sku Posted April 2, 2012 Share Posted April 2, 2012 How on earth did this get by the TTB?https://www.ttbonline.gov/ALFD/publicViewImage.do?id=10327003000001Last time I checked, Potatoes weren't a grain.Anyone heard of or tried it? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bourbon Boiler Posted April 3, 2012 Share Posted April 3, 2012 and it's from a company with "Clear Spirits" in the name. Maybe "Aged Vodka" didn't market test well.That said, it's clear enough what they are doing that the TTB couldn't say there was an intent to decieve. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sku Posted April 3, 2012 Author Share Posted April 3, 2012 That said, it's clear enough what they are doing that the TTB couldn't say there was an intent to decieve.Yes, they're clear about it being made from potato, but it clearly doesn't meet the definition of whiskey, which requires the distillate to be from grain. If you're going to have potato whiskey, why not grape whiskey, sugar whiskey, apple whiskey...or for that matter potato rum? It's very weird. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
White Dog Posted April 3, 2012 Share Posted April 3, 2012 and it's from a company with "Clear Spirits" in the name. Maybe "Aged Vodka" didn't market test well.That said, it's clear enough what they are doing that the TTB couldn't say there was an intent to decieve.Deception isn't the issue. Does whiskey need not be distilled from grain?? I thought it had.(Wow, SKU. You beat me by a second!) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sku Posted April 3, 2012 Author Share Posted April 3, 2012 (Wow, SKU. You beat me by a second!)That's why they call me the fastest whiskey geek this side of the Pecos. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bourbon Boiler Posted April 3, 2012 Share Posted April 3, 2012 Here's the text defining the whisky class:"Spirits distilled from a fermentedmash of grain at less than 95%alcohol by volume (190 proof) havingthe taste, aroma and characteristicsgenerally attributed to whisky andbottled at not less than 40% alcoholby volume (80 proof)" Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cowdery Posted April 3, 2012 Share Posted April 3, 2012 How on earth did this get by the TTB?https://www.ttbonline.gov/ALFD/publicViewImage.do?id=10327003000001Last time I checked, Potatoes weren't a grain.Anyone heard of or tried it? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sku Posted April 3, 2012 Author Share Posted April 3, 2012 Why are you so sure it did get by TTB? Yes, I can see the COLA, but has anyone seen this product in the marketplace? I would object to TTB, but not before I know this product is actually on sale somewhere. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cowdery Posted April 3, 2012 Share Posted April 3, 2012 Don't you think it's weird that the Boulder Distillery's web site has nothing on it about its products?I have queried TTB, with a copy to Boulder Distillery. I'll let you know what happens. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sku Posted April 3, 2012 Author Share Posted April 3, 2012 Don't you think it's weird that the Boulder Distillery's web site has nothing on it about its products? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
macdeffe Posted April 3, 2012 Share Posted April 3, 2012 I can't even find a reference for it being aged..Steffen Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cowdery Posted April 3, 2012 Share Posted April 3, 2012 I can't even find a reference for it being aged..Steffen Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Josh Posted April 3, 2012 Share Posted April 3, 2012 Eddu claims to be whisky made from buckwheat, which is not really a grain (it's not a grass) either despite having "wheat" in the name.http://www.distillerie.fr/en/eddu_silver.htmlSurprised no American micro has tried that yet. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sku Posted April 3, 2012 Author Share Posted April 3, 2012 Eddu claims to be whisky made from buckwheat, which is not really a grain (it's not a grass) either despite having "wheat" in the name.http://www.distillerie.fr/en/eddu_silver.htmlSurprised no American micro has tried that yet.Ah, but they have. Heston Farms in West Virginia makes Buckwheat Moon, a buckwheat whiskey. http://hestonfarm.com/distillery Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
redbear Posted April 3, 2012 Share Posted April 3, 2012 So, their homepage has this image on it. Moonshine out of a pig's behind? Sounds tasty! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cowdery Posted April 3, 2012 Share Posted April 3, 2012 While the EU rules specify cereal grain, the U.S. rules just use the word 'grain.' An argument can be made, therefore, that while not a cereal, the buckwheat seed is a grain under the meaning of the law. Problem is, that opens the door to lentil whiskey, and no one wants that.I have received acknowledgment from TTB. They're looking into it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Josh Posted April 3, 2012 Share Posted April 3, 2012 So, their homepage has this image on it. Moonshine out of a pig's behind? Sounds tasty! Reminds me of a flask from antiques roadshow a few years ago: http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/roadshow/archive/200603A28.html Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
callmeox Posted April 3, 2012 Share Posted April 3, 2012 While the EU rules specify cereal grain, the U.S. rules just use the word 'grain.' An argument can be made, therefore, that while not a cereal, the buckwheat seed is a grain under the meaning of the law. Problem is, that opens the door to lentil whiskey, and no one wants that.I have received acknowledgment from TTB. They're looking into it.You involved the feds? Have you no respect for the livelyhood of the poor artisan who is simply trying to carve out a meager existence? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Josh Posted April 3, 2012 Share Posted April 3, 2012 You involved the feds? Have you no respect for the livelyhood of the poor artisan who is simply trying to carve out a meager existence?It's the worst kind of elitism. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CorvallisCracker Posted April 3, 2012 Share Posted April 3, 2012 There is an awful lot of people who believe Irish whiskey is made from potatoes...(when I first keyed that in I used the word "astonishing" rather than "awful" but then considered the long list of other silly things people believe...and went back and changed it...) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
moose Posted April 3, 2012 Share Posted April 3, 2012 I sampled it last year and did not much care for it, didn't even taste like a whiskey to me. The tell was that when I asked the rep what they would compare it to, they had no answer. Maybe I got stuck with a dimwit rep because they didn't seem too knowledgeable on the whiskey side of things, but I really didn't care for their attempt at whiskey at all. Their vodka is fair, but I haven't had anything spectacular from them, their Gin made me cringe too.http://www.drinkspirits.com/distillers/boulder-distillery-303-vodka/ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bmac Posted April 3, 2012 Share Posted April 3, 2012 Seems to me that if you created a spirit from a potato...it's vodka (which just means alcohol.) If you age it, then it's aged vodka.They can call it whiskey...don't mean it is whiskey (said in my thickest Texan accent.)However, on second thought, what if they just added potato to a grain mix? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CorvallisCracker Posted April 3, 2012 Share Posted April 3, 2012 Seems to me that if you created a spirit from a potato...it's vodka (which just means alcohol.) If you age it, then it's aged vodka.Vodka must be distilled at a minimum 95% ABV (190 proof).So what would you call a vodka distillate that was produced at a lower proof?It might be they queried the TTB on this point, who came back with, "Oh, hell, call it whiskey if you want." Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sku Posted April 3, 2012 Author Share Posted April 3, 2012 It might be they queried the TTB on this point, who came back with, "Oh, hell, call it whiskey if you want."Yeah, I've heard that the TTB process can be, how should we say, less than rigorous. Apparently the industry practice if you have a label rejected is to send the exact label back again and hope it lands on someone else's desk. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brisko Posted April 3, 2012 Share Posted April 3, 2012 Vodka must be distilled at a minimum 95% ABV (190 proof).So what would you call a vodka distillate that was produced at a lower proof?Potcheen, maybe? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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