German Corn Liquor

[angelshare]

A friend of ours recently gave us a bottle of German corn liquor called "Berentzen Traditions Korn." How similar is this to American corn whiskey or bourbon "white dog?" Does anyone know? Tangentially, what do you think of American corn whiskey sold commercially here? We have disliked the American versions we have tried, but found this German liquor fairly light and refreshing in small quantities. Apparently, the Germans drink it neat and chilled, which is the only manner in which we have consumed it.

[bobbyc]

Some dismiss it out of hand. Others are becoming more astute as time goes by. Jim Murray says all serious students of Bourbon should have a bottle of Mellow Corn on hand . One of the things I look forward to most when touring a distillery is the chance to taste a little " White Dog".

A complete account of such a trip .

Some like it, some don't.

[Gillman]

I never tasted corn whiskey and would like to try it.

The German korns are not necessarily made from corn. The term korn or corn in many European languages means grain. E.g. in England they used to speak of the Corn Laws, which regulated the supply and price of grains of a wide variety. Americans originally spoke of Indian corn to distinguish that variety from European wheat and other grains that were also called corn. This German korn spirit may in fact be made from rye or a mix of grains - or it may be made from all-American-type corn, that is possible. There are similar products in Belgium with which I am more familiar. They are quite varied in flavour, some are aged, some are flavored, most are not aged for very long. The ones I know also are light-tasting and best drunk cold. I think this is an interesting spirit and it has been said that korn-type distillates likely inspired the first rye whiskeys in Western Pennsylvania, or some of them.

Gary

[bobbyc]

It would be nice if Heaven Hill sends along a bottle of Mellow Corn for the Sampler, would it not?

[Gillman]

Well I wouldn't refuse a taste. Now that I think on it, I may bring one of these Belgian drinks to try to see if anyone thinks it resembles American rye whiskey. I have one that is 5 years old made from rye, barley malt, corn and wheat. It sounds like a four grain mash such as we have discussed here, where there is a predominant grain (likely here the rye) and the rest are the small grains. This brand, Filliers of Belgium (it is in the French part of the country in the South), is interesting and I think I'll bring it with me. To me it resembles more Canadian whisky than U.S. rye but it has still a very definite taste. I don't think it is made from neutral spirits aged to take color from the wood. This may be the kind of spirit that immigrants to 18th century America knew who came from various Northern European countries. Except I would think such spirits were heavier than today's versions because made at the time in pot stills and still carrying a lot of flavour from the fermentable materials. In this sense, American rye whiskey might actually show more of the true character of korn/geneva gins/vodkas of the time than most such items made in Europe today. In fact, I believe that to be the case, but it is still interesting to check out these European "cousins" to see if they relate to rye whiskey made in the U.S. today. And as has been mentioned, young corn whsikey is still made in the U.S., so that is another point of comparison.

Gary

[Barrel_Proof]

Since this thread has wandered into multi-grain whiskies, has anyone tasted <font color="brown">Ten Distillers</font>, the Kirin-Seagrams product?

I've never even seen a bottle.

[LeNell]

My understanding is that this product is a schnapps made from wheat.