Fruit brandy

According to a legal definition in the United States, a "fruit brandy" is distilled "solely from the fermented juice or mash of whole, sound, ripe fruit, or from standard grape, citrus, or other fruit wine, with or without the addition of not more than 20 percent by weight of the pomace of such juice or wine, or 30 percent by volume of the lees of such wine, or both." In British usage, "fruit brandy" may refer to liqueurs obtained by maceration of whole fruits, juice or flavoring in a distilled beverage, and such liqueurs are legally labeled as cherry brandy, apricot brandy etc. all across the European Union. This includes "Somerset Cider Brandy", typically sold at 42% ABV, which is specifically protected as a Geographical Indication (GI) within the United Kingdom. Fruit spirit In the European Union, spirits distilled from fruit other than grapes may not be labeled as "fruit brandy". The legal English denomination is fruit spirit, which is "produced exclusively by the alcoholic fermentation and distillation of fleshy fruit or must of such fruit, berries or vegetables, with or without stones". A great number of European fruit spirits have a protected designation of origin, and are labeled with their respective protected names instead of "fruit spirit" ("apricot spirit", etc.) Fruit spirit, often colourless, usually contains 40% to 45% ABV (80 to 90 US proof). Fruit spirit is customarily drunk chilled or over ice, but is occasionally mixed. Fruit spirits obtained by distillation are often referred to by the French term eau de vie. Cider spirit and perry spirit (fruit spirit distilled from cider or perry) form a separate legal category. Some fruit spirits may be labeled with alternative names such as kirsch (cherry spirit) or slivovitz (plum spirit) regardless of their country of origin. ==Types==

Including some of the above, there are about 80 different kinds of fruit spirits in the European Union, registered with protected designations of origin from Germany, France, Italy, Portugal, Luxembourg, Austria, Hungary, Slovakia, Bulgaria, Romania and Spain. Most of these fruit spirits are named after their region of origin and base ingredients. For example: Schwarzwälder Kirschwasser (cherry spirit of the Black Forest), ''Framboise d'Alsace (raspberry of Alsace), Aprikot dell'Alto Adige'' (apricot of South Tyrol), etc. They are often regulated more strictly than generic fruit spirits: as well as limiting their region of origin, restrictions may include fruit variants, mashing and fermenting technology, distilling apparatus, barrel aging, etc. • Coconut brandy is actually made from the sap of palmyra palm flowers. • Damassine brandy is made with the prune fruit of the Damassinier tree in the Jura Mountains of Switzerland. • Eau de vie is a French term for colorless fruit spirit. This term is also applied to grape-based brandy other than Armagnac and Cognac. • Himbeergeist is a raspberry-based spirit produced mainly in Germany and the Alsace region of France as an infusion of macerated fruit in neutral spirit which is then distilled. While not a true fruit brandy (its correct denomination is Geist), it is typically referred to as a form of Schnaps. • Kirschwasser is a fruit spirit made from cherries. • Obstler is a German word for fruit spirit (Schnaps), often called Schnapps in English. • Pálenka or "Pálené" is a common traditional description for Slovak or Czech spirit. It must be distilled from Slovakian or Czech wild or domestic fruits. • Pálinka is a traditional Hungarian fruit spirit. • Țuică, also known as horincă or turţ, is a clear Romanian plum spirit. Other Romanian fruit spirits, often distilled from apples, pears, apricots, mulberries, peaches, quinces, or mixtures of these, are colloquially known as Rachiu. ==Health issues==

Moonshine Although methanol is not produced in toxic amounts by fermentation of sugars from grain starches, it is a major occurrence in fruit spirits. Methanol in fruit spirits forms mainly from pectins during fermentation and mash storage. Manufacturing controls are used to mitigate and monitor methanol levels. However, in modern times, reducing methanol with the absorption of a molecular sieve is a practical method for production. Which is why the spirits produced are safe for the consumer, respecting the legal limits imposed for methanol. ==See also==