Yields per bushel of grain for Canadian whisky is 3.75 proof gallons per bushel of dried grain (56 pounds of grain). By comparison, the yield for Scotch whisky averages around 3.4. A proof gallon is 100 proof, or 57.1% alcohol.
What Are (A) Underproof (B) Proof (C) Overproof ?
Prior to the invention of the hydrometer, a "gunpowder test" was used to determine the strength of spirits. Ordinary gunpowder was saturated with the spirit. If, when lit, the powder flashed, it was "overproof". If it did not, it was "underproof".
Definition of "Underproof" (U.P.)
"Underproof" means BELOW the Standard of Proof (reckoning this as 100%). Thus 30 U.P. or 30 degrees underproof equals (or contains) 70% of proof spirit.
In the same way, 25 U.P. or 25 degrees underproof, is 75% of proof spirit or 75/100.
Definition of "Proof"
The expression "Proof Strength" or "Proof Spirit" as used in Canada and other British Empire countries, means an "arbitrarily adopted standard" of the alcoholic strength of liquids, the primary purpose of which is the computing of Excise and Customs duties. "Proof" strength (which must not be confused with "Pure Alcohol") is determined by an instrument known as a Sikes' hydrometer, and indicates the degree of alcoholic strength possessed by a liquid containing 57.06% by volume, or 49.24% by weight, of absolute alcohol, at a temperature of 60 degrees Fahrenheit.
Definition of "Overproof" (O.P.)
"Overproof" simply means over 100% of proof. Thus 10 O.P. or 10 degrees overproof is 110% of proof spirit.
What's in a word?
Booze is a slang word derived from the Dutch word "bulzer" which means to drink to excess.
Whisky comes from the Gaelic word "ulsge-beatha" or "usquebaugh" as the Irish called it, meaning the "water of life".
Francis de La Boe, a 17th century professor of medicine in Holland, created a botanical flavoured beverage that, because its primary flavour was due to the essential oils extracted from juniper berries, he gave it the French name "jenievre". This later appeared as the Dutch "geneva" and finally was abridged to the English "gin".
Moonshine is described as a product or an operation achieved in the light of the moon.
Product Classification
Names are one of the most confusing aspects of the distilling industry. All alcoholic beverages can be classified with only five designations: raw material, geographic area of production, sweetness, colour and in some cases productions process used. Each product can be uniquely identified in at least one of these categories.
Whisky is identified with certain raw materials - they must be produced from the fermented mash of grain. Three regional classifications are known throughout the world: Canadian, Scotch and Irish, which as the names imply are produced only in these countries.
Roll Out the Barrel
It would take approximately 46,318,000 barrels laid end to end to put a ring of barrels around the circumference of the earth.
No spirit ads on Radio or TV
Contrary to some impressions, Canadian distillers do not use radio or television for advertising purposes. In Canada, federal regulations prohibit such advertising. Although there is no such regulations in the United States, American distillers follow a self-imposed ban on radio and television advertising.
Booze by the Buggyful
The supermarket style liquor store began in the early 1960s as an experiment in the Western Canada. Customers are now able to browse past shelves of liquor to make their selection, instead of reading liquor lists and filling out order forms.
Barrel Experiments
During the 1950s and 1960s, the Seagram Company conducted extensive research into all aspects of the whisky-making process. Two experiments were conducted with barrels. One was a sort of cradle, in which the barrels were continually rocked. The idea was to imitate the motion of a boat. People first realized that whisky improved with age back in the days of sailing ships when some observant drinkers noted that whisky tasted smoother after it spent a few months crossing the Atlantic in oak barrels. This experiment did in fact speed up the maturing process, but the cost of continuously rocking thousands of barrels ruled out any chance of implementation.
The other barrel experiment conducted in the Waterloo plant involved a square whisky barrel design. Ageing whisky in a square barrel did seem to result in a whisky of a different character, but the logistics of moving square barrels soon proved this design impractical.
The whisky trout of Waterloo
The Waterloo plant had a reservoir containing the water they used for mashing and making whisky. For a long-time the reservoir had been home to a supply of very large trout. They were famous as the "whisky trout of Waterloo." So much so that "Mr. Sam" (Sam Bronfman) even had a booklet printed about them. Shortly after the arrival of Waterloo plant manager William Timmis, he was checking the water and detected an odour of fish. It bothered him, as this was the water they used to make the whisky. Mr. Timmis had all of the fish removed and donated them to the Westmount Golf Club.
Seagram’s Crown Royal
In 1950, the formula for Crown Royal was altered, changing the oldest whisky from a 35-year-old to a 30-year-old whisky with subsequent label changes. However, the most dramatic change occurred in Canada in 1984 when the famous purple bag was eliminated from the standard bottle because of federal and provincial taxes. The bag and box were taxed at the same 83% as the whisky inside. The bag remains on bottles for the U.S. market and elsewhere in the world where the package is not taxed.
The black and gold ribbon was added to the V.O. bottle in 1940. The colours were adopted from the famed Seagram family racing stables, which won the Queen's / King's Plate twenty times.
V.O. Ribbon Said to be a Boost for Morale
In 1953, during the Korean War, the "F.I.G.M.O. medal" was added to the list of military decorations.
You couldn't win the medal for heroics, but in Korea it signified you had won an important "battle" - you were going home.
Spelled out, the award meant "finally I've got my orders," and the decoration was the black and gold ribbon adorning the Seagram V.O. bottle.
According to A/2C Billy Henagan and A/3C Richard Fisher, who told Seagram Overseas Corporation of the use of the ribbon by U.S. servicemen: "The wearing of the V.O. ribbon in a conspicuous place symbolizes a happy man about to become part of the civilized world again."
Don't Use Gin to Water Your Lawn
During New York's water shortage of the summer of 1965, residents of the city were asked to "not use our gin to water your lawn!"
However, Distillers Corporation - Seagrams Limited, the largest liquor firm in the world at that time, was happy to relieve the water shortage in another way. It collaborated with Tiffany and Co., the elegant Fifth Avenue jewellery store, to save New York 160 gallons (U.S.) of precious water each day.
Tiffany had two water fountains in its display windows. In a show of concern for the city's plight, the company replaced the now-precious liquid with gin, which flowed over $203,000 worth of jewellery at the rate of one case a day.
Half of the liquor was donated by the Canadian firm, part of an obvious international good neighbour policy. For approximately one month gin flowed in the windows of Tiffany's.
Dating a Whisky Bottle
Q: How do I date an unopened bottle of whisky?
A: Presuming the year is taken from the excise, or tax, sticker located over the top of the bottle, you have to add at least three years. (Canadian Law dictates that Canadian whisky must be aged for a minimum of three years.)
The year on the excise sticker is not the year in which the whisky was bottled. It is the year in which the youngest of the whiskies making up the blend in the bottle was poured into a barrel for ageing.
For example, if the excise label says 1935, like the one seen here, that puts the bottle in the liquor store in 1938. If the bottle says that the whisky has been aged for six years, you would adjust your figures to add six years to the excise label.
During the 1950s and 1960s, the Seagram Company conducted extensive research into all aspects of the whisky-making process. Two experiments were conducted with barrels. One was a sort of cradle, in which the barrels were continually rocked. The idea was to imitate the motion of a boat. People first realized that whisky improved with age back in the days of sailing ships when some observant drinkers noted that whisky tasted smoother after it spent a few months crossing the Atlantic in oak barrels. This experiment did in fact speed up the maturing process, but the cost of continuously rocking thousands of barrels ruled out any chance of implementation.
In 1950, the formula for Crown Royal was altered, changing the oldest whisky from a 35-year-old to a 30-year-old whisky with subsequent label changes. However, the most dramatic change occurred in Canada in 1984 when the famous purple bag was eliminated from the standard bottle because of federal and provincial taxes. The bag and box were taxed at the same 83% as the whisky inside. The bag remains on bottles for the U.S. market and elsewhere in the world where the package is not taxed.
Q: How do I date an unopened bottle of whisky?