The craft spirit industry is in the midst of a boom, but confusion remains about what exactly qualifies a spirit as ‘craft’ and, as a consumer, how to know if what you’re buying is actually considered ‘craft’.
What Is A Craft Spirit
Unlike craft beer, there is no national, over-arching legislation defining what can be called a ‘craft’ spirit. No production minimum, no control of additives or ‘fake’ ingredients (outside of existing parameters for specific spirit categories), no corporate vs. private ownership status requirement.
Adding to the confusion is that a ‘craft’ spirit can be made from a non-craft base.
In the case of craft vodkas and gins, the base spirit often originates from a neutral spirit purchased in bulk from industrial suppliers. As for whiskey, independent bottlers who purchase aged whiskey by the barrel then blend, or ‘cut’, it to create something new can also be considered ‘craft’.
As you can see, there’s a fair amount of gray when it comes to what is and is not a craft spirit. However, industry advocacy groups, including the American Craft Distillers Association (ACDA) and the American Distilling Institute (ADI), have created some guidelines to address the question, mostly based on ownership and production/sales numbers.
Production-wise, the general consensus is that to be considered ‘craft’, no more than 100,000 proof gallons can be produced per year.
As for ownership, both groups maintain that in order to qualify as a craft spirit, the distilled spirits plant (DSP) where the spirit is produced must be independently-owned.
Meaning “less than 25% is owned or controlled by alcoholic beverage industry members who are not themselves craft distillers.”
ADI goes a step further in its qualification rules by not only including a provision about ‘vision‘, but by also distinguishing between ‘craft distilled’ and ‘craft-blended’ spirits, the former requiring that the spirit is distilled by the DSP itself while the ladder originates from a non-craft base.
How To Tell The Difference
So, let’s summarize. A craft spirit is one that is produced in smaller quantities by an independently-owned distillery, of which there are essentially two types:
CRAFT DISTILLED SPIRITS: Goes from grain to bottle in-house at the craft distillery; the bottle declares “distilled and bottled in..”
CRAFT-BLENDED SPIRITS: Originates from commercially produced spirits that are then blended by the craft distillery; the bottle declares only “bottled in…”
Although a bottle may make several references to a state, like Tincup does with Colorado, this does not mean it is a craft distilled spirit unless the label specifically reads “distilled and bottled in…” In Tincup’s case, it does not; Colorado refers to the fact that the whiskey is cut with local water, so it is a craft-blended spirit.
If you’re thinking this is quite deceiving, then you’re on the money.
The craft spirit industry is full of clever marketing meant to entice buyers. Words like “small batch” or “handcrafted” may look good, but, remember, the only way to truly know what you’re buying is by looking at the writing on the label!
The best bartenders get a kick out of knowing they’re helping people have a good time – but what if it goes too far? Should bartenders be to blame if someone drinks themselves into injury or illness?
Bartending is a profession dedicated to the art of hospitality, but working with alcohol is not a position of power that should ever be taken lightly.
While the cocktail sector is exploding with boundary-pushing innovation, it is imperative the industry does not become detached from the dangers associated with what is, after all, an intoxicating drug.
In numerous countries including the UK, the US and Australia, legislation has been put in place making it illegal to sell alcohol to a person who is obviously drunk, and similarly, to buy an alcoholic drink for someone you know to be drunk.
However, despite the foundation of such laws, questions abound over who is responsible for ensuring the industry is not plagued with a problem of over-consumption.
During recent months, the media has been awash with a string of high-profile tragedies involving the apparent “over-serving” of alcohol, a handful of which have had calamitous consequences.
In April 2015, Martell’s Tiki Bar in Point Pleasant Beach, Jersey Shore, US, was fined $500,000 and had its licence revoked for a month after allegedly over-serving alcohol to a woman who later died in a car crash.
Tragic incident
The incident unfolded in 2013 after Ashley Chieco, 26, left Martell’s in another person’s car, which collided with an oncoming vehicle, killing herself and injuring the other driver, Dana Corrar.
The survivor suffered two broken legs, broken ribs and will “never work again, never walk again normally and never be pain-free,” according to her lawyer, Paul Edelstein, a personal injury specialist. Martell’s pleaded “no contest” to the charge of serving alcohol to an intoxicated person in exchange for the fine.
“Businesses that profit from the sale of alcohol are well aware of its dangers, particularly when combined with people who then get into vehicles.”
Edelstein adds that “it is akin to a shop selling bullets and then allowing its customers access to a gun when they leave. Hopefully, the attention alone will make a bartender think twice before continuing to serve someone and inquire as to how they are leaving a location that does not provide access to mass transit.”
So when it comes to alcohol consumption where does the responsibility of the bartender start and that of the consumer end?
For some, all persons involved – the consumer, bartender and management – have a collective duty for the wellbeing of both patrons and staff.
“First and foremost, obviously the customer should know their own limits, however we all know that is not always the case. Bartenders should make safe service of alcohol a huge priority in day-to-day business and the owner of the bar should take a vested interest in the education of the staff about over-serving and the dangers and consequences.”
But for others, the responsibility rests with those in a managerial position who need to step up to their line of duties.
“Inevitably, the responsibility lies with the management chain – they are the licensees,” says British bartender and entrepreneur JJ Goodman, co-founder of the London Cocktail Club.
“In the UK we have an inherent history of binge drinking, so customers aren’t very perceptive to being told they’re not allowed another drink. When that sort of situation occurs, someone more senior and experienced needs to come in to handle it and command control as quickly as possible.”
Diffusing the situation
Similar snippets of advice surrounding this irrefutably sensitive subject are echoed throughout the industry.
Accusing guests of being drunk is deemed as the biggest faux pas, and a sure fire way to escalate an already testing episode.
Avoiding embarrassment, ascertaining a first name basis and gaining the aid and trust of any peers who may be present are all recommended methods when it comes to diffusing any drama involved with this task.
Various initiatives have been instigated to curtail irresponsible service and consumption. At the end of 2014, the British Beer and Pub Association launched a poster campaign in the UK to drive awareness among consumers and on-trade establishments of the law surrounding serving people who are obviously drunk.
“It’s not about getting more prosecutions; it’s about raising awareness.”
Brigid Simmonds, chief executive of the British Beer and Pub Association, continues by explaining that, “it’s important we don’t turn pubs and bars into fortresses – we want to encourage people to go to these socially responsible places. But we need to find a balance between staff responsibility and personal responsibility.”
The food truck fad has had a significant impact on the food & beverage industry, creating a new approach to serving food and granting many the opportunity become small business owners. However, as popularity grows, food truck owners are starting to feel the pressure.
One of the main challenges encountered by food trucks nationwide is coming from backlash within the community.
With the harsh sentiment that pop-up businesses, such as food trucks, enjoy an unfair advantage and negatively impact trade, business owners with established reputations and a stake in the community are making their complaints heard.
The American Dream seems to be in question.
While city politicians like to stand behind that dream, they are also responsible for protecting local commerce, leading to ever-changing legislation, some of which helps food truck owners succeed and some of which dooms their business to failure. These regulatory changes are ongoing, from the Pacific to the Atlantic, potentially opening doors in Seattle while closing others in Texas.
For one former food truck vendor who plied his trade in the middle of the country, the continual changes proved to be too much. His 2014 experience that welcomed the new year with a mad rush of investment ended at Christmas with disaster and debt, a common story heard all across the country.
Eddie Lawrence, a former food truck owner, believed with every fiber of his being that Americans would rush to try his very British, unsalted version of fried Atlantic cod with a heaping pile of hand-cut fries.
His venue near the center of Bentonville, Arkansas seemed like a shoo-in. However, red flags flew early on when Bentonville’s mayor Bob McCaslin learned too late that Lawrence had received his business permit from City Planning. Summoned to City Hall, Lawrence tells us McCaslin was none too happy.
“He went on about how he wouldn’t have approved it and I wasn’t going to get renewed next year, neither.”
And sure enough, as the weeks progressed, the city dispensed regulatory updates that hindered business for Eddie and a half dozen other local vendors, a few of which were long-established in the close-knit community of businesses around Bentonville Square.
While legislative changes did make things more difficult, it may not have been the main cause of Eddie’s business failure, as well as that of almost every other Bentonville food truck.
Compared to local legislation, standard business regulations have a much greater impact on the entire concept of the pop-up business.
One problem Eddie remembers was an unexpected introduction into sales and employee taxation requirements. As new vendors came into the area, he found they were as much in the dark as he was, and made a point to give them a heads-up on the tax situation. In the end, he says his quarterly unemployment insurance payment did him in.
Beyond the government and the law, there seems to be another consistent factor causing these food trucks to end up out of business. Many of these small businesses are run by just a few who may not have much experience running a company.
In the end, the lack of know-how seems to be the nail in the coffin.
Currently, the cost of food trucks has plummeted as an increasing number of barely used trucks and trailers find their way into consignment lots. Eddie Lawrence was lucky, since he built out his own trailer. He reports a loss of about half of the build cost by the time he finally managed to sell it almost a year after closing, and counted himself lucky at that.
As Big Beer creeps into town, locals want to change the lingo. Craft is dead. Now we drink Indie Beer.
The term Craft Beer may be in need of a makeover. Last week, the Union-Tribune reported that Bend, Oregon’s 10 Barrel Brewing Co. has proposed a 10,000-square-foot brewpub in East Village. In response, local beer industry podcasters have doubled down on a push to describe independently owned breweries as Indie Beer companies, rather than craft.
Not because 10 Barrel hails from Oregon but because in 2014 the company was purchased by AB InBev, the conglomerate responsible for one-third of the planet’s beer supply, including core brands Budweiser, Corona, and Stella Artois. It owns 10 Barrel brewpubs in Oregon and Idaho and recently announced plans for one in Denver.
The podcasters believe consumers who patronize 10 Barrel brewpubs mistakenly believe they are supporting small business rather than a global entity.
The Indie Beer designation (and social media hashtag) arose during a November 17 podcast on ThreeBZine.com, a blog devoted to local beer, music, and food, during a discussion in which podcasters Cody Thompson, Dustin Lothspeich, and Tom Pritchard decried the efforts of “Big Beer” to enter the craft beer marketplace.
“Is craft beer even a thing anymore, or is it just marketing?” asked Pritchard. “It’s been appropriated by corporations.”
Taking a cue from the concept of Indie Rock in the music industry, the trio settled on Indie Beer as a way to distinguish small, privately owned businesses.
ThreeBZine’s use of Indie Beer was quickly picked up by fellow podcasters Perfect Pour, out of Fresno, and SD BeerTalk. BeerTalk co-hosts Greg Homyak and Brian Beagle have been active in promoting the Indie Beer concept, locally and online.
“It immediately resonated with me as a craft beer drinker,” says Homyak, who points to the 10 Barrel brewpub as a prime example of the need for new terminology. “It is something that looks like Independent Beer and will sell itself as that, but in actuality it is not.”
The podcasters hope the term will encourage local beer fans to support small businesses like Monkey Paw Brewing, which sits just a block from the proposed 10 Barrel site. Monkey Paw owner Scot Blair also addressed the dilution of the term “craft” in a January newsletter sent to patrons of his South Park taproom Hamilton’s Tavern.
He declares “Craft is dead.”
Blair states that the encroachment of big beer is “making it impossible to not find new terms to define things that I do versus AB or giant restaurant groups,” and pledges, “We will continue to make top-shelf, award-winning, world-class indie beer for our beloved fans of micro brew.”
A recent wine survey commissioned by online wine service Taste4, a wine subscription service that delivers four bottles a month to its customers, revealed the 10 wine terms that customers are least likely to understand when deciding what wines to buy.
The survey, which questioned 2,000 wine drinkers, revealed that 32% of participants didn’t realise that the word “tart” is used to describe a more acidic wine. In fact, as many as 11% thought it meant a “cheap, brash wine unsuitable for respectable company.”
On top of that, just 23% understood the term “terroir“, which refers to the degree to which a region’s geographic qualities affects the taste of wine. Similarly, only 20% knew of drinkers knew that a wine “with legs” referred to its increased alcohol content.
Tom Laithwaite of taste4 believes that the lack of knowledge in wine terminology is due to its antiquity.
“The way we drink wine has become more casual, informal and leisurely, but the language wrapped around it hasn’t moved with the times.”
So, without further ado, here are the 10 least understood wine terms, and the percentage of customers likely to use them:
Bouquet – 21%
Nose – 11%
Tart – 10%
Quaffable – 10%
Legs – 5%
Terroir – 3%
Unctuous – 3%
Herbaceous – 2%
Hollow – 2%
Vegetal – 2%
Other interesting survey conclusions were that 25% of drinkers found shopping for new wines an intimidating experience and that almost half (45%) tend to stick to the same grapes, such as Sauvignon Blanc or Chardonnay when choosing wines at supermarkets. Tom Laithwaite has thoughts on this as well:
“People want to learn more about wine and discover new tastes without being confused or awkward when buying it or talking about it with their friends.”
As a result of the survey findings, taste4 has banned all of these terms from being used on its website.
From California doubling down on Tuesday night wines to Oregon’s embrace of a new muse to the Savoie finally climbing out of the Jura’s hip-cocked shadow, Jon Bonné lays out the wine stories that will make a difference in 2016…
Why did this year in wine feel so off-kilter? I was wondering that the other day as I took quiet satisfaction in browsing photos of U.S. marshals crushing Rudy Kurniawan’s fake bottles into shards of glass, an epilogue to the era of overkill that brought us the wine world’s biggest fraud. I had that same disorientation, and not in a bad way, when I heard that a major Champagne house, Taittinger, was founding its own sparkling wine property on English soil.
For sure, their move was an affirmation of the surging quality in English sparkling wine, something that’s been happening for years. But it was also upending an 800-year tradition. For centuries the British had crossed the water to opportunistically slake their thirst; now France is reversing the trend. In part, at least, because young growers and small firms in Champagne have captured most of the attention at home. The old guard is now scrambling to find somewhere else to play.
And speaking of those 800 years of pilfering France’s bounty: Bordeaux this year seemed at ends about how to deal with much of the modern world no longer caring about it. The region, which loves prestige and scores like no other, still doesn’t quite seem to have comprehended that Robert Parker, after nearly four decades, wasn’t going to rate its new vintage, having handed off that duty to Neal Martin. (Martin is a terrific critic, and the changing of guard should have been welcome. But Bordeaux doesn’t do change well.)
There was the rosé craze, again. Many of us had spent years pleading its case, only to find in 2015 that those dreams came just a bit too true. From White Girl Rosé (please, no) to brosé (really, no), its popularity didn’t just peak-it crested and began spiraling out of control.
Inevitably, a pink-wine backlash ensued, which wasn’t really fair, because rosé never asked to become a worn-out meme.
And, as if we needed one more confirmation that the wine world’s axis was tilting, Georges Duboeuf, the Beaujolais firm, parted ways with Deutsch Family-the U.S. importer that, together with Duboeuf, created the American thirst for Beaujolais Nouveau-in favor of an importer who plans to focus on Duboeuf’s higher-end cru Beaujolais and other wines. Yeah, Beaujolais is a serious wine now; and yes, we’ve talked about it plenty. But here is the final kicker: Even the king of Nouveau got the memo.
All of these are symbolic milestones on their own. But together, they add up to larger shift that’s been building over the past half-decade: 2015 was the year when wine-good wine-stopped being so damned elitist. It’s no longer a game to be played by dudes in ties or a principality governed by arcane and archaic rules. The old tropes, most of which had been worn out for a while, are now set to be fully retired-as are all those complaints about would-be wine snobs. (Who, pray tell, might these “snobs” be? Anyone who spots the flaws in a load of populist claptrap?)
Even if we’re still sorting out the new rituals and language-please, let us never again say we are “crushing” a bottle of “juice”-wine can now be loved in ways that are both serious and casual. So perhaps 2015 was the last hurrah for the old guard, of a generation consumed by ambition-one that viewed both winemaking and wine buying as a score-driven charge to some arbitrary finish line.
Now to the fun part: What happens next?
Here are five wine stories that will make a difference in 2016.
Muscadet Grows Up
For years, a small band of wine people have been suggesting that Muscadet, the eminently mineral wine of the western Loire, had more to offer than sheer drinkability and friendliness to seafood. We’ve put forward bottles like Luneau-Papin’s Excelsior and Domaine de la Pépière’s Clisson as evidence that these wines can evolve and age just like many white Burgundies, despite the fact that it’s made from the humble melon grape-which isn’t so lowly after all.
But what’s happening today in Muscadet is essentially the white-wine equivalent of what has happened in Beaujolais. A raft of serious-minded producers are discussing not only the terroir of the nine crus communaux (much like a village designation in Burgundy), but specific vineyards and parcels, too-their nuances perceptible thanks to the region’s generally transparent winemaking. (The naturalists are at work, too, making unsulfured and skin-fermented Muscadet.) Since even Chablis has become a bit expensive for daily life, Muscadet is our new white-wine salvation.
Drink these: The wines from : The wines from Vincent Caillé have all the right cred for this new era: organic farming in several of the crus, and minimal work in the cellar. (There’s even an amphora.) Look for his Domaine le Fay d’Homme Monnières-Saint Fiacre ($25), from a cru known for its mix of acidic gneiss and sandy loam; at five years old, the 2010 is flinty and still very young, with a hint of oiliness from four years on its lees. Similarly, the Les Bêtes Curieuses project from Jérémie Huchet and Jérémie Mourat seeks old parcels to show the terroir. Their 2014 La Perdrix de L’Année ($16) finds the right balance of richness and a coppery minerality from a sand-and-granite parcel in Clisson.
Oregon Embraces Its Loire Fetish
As Oregon’s pinot noir industry celebrated its 50th birthday this year, it finally hit a sort of tipping point with the arrival of big players like Burgundy’s Louis Jadot and, perhaps less auspiciously, California’s Caymus (with its big Elouan project). The state’s small-is-good mentality has, thus, come up against the boom that places like Sonoma faced 20 years ago. That left some of the state’s true believers wondering what would come next. Riesling? Yes, in a small way. Chardonnay? Perhaps, but expanding the chardonnay universe is a bit of a fool’s errand.
Instead, some folks on the fringe have advanced a different theory: What if Oregon’s legacy lies not in the echo of Burgundy, but in channeling the Loire? Portland-based wineries like Bow & Arrow, Leah Jørgensen Cellars and Division Winemaking Company have all been pursuing that notion for several years now. But with the indie status of Oregon pinot beginning to tarnish, 2016 may be the year where their notion catches on. In their telling, it’s cabernet franc, gamay noir and chenin blanc that could be the Northwest’s great hope. True, some of them also work with pinot, although their inspiration is still more Loire-where the grape also grows. (Other alt-Oregon proponents will likely rise in this, too, including Brianne Day, who has caught attention for her malvasia and côt-tannat blend; and Teutonic Wine Co., inspired by a region of Europe you can probably guess.)
Drink these: I’ve been admiring Leah Jørgensen’s wines for a few years, especially her Applegate Valley Blanc de Cabernet Franc ($26), which highlights that grape’s peppercorn character, but in the form of a vibrant mostly-white wine. Bow & Arrow’s Air Guitar ($27), a mix of cabernets franc and sauvignon, makes a strong case for both varieties on Oregon soil.
Pét-Nat Lives!
Pétillant naturel is sparkling wine in which the fizz comes from finishing the primary fermentation in a bottle, where gas is trapped. After having its moment for the past couple of years, there’s a growing drumbeat that it is set to fade.
Not so, my trend-spiking amigos. If anything, pét-nat is expanding. Every time I turn around there’s another winemaker trying their hand from California and Oregon to Long Island and the Finger Lakes to nearly every corner of France. (The Loire area of Montlouis even now has its own appellation for so-called pétillant originel, made without added sugar.) In many cases, pét-nat is their opportunity to make something a bit more freeform in nature, closer to craft beer than wine. And good for them: These are pleasing and uncomplicated wines, and yet they have a seriousness-even with the crown caps-that goes completely the opposite direction from the cheap cava and prosecco that once stood for bubbles you could drink when not drinking Champagne. A handful of traditional prosecco makers are even expanding their work with col fondo, a cousin of pét-nat that retains its lees in the bottle.
Drink these: La Grange Tiphaine’s work in the central Loire shows the best aspects of chenin blanc, including their Nouveau Nez Montlouis-sur-Loire Pétillant Originel ($27), as does the Les Capriades Pet’Sec ($26), both of which show the fresh and mineral side of the grape more than its apple-like aspects. In California, look for new versions from Onward, Los Pilares, Scar of the Sea, Cruse Wine Co. and more. From New York, Bellwether (Finger Lakes), Southold Farm + Cellar and Channing Daughters (Long Island) are names to watch, as are Casa Belfi, Costadilá and Casa Coste Piane on the col fondo front.
A Spotlight for The Region That’s Not the Jura
The Savoie is often lumped together with the Jura, even though they share neither proximity nor geology. (It’s a two-hour drive, or about the distance from Meursault to Côte Rotie.)
The Savoie finally seems ready for its well-deserved shot at Jura-like exposure. Some credit can go to Dominique Belluard, whose sparkling and still wines have found a willing audience among serious wine buyers-including a lot of Burg-philes-and to naturalist producers like Jean-Yves Péron. A bit also goes to the oddball parade of grapes, including jacquère and mondeuse, which are propelling that newfound interest. And whatever is left to the fact that the alpine Savoie and nearby Bugey-annotating the western edge of Switzerland as they do-seem like two rare places still untrammeled by a wine world that’s kicking over every stone.
There are plenty of regions trying to rewrite their elevator pitch, whether it’s the New Australia (super exciting, still rather expensive) or Canada or elsewhere. But California’s reformation is still paying dividends, including a bit of progress on one of my major worries about it: that the interesting new wines are too expensive.
Price remains a big concern for California, but the universe of compelling, small-production wines in the $20 to $30 range keeps growing, thanks in part to things like pét-nat, but also the realization that the only way many drinkers will come back to California is if there are wines that share not only their values (usually, a repudiation of Big Wine) but their budget. There’s plenty of work left to do, but we’ll take progress where we can.
Drink these: The La Clarine Farm Jambalaia Rouge ($26) from the Sierra Foothills jumbles up red (mourvedre, grenache), and white (marsanne, fiano, arneis) grapes for a chuggable specimen that’s neither quite red or white, while wine like the Brea Chardonnay ($14) from the Central Coast offers a more virtuous choice for an everyday table wine. And look for bottles from Birichino, Rootdown, Tendu, Jolie-Laide, Leo Steen, P’tit Paysan, Broc Cellars, Ryme Cellars and many more.
Other Stories to Watch
The New Australia, as mentioned above, will finally catch the attention it’s been seeking. Greece, after years of being patted on the head, will rise from its economic muddle to become a serious contender to Spain and Italy-especially with its underappreciated red wines. And finally, as the coverage of sommeliers continues to mature, we’ll see more serious coverage of wine lists, which generate a lot of restaurants’ revenue, and remain a disproportionately small part of the conversation.
From California doubling down on Tuesday night wines to Oregon’s embrace of a new muse to the Savoie finally climbing out of the Jura’s hip-cocked shadow, Jon Bonné lays out the wine stories that will make a difference in 2016.
