BarItemsPlus1 Posted February 17, 2006 Share Posted February 17, 2006 Hi again:grin: I have been thinking about a possible marketing aspect and I would value peoples thoughts, general public and industry alike, on this....I have been reading many people asking the differences between each bottling and the particular receipe ie. Corn/Wheat or Rye ratio and I have been thinking that it should be used as a marketing point and included to some degree on the label??I am aware most distillers would not want to reveal this but....Times are a'changin and in my personal opinion I see that it could be used in a most beneficial way. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
etohchem Posted February 17, 2006 Share Posted February 17, 2006 Never...and I repeat NEVER....going to happen. Recipe's are secret even within the company. Most Masterdistiller's won't even tell people in the same company the exact recipe's used. There are generality's made like "70-10-15" or "approximately 60% Corn, 20%wheat, and 20% malt". But the true masterdistiller's know down to the ounce what the true proportions are and they don't tell. Etohchem Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
barturtle Posted February 17, 2006 Share Posted February 17, 2006 The possible problem here is that so many people have over the years worked with each other refining recipes that many of these may be so close to each other that it may do nothing more than confuse the average customer who knows nothing of the rest of the distilling and aging and barrel selection process.While I don't think this should end up on the label, I would love the distillers to make this info available on their website-after all, I'm quite sure that enough families have worked in different distilleries that things like mashbills are almost common knowledge among distilling families. While I think something like a mashbill would cause little harm to publish, because of the thing mentioned above, stuff like proof off the still, barreling proof, water filtration types are more proprietory.Ah I see etochem got a response up first. I think that general "70-10-15"(which doesn't quite add up:cool: ) is what he's talking about-It's what I refer to anyway. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BarItemsPlus1 Posted February 17, 2006 Author Share Posted February 17, 2006 As I stated.......I am aware that the distillers won't reveal this!!But you have in turn answered part of my question....I do believe that the ratio format. ie. "Brand Name"....made from 54% Corn....could have a value in the marketing of the brand. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BarItemsPlus1 Posted February 17, 2006 Author Share Posted February 17, 2006 Yes you are quite right Tim with regards to the similarities in the actual receipe. I do see that, but then maybe something along the lines, as you said, about maybe the proof when it goes into the barrel...etc.I know that with the single barrel offerings that is the whole marketing aspect about the whiskey, but with the 'general' offerings the differences are generally the ages that are used as the marketing point. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wku88 Posted February 18, 2006 Share Posted February 18, 2006 Percentages of grain used aren't the real secret. You could get 5 different distillers to make still beer with the same ratio of grain, and you'd get 5 different whisky's. Where they GET the grain, how the malt is made, and most importantly, the yeast strain is the real secret. Not to mention the different barrel chars, aging, etc. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bobbyc Posted February 18, 2006 Share Posted February 18, 2006 Look at how much fun we once had with this very topic!http://www.straightbourbon.com/forums/showthread.php?t=2409 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TMH Posted February 18, 2006 Share Posted February 18, 2006 Interesting idea. Given that the segment that purchases the most bourbon (21-34 years) isn't paying attention to the ingredients, I'd say no it would be a waste. Those that care, like members of this board, can get information about the product being wheat or rye based without looking at a label. Further, given the fact that most of us tend to care more about other aspects, like chill filtration and barrel entry proof, it would be a waste of time. There are too many variables that contribute to the success of a bourbon too list. It's better to let marketing sell the product on something simple like image or cost than to complicate things. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BSS Posted February 18, 2006 Share Posted February 18, 2006 I think this would be a waste of time and ink on the label(Not to say a lot of ink isn't already wasted on them with what I would call far fetched stories). Most bourbon drinkers don't care in the slightest bit and they wouldn't know the difference if they did care.Saying the bourbon is made of ##% whatever tells most consumers nothing. And I would guess the marketing is directed at most consumers. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mrt Posted February 19, 2006 Share Posted February 19, 2006 I like detailed labels, so some info about the ingredients wouldn't be bad IMO. Not to mention the exact mashbill, though. Well, I like examining the bottle and reading the label. That completes my mood Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gr8erdane Posted February 21, 2006 Share Posted February 21, 2006 As far as I'm concerned the only things I look at on a label are age, proof, and that it's straight bourbon whiskey. Anything else it says on the label is irrelevent to me until I open the bottle and taste. That's the proof of the pudding. Entry proofs, mashbills, filtering, distillery name (dbas included), logos and any other information on the label means doodley squat if you don't like the taste. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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