Apricot liquor
Apricot schnapps or apricot brandy is a fruit brandy made from apricots . Apricot schnapps traditionally comes mainly from the Wachau in Austria and from the fruit-growing area around the town of Kecskemét in Hungary. The most famous Austrian brand is produced by the Krems company Bailoni , founded in 1872 . Many small house distilleries run by winemakers and fruit growers in the Wachau, but also in the Weinviertel, also produce excellent apricot schnapps. The Hungarian variant is known as Barack Pálinka . Along with Slivovic , Barack Pálinka is the most famous fruit brandy in Southeast Europe. Barack Pálinka is a protected designation of origin. Only Hungary and four Austrian federal states are allowed to market Barackpálinka. No additional flavorings or sugar may be added to the mash or the pálinka.
The apricot is one of the rose family and is an important distillery raw material in Austria. The apricot distillate is particularly common in the Wachau, the main apricot growing area. When it comes to apricots, it is important not to use any shadow fruits if possible, as only sun-drenched fruits have a really good and intense aroma. Apricots ripen early - once the apricot buds open, a night of frost can ruin the entire harvest. Apricots should be processed when fully ripe, unripe fruits do not add any aroma to the product. Soft apricots, some of which are already browning, are the main firewood, but they do not make an elegant product. As a rule, apricots have a sugar content of 8%, the main component is sucrose. Good apricot brandy is clear as water. The alcohol content is around 40%, with small deviations depending on the manufacturer. Approx. 8 liters of apricot schnapps of this strength are obtained from 100 kg of fully ripe fruit.
Apricot schnapps belongs to the group of spirits made from fruit. These are elongated spirits, that is, diluted with alcohol of agricultural origin. The proportion of distillate in the schnapps must be at least 33% of the total alcohol. The alcohol concentration must be at least 35% vol. be. An apricot brandy is a fine brandy made from 100% distillate, which is adjusted to drinking strength with water. The drinking strength of fruit brandies is at least 37.5% vol. In fine brandies, the alcohol comes exclusively from the eponymous fruit. The typical brandy made from pure apricots smells slightly of fresh apricots with a hint of rose scent. A lovely, delicate taste appears on the palate, reminiscent of juicy, fully ripe apricots.
literature
- Peter Jäger: The manual of fine brandies, schnapps, liqueurs. Graz 2006, pp. 26–33-
- Andreas Fischerauer: Schnapps and fine brandies. Vienna 2007, p. 18-
- Alois Gölles, Karl Holzapfel, Valentin Latschen, Hans Reisebauer: Quinta Essentia. Vienna, p. 62.
Web links
Individual evidence
- ↑ Regulation (EC) No. 110/2008 of the European Parliament and of the Council , accessed on October 4, 2010