schnapps vs brandy

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BrooklynTech
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schnapps vs brandy

Post by BrooklynTech »

Is there a difference between schnapps and brandy?
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Re: schnapps vs brandy

Post by LWTCS »

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Schnapps" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;" rel="nofollow

And then

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brandy" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;" rel="nofollow
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Re: schnapps vs brandy

Post by Odin »

Brandy comes from "brandewijn": burned (distilled) wine. That makes a brandy a distilled wine. Schnapps is not from a drinkable wine. Just from a "distillation wine": a vehicle carying over taste & abv from the fruit source it is made of.

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Re: schnapps vs brandy

Post by Braz »

In my view the primary difference between schnapps and brandy is in how (if) it is aged. Both are produced by distilling a fruit wine of one sort or another, but brandies are aged in oak barrels which imparts the amber color and the "oakey" flavors while schnapps are kept white.

Then there are those American concoctions that are flavored liqueurs which are called schnapps but which have no bearing on this discussion.
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Re: schnapps vs brandy

Post by blind drunk »

Schnapps is a fancy word for white dog, with fruit :wink:
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Re: schnapps vs brandy

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blind drunk wrote:Schnapps is a fancy word for white dog, with fruit :wink:
You sir,,, are a barbarian. Kinda how I envision things also......And please pass the gray poupone.
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Re: schnapps vs brandy

Post by Odin »

Braz,

Understand your point. Originally though brandy was not oaked. It was made in western France and traders shipped it, because it gave them a drink that would stay good for a longer period of time. Distilled wine was added to wine to up the ABV. I am talking early 17th century here. Nowadays, many brandies are aged, but it is not a necesity. Actually, the first matured brandy was after a German - French war, making shiping brandywine impossible. By the time the traders came back and asked "where is the brandywine?", the French pointed at the barrels with - definitaly - brandy turned sour. Only, after sipping it turned out to be ... Cognac!

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Re: schnapps vs brandy

Post by BrooklynTech »

I'm still a bit confused, nothing unusual about that.

so Brandy is made from wine. But is it aged before distilling?

Schnapps is also made from a "wine", which is not aged before distilling?
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Re: schnapps vs brandy

Post by Braz »

Odin (are you really a god?)

We don't disagree. No spirits were oak aged in the beginning. It was only by accident that oak aging became popular. Early on everything was made and consumed locally but when commerce dictated that spirits be shipped, the only available containers were wooden barrels. Nearly everything that was shipped was shipped in wooden barrels - pickles, flour, crackers, china & glassware, gunpowder, everything. So somebody tasted a spirit from a shipping barrel and thought, "this isn't bad" and somebody else tasted some that had been sitting around for a while and said, "this is better," and oak aging was born.

That is my theory, anyway. :)
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Re: schnapps vs brandy

Post by Odin »

Love your theory, Braz! And the discusions we have. And no, we do not disagree!

Funny thing about brandy(wine) is, that it started out as an inforced (made stronger) wine. Distill some, put it in the wine, abv goes up from 9% to 19/20% and it does not get infected on long sailing trips.

Nowadays (at least in Europe) there is an echo of this origin of brandy in the law on which drink is what (and how should it be made). You can distill a brandy and ad up to 25% of the wine it was made from. Now, that is a great way to lower ABV after two distillations ánd keep taste.

But originally, it was rather the other way around: 75% of wine enforced with 25% of brandywine. Still, I like the thinking behind it. Not like sourmashing, but a sort of intermediate.

Did you know gin (genever) was originally made from brandywine? Great, no? Juniper berries helped the kidnies function. Even after eating rotten food for half a year. I did some research on it: most drinks have a very technological backround (back ground?). People needed a drink to keep their stumachs working? Kummel (aquavit) helped. Beer did not stay fresh on al prolonged sailing trip in the 15th century? Let's distill it and it does stay good longer (beer schnapps of around 20% is probably the basis of whiskey making in Ireland & Scottland). Etc. etc.

And no, I am not a god. Shit, my name is Edwin. A Dutch (originally Friesian actually) translation of Odin. "First to the inheritance", meaning "oldest son" (which I am). "Heir", yeah, but to what? My father is living in Spain and spending it like he should. Now that does not make me a god. I am quite spiritual though. Especially when distilling spirits.

Man, this hobby did bite me!

Antidotes? Anybody?

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Re: schnapps vs brandy

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Odin wrote:Funny thing about brandy(wine) is, that it started out as an inforced (made stronger) wine. Distill some, put it in the wine, abv goes up from 9% to 19/20% and it does not get infected on long sailing trips.

Nowadays (at least in Europe) there is an echo of this origin of brandy in the law on which drink is what (and how should it be made). You can distill a brandy and ad up to 25% of the wine it was made from. Now, that is a great way to lower ABV after two distillations ánd keep taste.

But originally, it was rather the other way around: 75% of wine enforced with 25% of brandywine. Still, I like the thinking behind it. Not like sourmashing, but a sort of intermediate.
I recall trying various forms of "brandy" prior to getting involved with this hobby. The differences of each product made it very confusing for me. And further confusing without knowing the history ,regional terminology differences and perceived evolution of how the product should be evaluated.
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Re: schnapps vs brandy

Post by blind drunk »

I recall trying various forms of "brandy" prior to getting involved with this hobby. The differences of each product made it very confusing for me. And further confusing without knowing the history ,regional terminology differences and perceived evolution of how the product should be evaluated.

Hookline posted this a while back. Although it's about cognac it may apply to brandy as well. In any case, the video is interesting. Dig out your old and tattered beret for this one :mrgreen:

http://homedistiller.org/forum/viewtopi ... =6&t=13041
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Re: schnapps vs brandy

Post by Prairiepiss »

I was always under the assumption the wine for brandy (brandywine) was fermented in a different manor then regular wine? Something like it was fermented on the fruit pommis at a higher temp maybe? I could be mixing this up with something else? But I do remember reading something about it back 20 years ago when I started making wine. I only did it for a few years then got away from it. So I lost a lot of that info in the old graymatter somewhere. :crazy: I wish I still had my books from back then. But I'm finding either the publications back then were full crap or they really didn't know anything. Or I really just can't remember shite? :lol:


Now I did find this interesting from the Wikipedia schnapps entry.
A raspberry-flavored spirit called Himbeergeist is also a Schnaps, although it is not produced by means of fermenting raspberries (Himbeeren), which produce a low yield of alcohol due to their low sugar content. Instead, rectified spirit is infused with fresh raspberries, and this mixture is then distilled.
And my theory is. It all depends on where you are from and what language you speak. :ewink:
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Re: schnapps vs brandy

Post by Braz »

blind drunk wrote:Hookline posted this a while back. Although it's about cognac it may apply to brandy as well. In any case, the video is interesting. Dig out your old and tattered beret for this one :mrgreen:

http://homedistiller.org/forum/viewtopi ... =6&t=13041" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;" rel="nofollow
Here's another video from the same site. This one is shorter but concentrates on the distillation process. Worth watching if only to drool over the lovely stills.

http://vimeo.com/17539790" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;" rel="nofollow
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Re: schnapps vs brandy

Post by blind drunk »

That was good watching, Braz.

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Re: schnapps vs brandy

Post by schume »

Braz wrote:Here's another video from the same site. This one is shorter but concentrates on the distillation process. Worth watching if only to drool over the lovely stills.

http://vimeo.com/17539790" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;" rel="nofollow
Great video. Just look at the flow coming from the condenser. I guess they go for a little more than pencil lead size.
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Re: schnapps vs brandy

Post by The Baker »

Prairiepiss wrote:I was always under the assumption the wine for brandy (brandywine) was fermented in a different manor then regular wine? Something like it was fermented on the fruit pommis at a higher temp maybe? I could be mixing this up with something else?
snip
I believe that regular brandy producers like wine from particular kinds of grape but the basic winemaking is not much different.

Sounds like you are thinking of Grappa which does involve distilling from the fermented pomace (the skins and maybe stalks and stuff that doesn't make it into the bottles of the regular wine).
It's something of a specialist thing that I have never done, though I promise myself I will ask the local winemaker each year whether he can spare some.
Being an old Italian he would be interested in what I might try...
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Re: schnapps vs brandy

Post by Bushman »

Thanks Braz, great video on the process. I need to train my nose a bit more myself!
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Re: schnapps vs brandy

Post by farmguy »

I believe that regular brandy producers like wine from particular kinds of grape but the basic winemaking is not much different.

Sounds like you are thinking of Grappa which does involve distilling from the fermented pomace (the skins and maybe stalks and stuff that doesn't make it into the bottles of the regular wine).
It's something of a specialist thing that I have never done, though I promise myself I will ask the local winemaker each year whether he can spare some.
Being an old Italian he would be interested in what I might try...
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Pomace fermented and distilled is what the Italians call Grappa. I'm in the middle of a batch from 1 ton of crushed Riesling pomace. Interesting process in that the fruit has been juiced. Not too much liquid in there to spread the fermentation or to stir. Also the whole bulk (skins, stems, seeds ) need to go into the still so scorching is a concern.
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Re: schnapps vs brandy

Post by johnny108 »

The "himbergeist" type of schnapps is used only on small fruits that don't have enough sugar to make a "wine" out of them.
Using 1 VOLUME of fruit, and 2-3 VOLUMES of neutral spirit, and soaking for a month before filtering and distilling. These are known as
"aromatic schnapps" (if you plug your nose and sip them, they have no flavor but from the neutral spirit they are made from- nothing but the smell comes
out in the final spirit).
Some of the best schnapps I ever had was made with a mix of a cherry spirit made this way, and some cherry spirit made out of fermented fruit juice.
(Gotta love living in Germany- 1liter bottles of cherry juice without any preservatives for only 1.49Euro!!!)
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