Gwydion Stone

Hey Steven. I'm pretty sure the prohibition on re-using bottles only applies after retail to prevent people re-filling bottles with spirits other than the label reflects. If one wanted to clean and re-use bottles that hadn't left the distillery, I'm not aware of anything that would prohibit it.

Although I don't feel it was particularly appropriate to delete VAMoonshiner's first post, I want to mention that this post is excellent advice, while the first response was just a sarcastic remark.

According to 27 CFR 5.225, it only has to be distilled in that region; no mention of where it has to be for the two years on oak.

It would be a good addition to the arsenal, but the hybrids are not substitutes for a real pot still, IMHO. Guest_Michael_*, you may want to start by getting ahold of the TTB and getting some feedback on your plan. I got it from the horse's mouth that they frown on anything that resembles applying the "You-Brew-It" approach to distilling.

Excellent. I'll actually be able to attend!

I've seen plain paper label strips used. Just so long as the adhesive is strong enough that you can't peel it off undetected, I'd think it would be fine.

TTB doesn't care how big your still is, as long as anything over a gallon capacity is registered. Delaware Phoenix was using only a 30 liter for her whole operation until she got that shiny new Christian Karl. At Artisan Spirits they had a 5 liter experimental still. I have a 10 liter and so does Pacific Distillery. And they don't cost much either. You can get a 35 liter still for under $300.

Some metals are softer than others and require different abrasive grit. What works for silver doesn't do so much for hard brass, for example. What are the parts of your still made of?

I have no idea whether this gizmo may be of help, but it's what I found.

0.264172 That and a calculator are all you need.

Buy organic. I know nothing about those chemicals, but I'll bet the chances are good they'll end up in your distillate. Please forgive my grammar police tendencies, but the phrase is "at this point in time."

+++AAA EXCELLENT POST. GREAT COMMUNICATION. WOULD READ AGAIN.

Hey Jon. First of all, "COLA" is not a "they", it's an "it". It stands for Certificate Of Label Approval. The TTB gives you a COLA. Second, as you've seen, they can be very inconsistent and each specialist has a certain degree of discretionary authority in awarding COLAs. There's also the matter of the class and type of your product. Different classes have different labeling rules. Read Chapter 4 of the Beverage Alcohol Manual for complete guidelines. What are you making?

I'm copying and attaching a letter, received yesterday morning from David Nathan-Maister, who is the only person to whom I humbly defer on the topic of absinthe. I may occasionally defer to others, but not humbly. David, owner of Oxygenée Ltd., is arguably the most well-respected absinthe expert in the world. If you're an absinthe producer—or have even the vaguest plan to become an absinthe producer—you owe him a debt of gratitude, whether you know it or not. So, if you're an absinthe producer—or have even the vaguest plan to become an absinthe producer—and you have the means to respond, I strongly urge you to do so. If you feel you don't have a dog in this fight, you're mistaken. The Swiss government is well-known for exerting pressure where needed in order to protect their national identity and products associated with it. If this measure passes—and it will if unopposed—you can expect the fight to come to your door fairly soon. I just spoke with David this morning, and I assure you the sense of urgency in the letter below is not exaggerated. Google translation (with a little fixing up): Swiss IGP Letter.pdf Swiss IGP Document.pdf

I'm in agreement with everyone here so far that Dr. Berglund should not be granted exclusivity on the term in question and that it is far too generic. I filed my first tm last year, and I can attest that the process is certainly not as intuitive as it could be. It's not easy to understand what type of claims to make or not make, what sorts of disclaimers may be required or not permitted, and why. I don't know that Berglund's initial motive in applying for the tm was necessarily hostile; it may simply have been misguided. There's a fine but crisp line between claiming a mark specifically to prevent others from using it and simply assuring your own right to use it. Of course, because of the way the system works, one is obliged to be assertive in protecting an exclusivity one may not really want.

Sloppy reporting on absinthe?? That's just crazy talk. Never happen. Let's see... US distillers with absinthe currently in the bottle: St. George North Shore Leopold Integrity Gnostalgic Spirits Pacific Distillery Philadelphia Distilling Delaware Phoenix Corsair Great Lakes Edward III Germain-Robin Old World Spirits I'm probably missing one or two, and I know of at least two others that will be out this year.

Donut, do you mind if I ask what country you're in? I'm pretty decent at finding laws and perhaps I could find something to solve your dilemma. I'm not finding any country that restricts alcohol production only to the government. One cannot make real rum from neutral alcohol just by adding flavors; that would be imitation rum and it would taste like imitation rum. If you're not permitted to distill spirits in your country, you're going to have to either import a rum or find a different category of spirits to produce. There are many, many authentic and historical spirits and liqueurs made from neutral spirits and either infused fruits and botanicals or added essential oils and flavors, but rum isn't one of them.

Oxidation. Unfortunately, it won't stay that way.

It probably depends on the state the competition is in. I've seen spirits enter competitions in CA that didn't even have a COLA yet. Whereas in TX I couldn't even send a bottle to a tasting event ... legally. Of course, I personally don't put much stock in competitions because I've seen downright flawed and inferior products walk away with gold medals.

I'm certainly not against humor in branding (see attached,one of my early label ideas, 2004), but the questions you should ask yourself are: "How long is the long haul?" and "Do I know of any such brands that have made it that long or longer?" Are you hoping to build something as a legacy to leave to your family when you pass, or are you hoping to attract a buyer and retire early? If you've worked in liquor retail, you've seen brands come and go; is there a pattern to the ones that stick around decade after decade? I find that a label reflects a lot about the producer and how seriously they take themselves and their product; the contents of the bottle better be good enough to pull it off. And even the best jokes wear thin after ten years of repetition.

An interview I did with Natalie Bovis-Nelson is the most recent episode of Inspired Sips with The Liquid Muse. I'm very happy with the spot.

I kind of like it.

They're also much stronger. The joints between the tapered staves work the same as the keystone in an arch, except that with the barrels, every stave is a keystone. With the constant tension exerted by each of the bent staves, which are forced into place with a winch, every stave is essentially clamped into place by its two neighbors. A barrel with straight sides only has the tension of the hoops to hold the staves in place.

Nice bottle, nice price. Will there be enough head-room in the cases to repackage after the bar-top is in place?

You may also consider an air-cooled heat exchanger.