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#584
I have a question. Why does Scandinavian vodka brands state that the heritage of Scandinavia exists in their vodka, yet it is made from potato spirits when everyone knows that potatoes came from the Andes mountains and did not exist in Europe until after the Columbus expeditions and subsequent voyages to the Americas brought the potato, and other valuable crops to that region of the world? Not knocking it, spirits are what they are, but it seems a bit disingenuous.

Don't get me wrong though, it is a wonderful crop, after all the potato did in fact staved off the starvation of millions.


Everything being somewhat equal, nothing is without a price, for those voyages did also bring to the old world the joy of Syphilis.:ill:
 
#586
CBS240 said:
I have a question. Why does Scandinavian vodka brands state that the heritage of Scandinavia exists in their vodka, yet it is made from potato spirits when everyone knows that potatoes came from the Andes mountains and did not exist in Europe until after the Columbus expeditions and subsequent voyages to the Americas brought the potato, and other valuable crops to that region of the world? Not knocking it, spirits are what they are, but it seems a bit disingenuous.



Everything being somewhat equal, nothing is without a price, for those voyages did also bring to the old world the joy of Syphilis.:ill:
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Wiki to the rescue:

Sweden[edit]
Up until the 1950s, vodka was not used as a designation for Swedish distilled beverages, which were instead called brännvin ("burn-wine"). This beverage has been produced in Sweden since the late 15th century, although the total production was still small in the 17th century.[24] From the early 18th century, production expanded, although production was prohibited several times, during grain shortages. Although initially a grain product, potatoes started to be used in the production in the late 18th century, and became dominant from the early 19th century.[25] From the early 1870s, distillery equipment was improved.



"Don't get me wrong though, it is a wonderful crop, after all the potato did in fact staved off the starvation of millions."

I think you might find a number of irish people strongly disagreeing with this part.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Great_Famine_(Ireland)
 
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#588
Charles Darwin said:
potatoes started to be used in the production in the late 18th century, and became dominant from the early 19th century.
Click to expand...
They forgot to update something. Potatoes aren't used that much for Vodka as the yield ratio is about 1/3 of other crops and on top of that, a potato requires only heat to be used as a foodstuff. Most of the world's Vodka is made from wheat, rye and corn. It's also made from soy beans, rice, beets and way more questionable items that make bathtub gin look like medicine.
 
#589
Elsewhere in the article:

"Vodka may be distilled from any starch- or sugar-rich plant matter; most vodka today is produced from grains such as sorghum, corn, rye or wheat. Among grain vodkas, rye and wheat vodkas are generally considered superior. Some vodkas are made from potatoes, molasses, soybeans, grapes, rice, sugar beets and sometimes even byproducts of oil refining[31] or wood pulp processing. In some Central European countries, such as Poland, some vodka is produced by just fermenting a solution of crystal sugar and yeast. In the European Union there are talks about the standardization of vodka, and the Vodka Belt countries insist that only spirits produced from grains, potato and sugar beet molasses be allowed to be branded as "vodka", following the traditional methods of production.[32][33]
In the United States, many vodkas are made from 95% ethanol produced in large quantities by agricultural-industrial giants Archer Daniels Midland and Midwest Grain Processors. Bottlers purchase the base spirits in bulk, then filter, dilute, distribute and market the end product under a variety of vodka brand names."

This US vodka is largely paid for by the US taxpayer:
"The company lobbies for agricultural subsidies and price supports including sugar and ethanol. According to a 1995 report by the libertarian think tank Cato Institute, "ADM has cost the American economy billions of dollars since 1980 and has indirectly cost Americans tens of billions of dollars in higher prices and higher taxes over that same period. At least 43 percent of ADM's annual profits are from products heavily subsidized or protected by the American government. Moreover, every $1 of profits earned by ADM's corn sweetener operation costs consumers $10, and every $1 of profits earned by its bioethanol operation costs taxpayers $30."

(from the wiki entry for Archer Daniels Midland)
 
#596
Funnily enough in Mexico a Tequila Slammer is called a 'Muppet'!

Personally I prefer Cachaça to Rum.
Cachaça is made from cane juice while rum is made from a byproduct of the sugar production. On a hot summer's day there is nothing better than a Caipirinha (literally: little hillbilly!) except may be a Mint Julep or a good wheat beer.
 
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