control. From 1929 to 1953, about 20 million dissidents, were rounded up and exterminated.

China established gun control in 1935. From 1948 to 1952, 20 million political dissidents were exterminated.

Germany established gun control in 1938 from 1939 to 1945, a total of 13 million Jews exterminated.

Guatemala established gun control in 1964. From 1964 to 1981, 100,000 Mayan Indians were exterminated.

Uganda established gun control in 1970. From 1971 to 1979, 300,000 Christians, exterminated.

During WW II Japan decided not to invade America. The Military High Command advised against it as most Generals knew many American households had guns.

Gun-control laws generally have adverse affects on law-abiding citizens – let’s be real careful if we suggest more gun control laws.