What is Needed to Market Spirits in the United States?

    The United States is different when it comes to marketing spirits.   There is a different approach to things that make it necessary to “work outside of the box” to get to the customers here.   “Alcohol is a lifestyle industry,” says Spiros Malandrakis, senior industry analyst for Euromonitor International. “It’s not about flavors at the end of the day. It’s about music, it’s about movies, the Mad Men effect. It’s what people aspire to or dream about. Sometimes these things can easily be lost when just looking at dry figures.”   If ever there was a market more apt for such a lofty, dreamy, fantastical but also very true analysis, this is it. America – manufacturer of dreams, purveyor of the aspirational lifestyle – is a region where drinks trends are as diverse as the ethnic and cultural make-up; as nuanced as the individual state laws that govern consumption and production. And crucially, it is where consumers – and consumer trends – can be as fickle as Hollywood.

     In the United States, we are driven by our “lifestyle” rather that logic when it comes to our spirits.  We are looking for a brand or category that speaks to us about how the way that we live is the cool way.  We don’t need scientific data we want to be shown the way to fun and the right places to be.   So while US consumers seem to be in an exploitative mode, they are seeking out niche expressions and are willing to spend more on premium products.   Categories are becoming less important than the quality of perceived quality of the products. Drinks companies looking for growth now have to target an occasion, a moment or a demographic in order to draw new customers

     Several major factors stand out when you talk about appealing to Americans.  First is branding and promotions that are directed to specific cultures.   Ultra-premium Tequilas and Mezcals are expected to grow 16.5% by 2020, while the celebrity-backed Brandy and Cognac category, which continues to be name-checked in songs sung by the likes of Jay-Z, is set to grow by 14%, according to Euromonitor.   Perceived value is another major factor.   Things like imported spirits are felt to be more valuable than domestic ones.  This has led to the hybridization of many spirits.  Blending of local and global brands giving a perceived international flavor to the spirit seems to be a current trend.

    Americans prefer lighter and sweeter spirits, the addition of flavors to the spirits creating a new way to get customers to move to a different spirit.   Seasonal flavors at a feeling of freshness that is also big in the eyes of Americans.

     It is my feeling that all of those ideas are very true, but the most important in my mind is the authenticity of the spirit.  Is it a true aged product or something that is colored with sweeteners added to give this “looks like aged”?  Real premium spirits are fermented, distilled, and finished legitimately and not contrived.   New expressions that take aged spirits and finishing them in different types of barrels are very popular now, and are a great way to provide new premium flavors that are true to the spirit.   This is what I feel is really necessary before you start marketing a product that is really not “real”.

A great article was written on this subject recently and you can read more on the subject at http://www.thespiritsbusiness.com/2016/10/lifestyle-is-key-when-marketing-us-spirits/

Late Summer at Bahia Honda

    Late summer at Bahia Honda offers so many beautiful sights and experiences as you kayak around the island.   The flat seas and the clarity of the water gives you a new experience with every stroke.  Bird life is becoming more varied as they migrate south this time of year.  The crowds are gone and this is the perfect time to stop at the park and enjoy the warm water and the beautiful beaches.

Feeling Very Fortunate to Date, but Matthew Still Messing With Us

     Hurricane Matthew has caused absolute havoc in the central Caribbean, The Bahamas, and the Southeast Coast of the United States.   Here in the Lower Keys, we have hardly even had any rain from Matthew and the strongest winds barely touching 20 mph.   There is a rub to this though.  It seems that Mathew wasn't happy with it's first pass by South Florida and the Bahamas, so it is planning a second trip through the area.

     There is a bit of a silver lining to the story though, they are predicting that Matthew will be degraded to a "Tropical Depression" when it comes back by.

     We have been very fortunate, but I really have

to feel for my friends in the Bahamas and along the east side of Florida.  They will be facing a lot of work as they go through the next few months.  It will be a full time job to put their lives back together following such a devastating storm.  What the wind doesn't break, the flooding will eave soggy.  The last thing these areas need is a revisit by Matthew even if it is only a "Tropical Depression".  It will still be carrying a lot of rain, slowing the recovery efforts.

     My thoughts are for a rapid deterioration of Matthew and a chance for those who suffered through the fury of the storm can get their world back to a comfortable place quickly.

   

Grandma's Pumpkin-Apple Pie Swizzle

     My Grandma used to make a pumpkin-apple pie every fall when I was a kid.  It always had such a great flavor I just had to create something in a cocktail that offers a flavor that takes me back to the days when the smell of pies baking would seep out of her kitchen as the leaves changed colors.

     This is a Pumpkin- Apple Pie Swizzle, and it really fits the chilling evenings of fall and gives you a nice warmth in the tummy like a good shot of rum and a piece of Grandma's pumpkin-apple pie would.

Pumpkin-Apple Pie Swizzle

• 1 Heaping Bar Spoon of Pumpkin Puree
• 1 Heaping Bar Spoon of Apple Sauce
• 2 oz. Coffee Mate Natural Bliss Pumpkin Spice Creamer
• 1 oz. Bahama Bob’s Pumpkin Pie Syrup
• ½ Tsp. Allspice
• ¼ Tsp Nutmeg
• ½ oz. Lemon Juice
• 2 oz. Cartavio 12 Year Solera

Place all of the ingredients except the rum in a bowl and swizzle until you get a smooth mix.  Spoon 4 Bar spoons of the mix into a shaker filled with ice, add rum and shake until chilled.  Strain into a chilled Collins glass and garnish with a cinnamon stick.

Bahama Bob’s Pumpkin Pie Syrup

• 1 ½ Cups of Dark Brown Sugar
• ½ tsp. Pumpkin Pie Spice
• 1 Cup of Water
• ½ tsp. Lemon Juice

Place Sugar and the Pumpkin Pie Spice in a pan and heat on high and stir lightly until the sugar begins to melt.  Keep stirring and very slowly add the water.  Keep stirring and lower the temp to about 225 degrees and bring to a slow boil while stirring for five minutes.  Pour into a dish that can take heat and cold and place in the refrigerator until cooled.  Pour into a pouring dispenser and put back into the refrigerator until ready to use.  It will last about a month in the refrigerator.

Halewood Has Announced it Has Purchased a “Significant Stake” in the Bajan Trading Company

     United Kingdom drinks group Halewood Wines & Spirits has acquired a "significant stake" in the Bajan Trading Company, parent company of Rum Sixty-Six through its new craft spirits joint venture.  Bajan Trading Company is connected to the Seale family.  Richard Seale, master distiller of Rum Sixty-Six at Foursquare Rum Distillery in St Philip, Barbados.   “Rum Sixty Six offers a fantastic platform for Halewood to invest at the premium end of the rum category,” said Stewart Hainsworth, CEO of Halewood Wines & Spirits. “In addition to a compelling brand story, Foursquare has the capabilities to create spirits which are unrivaled among golden rums.”  Earlier this year, Hainsworth told The Spirits Business that his company was "actively looking at rum brands" for potential acquisitions.

    Based in Merseyside, Halewood Wines & Spirits was founded by the late John Halewood in 1978. Today, still owned by the Halewood family, Halewood International Holdings PLC is the United Kingdom’s largest independent drinks manufacturer and distributor.   Halewood shows sales of over 21 million cases each year and exporting to 75 countries.   Employing 1,000 drinks specialists worldwide, the Halewood Wines & Spirits group has five operations outside the United Kingdom, including South Africa, China, Thailand, Ireland and Romania. In addition their global brands, Red Square, Crabbie’s Alcoholic Ginger Beer, Lambrini and Whitley Neill, Halewood International offers full service support for Agency Brands in the United Kingdom and international markets.

RUM SIXTY SIX Family Reserve is small batch distilled, tropically aged 12 years in small American white oak casks and bottled at Foursquare Distillery, one of the last family-owned distilleries in the Caribbean. Halewood is planning to expand the Rum Sixty Six by adding a six-year-old and a cask strength 12-year-old expression to the portfolio in 2017.

A Unique New Strawberry Rum From Shropshire Spirits Company

James Crone, Director Distiller

     I love to find out about small distilleries that really take the art of distillation seriously and put their own stamp of uniqueness to their spirits.  The Shropshire Spirits Company in Halesfield, UK is just one of these distilleries.  Owned and operated by James Crones, head distiller and director puts his ideas on the table and creates  unique spirits made from locally produced products and botanicals.

     Shropshire is a historical area of the United Kingdom with roots going way back to the 10th century.  The earliest industries of Shropshire took their rise from its abundant natural resources; the rivers supplying valuable fisheries; the vast forest areas abundance of timber; while the mineral products of the county had been exploited from remote times.  As the forest areas were gradually cleared and brought under cultivation, the county became more exclusively agricultural. In 1343 Shropshire wool was rated at a higher value than that of almost any other English county, and in the 13th and 14th centuries.  Said to be the birthplace of the Industrial Revolution, the county has so many resources, making it a perfect place to have a craft distillery. 

Salopian Strawberry Rum

     Distillery is small and humble but still produces high quality Spirits available across the county of Shropshire and beyond.   Everything starts quality fruits from the farms of rural Shropshire provide the flavors of the Spirits.  The selection and preparation of these is one of the most important stages in our process.    Shropshire Spirits Company founder and owner, James Crone said, “I’ve been working on this rum for a good six months to ensure the flavors are right".

     First shown at the Cosford Food Festival, the new Strawberry rum was an instant hit with those in attendance.    The launch at Cardiff Rum Fest, on 1 October was well received.  Salopian Strawberry Rum is created by fermenting strawberries and rum together before the mixture is distilled in a traditional copper pot still.   Described by those in attendance as having flavors of strawberry, molasses and caramel.

Shropshire Spirits Company Stills

   This is a unique method of flavoring white rum that gives it a unique flavor.  Fermenting the UK Cane Molasses and locally sourced strawberries together then pot distilling them to get this very special rum.   Because of the size of the distillery, I doubt that it will ever reach the United States, but if you get the opportunity to try this expression, I believe that it will be a very flavorful one.

Pumpkin Pie Daiquiri for Fall

     Fall is here and that is the time when we get to enjoy pumpkin stuff.   Here is a pumpkin daiquiri that fits into the season perfectly, fall cocktails are some of the most flavorful and the always a favorite pumpkin make the season wide open for new ideas.   

     Give this idea a try, there are others that I am working on now.   Halloween and Thanksgiving are the perfect times for new pumpkin flavored cocktails and I'll be bringing you some new ones throughout the fall.

Bahama Bob’s Pumpkin Pie Daiquiri

• 1 Heaping Bar Spoon of Pumpkin Puree
• 1 ½ oz. Coffee Mate Natural Bliss Pumpkin Spice Creamer
• ½ oz. Bahama Bob’s Pumpkin Pie Syrup
• 2 oz. Afrohead Aged Rum

Place all of the ingredients except the rum in a bowl and swizzle until you get a smooth mix.  Pour into a shaker filled with ice, add ice and shake until chilled.  Strain through a sieve into a chilled cocktail glass and garnish with a cinnamon stick.

Bahama Bob’s Pumpkin Pie Syrup

• 1 ½ Cups of Dark Brown Sugar
• ½ tsp. Pumpkin Pie Spice
• 1 Cup of Water
• ½ tsp. Lemon Juice

Place Sugar and the Pumpkin Pie Spice in a pan and heat on high and stir lightly until the sugar begins to melt.  Keep stirring and very slowly add the water.  Keep stirring and lower the temp to about 225 degrees and bring to a slow boil while stirring for five minutes.  Pour into a dish that can take heat and cold and place in the refrigerator until cooled.  Pour into a pouring dispenser and put back into the refrigerator until ready to use.  It will last about a month in the refrigerator.

What Aging is Required for a Spirit to be Called Rum?

20th Anniversary

18 Year Old

     A Spirit can be called rum if it is derived from a derivative of the sugarcane, but in most of the world there are no aging requirements.  Where there are age statements on rum bottles, what is i t really telling us?   This is the real question in the rum category.  If the rum is one that comes from a single crop of sugar cane, fermented, distilled then placed in a barrel and aged for a number of years before being bottled then the number of years in the barrel would be a true age statement on the bottle.  The problem comes when rums of different ages are blended to create a rum, which age was placed on the bottle.

Cask 21

Solera 23

     For whiskey, in the U.S., an age statement is required if the whiskey is less than four years old. After four years age statements are voluntary. In Europe, an age statement is never required but a grain distillate must be aged at least three years to be called 'whiskey.'   The U.S. has no minimum age requirement.   It has the age statement requirement instead.   Although age statements are voluntary, they must be true. For the statement to be true, it must give the age of the youngest whiskey in the mix.   Only if a product is single barrel or bottled-in-bond will it all be the same age.   In practice, an age-stated product will mostly contain whiskey at or just over the stated age, with a little bit of older whiskey, but you never know unless the distiller tells you. 

Agricoles

     Rum in much of Central and South America must spend 2 years in the barrel to be called rum.  This is the exception rather than the rule.  The other rum is age statements can be anything from the oldest to the youngest rum in a blend.   The use of the numbers on the bottles are confusing, because they could be a number referring the the year the rum was first made or an anniversary of when they introduced it, and nothing to do with the age of the product.  Agricoles have rules that control their entire process including the aging process.  There some that use a number to refer to the number of rums used to make up the blend.    

    I think you can see the issue, there is no consistency of the spirit.  I like how whiskey works the issue or no age statements at all.  I feel that misinformation or questionable use of numbers to confuse the customer are bad for the category and need to be ended.  It is time for the category to put some standards down so we the consumer have a clue as to what we are buying.

Enjoying our Natural Aquarium in the Keys

     Boating in the Florida Keys a little bit of chum, clear water and you get quite the selection of fish to watch in your personal aquarium.  It never ceases to amaze me what appears in the water when we are at anchor down here.

Back Out on the Water for Some Aqua-Camping

     It has been over 7 weeks since we have been able to get out on the water and camp for a couple of days.  The weather, the waves and work have kept us pretty much dock bound.   Today we broke the dock lines if you will and it was back out on the water we went.   Cruising to Bahia Honda is always a fun ride, it is filled with interesting sights along the way.

 

     Upon arrival, it is time to tie up and get the kayak into the water so we can
have our cocktail hour on the bay watching the sun set.  This is such a relaxing time for the two of us and a time that we have missed.   It is funny how just moving up the keys 30 miles can really take the stress and tedium of you everyday life away.  I know how much tedium can there be in Key West.   Actually it is more than you would think.   We call it “getting off of the rock”, and it is more necessary than you might think.  This is a small island, there are only a limited number of things and places to see and do.  The change of seeing and doing something just a bit different really helps a lot.  

     Spending a couple days in a different bed and seeing different places and things helps me to resets your mind back so it is really easy to return and make things happen in a better and more enjoyable way.    It really doesn’t matter where you live you need this kind of a break to keep things happening in a productive manner.  

     I hope you get your chance for a quick getaway every now and again, and

it does for you what our “aqua-camping” does for us.  It is time and money well spent to maintain your balance between day to day fun living and just surviving.  Give it a try even if it just entails going across town or to the lake for a day or two.  Whatever makes your life feel good again is all it takes.

You First Taste Your Cocktails with Your Eyes

“Before we dive into cocktail presentations, we must have a delicious-tasting cocktail to start with!   A very good drink is most important—and be executed well—before we can move on to other elements of the cocktail experience.”

    One of the most important factors to a fine cocktail is how it appears to the customer.  If you look at what people picture on their Facebook or Twitter pages it is the cocktails and food that is most appealing to their eye.   These are the pictures that they share with their friends and family as to how good what they are eating and drinking is before they ever get to taste it.

     The best chefs and mixologists in the world work as hard on the appearance of their creations as they do on what is going into them.  First is the ingredients and the mixing of the cocktail, next is the selection of the glass that it is to be served in. and third the importance of garnish to finish the mix all adds to the taste appeal of the cocktail long before the first sip.  “Amazing garnishes to presentations should enhance the drinking experience, not merely add fluff and glitter to it.  Many garnishes don't just add eye appeal, but also add supplemental flavor.  With this in mind make sure the items of garnish also add a positive note to the overall flavor of the cocktail.  There are no "universal garnishes", but rather each cocktail calls for a garnish that enhances the experience for the customer and not just something that is tossed on top.

Unique Glassware

     The eye appeal along with the palate appeal is a combination that has to be addressed on every cocktail if you want your customers to enjoy the complete experience of your creation and return for a second visit and tell their friends about your skills.  

Havana Club Set to Enter U.S. Market the Minute the Embargo Disappears

New Label

     Cuba’s Havana Club rum is set to enter the U.S. market “even if it were to open tomorrow,” according to executives of the firm that exports 75 percent of its production.   “We’re well prepared. We’ve spent 16 years waiting for the opening of that market, which is the world’s biggest for rum,” master rum distiller Jose Navarro told a press conference in Havana, to which he presented the new image of the iconic firm’s rum that is aged for seven years.

Old Label

     Early this year, the mixed Cuban-French company, Pernod Ricard-Cuba Ron that markets Havana Club worldwide won the legal battle it has fought for more than 20 years with Bacardi for brand rights in the United States.  Until that litigation was resolved, Bacardi sold the brand in the U.S., while Pernod Ricard has marketed it in the rest of the world since the mixed company was formed in 1993.

     Havana Club International CEO Jerome Cottin-Bizonne said Monday that the company is preparing to open new markets, “including the U.S.,” which will only be accessible to a Cuban product once the embargo is lifted that the United States has imposed on the island for the last 50 years.

     Though the two countries announced the beginning of a diplomatic thaw almost two years ago after five decades at daggers drawn, the embargo remains in place and its elimination is the chief demand of the Cuban government within the new relations.

Read More at http://world.einnews.com/article/346648830/L3UdntEbPocsMhS5

October 14 - 22 Old Fashion Cocktail Week

     On the 14th through 22nd of October, bars around the world will host Old Fashioned Week through a number of events, masterclasses and collaborations with affiliated brands.   The festival first launched in 2015 based on an initiation of the Maria Loca bar in Paris and Cyrille Hugon, founder of Rhum Fest Paris and Rumporter Magazine, but it has now been transformed from an exclusive French event to a global cocktail festival.

Old Fashioned Cocktail

     The first documented definition of the word "cocktail" was in response to a reader's letter asking to define the word in the May 6, 1806, issue of The Balance and Columbian Repository in Hudson, New York. The May 13, 1806, issue, the paper, the editor wrote that it was a potent concoction of spirits, bitters, water, and sugar, it was also referred to at the time as a “bittered sling”.   J.E. Alexander describes the cocktail similarly in 1833, as he encountered it in New York City, as being rum, gin, or brandy, significant water, bitters, and sugar, though he includes a nutmeg garnish as well.

     By the 1860s, it was common for orange curacao, absinthe, and other liqueurs to be added to the cocktail. The original concoction, came in different proportions, came back into vogue, and was referred to as "old-fashioned.  Most popular of the in-vogue "old-fashioned" cocktails were made with whiskey, according to a Chicago barman, quoted in the Chicago Daily Tribune in 1882, with rye being more popular than Bourbon. The recipe described is a similar combination of spirits, bitters, water and sugar like it was seventy-six years earlier.

     The first use of the name "Old Fashioned" for a Bourbon Whiskey cocktail was said to have been at the Pendennis Club, a gentlemen's club founded in 1881 in Louisville, Kentucky.    The recipe was said to have been invented by a bartender at that club in honor of Colonel James E. Pepper, a prominent bourbon distiller, who brought it to the Waldorf-Astoria Hotel bar in New York City. 

     During Old Fashioned Cocktail week we will celebrate the venerable old cocktail with the spirit of your choice, mine being rum, ron or rhum if you will with a recipe that makes you smile as it slides across your palate.  During the week I will introduce you to some "new" Old Fashioned Cocktails from my devious mind here in the bar on the boat.

     Keep the week in mind and help us celebrate one of the first ever cocktails recognized around the world.

Read More at http://www.thespiritsbusiness.com/2016/09/old-fashioned-week-launches-internationally/ 

Former Diageo and Constellation Executives Bringing Back the Legend of Indonesian Island Rum

     For centuries, travelers, traders and explorers have been drawn to the Indonesian islands.  For a millennia, sugar cane has been cultivated here.   All rums are distilled from sugar cane, a species of grass that has been cultivated in Indonesia for at least 8,000 years. The first Indonesian rums were exported during the early years of the Dutch colonial occupation, and rapidly swept the globe.   Forgotten by history, some of the very first rums served in the punch houses, bordellos, salons and coffee houses, of 18th-century Europe were Indonesian.  Inspired by ancient days and modern nights, Nusa Caña, a new island rum that’s bringing back the forgotten spirit of those very first adventurers and the rum they discovered.    A smooth, aroma-filled tropical island rum, Nusa Caña is as mellow, approachable and yet adventurous as Bali itself. The “King of the Forest” barong mask on the bottle and visuals inspired by the late Bali artist Arie Smit pay tribute to the island of the gods.

     Created by four guys who share a passion for Bali, great bars and outstanding drinks, Nusa Caña is a unique rum. Launching in July, it’s already on sale in some of the island’s most iconic haunts.   Crafted on Java, the original home of Indonesian rum, the heart of Nusa Caña is a rich Indonesian sugar cane.  To create it, Javanese sugar cane molasses are slowly fermented with pure, forest-filtered water and red rice cake.   The resulting liquid is distilled in antique Chinese pot stills then matured in sustainable Javanese teak casks, before being blended for today’s tastes.        Nusa Caña blends in effortlessly without ever hiding its true character, it stands up to mixers or can be sipped on the rocks.

     With over 100 years combined experience in the global drinks industry, the team behind Nusa Caña comprises drinks industry mavens Andy Gaunt, Joe Milner and Marc Rodrigues, Asia-Pacific bartending legend Sam Jeveons and Bali-based Dre Masso.

Read More at http://www.theyakmag.com/nusa-cana/

The Real Bittersweet Cocktail

     Here is an idea for a really nice cocktail that is not for the person that likes a sweet cocktail.  This has a subtle sweetness up front and a pronounced tartness at the finish.   The variety of flavors keep changing throughout the experience.  I find it to be wonderful and the lack of the heavy sweetness makes it uniquely different and enjoyable.

The Real Bittersweet Cocktail

• 1 ½ oz. Real McCoy 12 Year Old Rum
• ½ oz Absinthe
• 1 oz Amaro di Toscana
• 1 oz Sweet Vermouth
• ¼ oz Sour Orange Juice
• 1 Dash Fee Brother's Old Fashion Bitters

Put Absinthe into a rocks glass, swirl and discard.   Add remaining ingredients to mixing glass filled with ice and stir.   Strain over fresh ice into a rocks glass.  Garnish with and orange zest.

Nearly Half of Young Workers Feel That Not Drinking Alcohol Can Hurt Their Ability to "Fit In at Work

Nearly half of private sector employees feel drinking is an important part of workplace culture, think tank finds

In a report published by the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development, said drinking alcohol with colleagues is regarded as a ‘rite of passage’ and ‘social glue’ by 40 % of young workers, according to a new report.  More than two-fifths of young workers between 18 and 34 surveyed developing  the report,  Youth Drinking in Transition, said they believed that abstaining from drinking alcohol was a real barrier to social integration at work.   Nearly half said they drink with colleagues, and a further 10 per cent said they drink alcohol with clients, with some expressing concern about their career progression if they abstained.   A quarter admitted to experiencing pressure from colleagues to drink.

     “Harmful drinking is on the decline among young adults, but alcohol remains the defining social glue for many young adults, with non-drinkers effectively excluded in many circles” according to Ian Wybron, senior researcher

     Nearly a quarter of respondents to the survey said they performed less effectively at work because of alcohol; an additional 21% said they had gone to work with a hangover in the last month; and 9 % had been under the influence of alcohol in the workplace within the last month.  This makes for a situation where the employee is damned if they do or don’t drink, and it means that they have to know when to say when.  The real key to this is knowing when to “drink with the crew” and when to bow out.  It is a tough decision, but sometimes your success in the job relates to your ability to walk that “tightrope”.

Read More at http://www.hrreview.co.uk/carousel/two-fifths-young-workers-say-avoiding-alcohol-stop-fitting-work/101273

Beautiful Afternoon Sun Coming Through the Hilton Head Island Trees

Hilton Head Island is a picture right out of the Old Southern Plantation era, the trees with the Spanish Moss hanging from them with the sun shining through the trees makes for a peaceful and relaxing image.  The place is wonderful with all of the beaches and foliage covering the island.

Hilton Head Distillery Grand Opening Continues Today

Stripping Still

   I got to go through the distillery before the festivities began, seeing the high quality equipment and how well thought out the plant was I expect fine quality rum and vodka will be coming out of this facility.  They were in the last minute rush to get bottles of their espresso flavored rum bottled and ready the entire place for the opening.  This is a very impressive craft distillery, it has all of the right stuff, plus a fine group of experienced people there to run the plant.

Stripping and Finishing Stills

     Jillian Stephens, the business manager of the operation very
gracefully escorted me through the plant and the retail portion of the operation. This was very interesting and provided several incites to how they are planning to produce the rum and vodka.

Temporary Bottling Line

     Later in the day the plant went into operation finishing their espresso flavored rum bottled in time for the Grand Opening this afternoon.  The entire staff got involved in the bottling and stocking the tasting room and the retail area to them right up to "show time".  Meanwhile, the still crew was finishing up the stripping still, putting the connecting neck from the pot still to the stripping tower.  This is the first step of the distilling process, followed by the 45 plate finishing still and vodka towers.  The facility is very well laid out and looks like it runs very efficiently, and when the automatic bottling equipment finally arrives they will be able to turn out finished bottles of rum and vodka very rapidly.  The temporary hand bottling machine is a bit slow when they get into full production.

     When they get into full production a portion of their rum will be placed in Port Wine Casks for aging.   They already have a good supply of these barrels in the ready for this to happen in the very near future.  A port finished expression is a really good and flavorful finish for good rum.

Fermentation Tanks

Hilton Head Distillery Expressions

     I really enjoyed the visit to the Hilton Head Distillery and
visiting with the wonderful and very cordial staff.  Thanks for a really great visit and look forward to visiting again some day and seeing your rums and vodkas in the stores and bars soon.

Tasting Room and Retail Area

Why are People Quitting the Jobs They Love?

     I ran across an interesting article in Inc. Magazine that addressed this issue in a very succinct manner.  The discussed the seven issues that most like will cause good employees to leave their jobs. "
To win at being the best company, you must first win over your best employees".    The biggest issues are the same every where you look, from the small companies to the largest corporations.

1. Stagnation: There is an old joke about the "Peter Principle", where you promote people to their level of incompetence and leave them there.  Stagnation kills all drive and employees loose interest.

2. Overwork:  Expecting employees to do their work and cover for either the lack of people or the laziness of others is a serious reason for people to become frustrated.

3. Vague Visions:  A lack of feeling like your work is contributing to a goal or making them feel like what they are doing really means something is essential.

4. Profits Over People:  Being more concerned with the bottom line in an area where people are really putting out to make things work will cause these good people to loos interest and not be as interested in putting in the extra effort.  Find out what the real cause of the problem and be willing to fix it. 

5. Lack of Recognition:  When you have people that really put out for you, let them know that you appreciate them.  A "Thank You" goes a long way.

6. Lack of Trust:  Nothing drives competent people away faster than the feeling that they are not trusted.  Keep watching every move they make and your producers will be gone, especially the honest ones.

7. Excessive Hierarchy:  When You have a structure where any idea has to pass through excessive layers of people for something to happen, you have a problem.  Creativity and new ideas come from a variety of places and if the people that can make the changes don't hear about them, you are going to have the producers going to a place where they will be heard.

     Most people quit their job leave because of the boss, not the work or the organization.   Ask yourself what you may be doing to drive your best people away, and start making the necessary changes to keep them.  The article is very enlightening and you might want to give it a good read.  If your employees picture you as though you have that deer in the headlights look when they talk to you they will soon be gone.

Read More at http://www.inc.com/lolly-daskal/7-reasons-the-best-employees-quit-even-when-they-like-their-job.html

Controlled Drinking is Harder Than Quitting Completely

People looking to give up alcohol are said to be more likely to succeed if they go cold turkey rather than if they cut down gradually.

     Research carried out by the University of Gothenburg, Sweden, found that people with a dependency on alcohol were less successful in reaching sobriety when they were under the supervision of a care provider that worked in controlled consumption.   Care providers in Sweden are split on the problem, with half believing that a gradual reduction of a person’s alcohol intake is the way forward, while others believe that stopping completely holds the best results.   However, previous studies have shown that the key element in the treatment process is that patients and care providers share the same view and that the treatment method plays a subordinate role, though how great an influence the choice of method has had on the final treatment result has not yet been looked into.

     The study followed 201 adult patients for two-and-a-half years after their treatment began and showed that a shared view between patient and care provider was not decisive for the treatment outcome.   However, Associate Professor Kristina Berglund, who studies dependence at the Department of Psychology, said “patients whose goal was total abstinence were more successful than those who had chosen to control their drinking.”   Some 90% of patients agreed with their care provider that total abstinence were still sober during the follow up, where only 50% who were in agreement with their care provider on controlled consumption were still sober.

“It is easy to believe that the patient and care provider having a common goal is the most important factor in achieving good treatment outcomes, but it is not that simple. Our study shows that, regardless of agreement on goals and methods, in the end it is more difficult to stick to controlled drinking than to give it up entirely,” Berglund said.

You can see the whole story at https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2016/09/160914090314.htm

The United States Does Not Need the Surgeon General to Drop us Back Into Prohibition Again

It seems to me that the U.S. Surgeon General is “throwing out the baby with the bath water” in his effort to solve the problems of chronic and abusive drinkers.

      I have to join the leaders of the alcoholic beverage producers, distributors, and consumers that feel that they need to work on the problem and not attempt to move us back toward January 16, 1920 and start another attempt at Prohibition.      Leaders like Robert Koch, who is president of California’s Wine Institute, and Kraig Naasz, who heads up the Distilled Spirits Council, have signed a letter addressed to the US Surgeon General, Vice Admiral Murthy urging him to “reject calls for the inclusion of unproven, population-based policy recommendations aimed at consumers in general rather than abusive drinkers.”

The letter asks the Surgeon General “to consider offering the public an opportunity to comment on the report prior to its final release.”   It also states, “Recommendations that penalize responsible consumers of alcohol have no place in a report of this nature.”   The September issue of The Weekly Standard, Kevin Kosar observes that “neo-prohibitionist anxiety has begun to spread” from the UK to the US, helped by “alarmist” reporting by US newspapers such as The Washington Post.

He observes the march of the “no alcohol is safe” argument, but points out that this “ignores the fact that just about everything – even activities with obvious and abundant benefits – carries a risk or cost.”   Indeed, he writes, “Responsible drinkers are not drags on society.  On the contrary, drinkers tend to earn more than teetotalers and are twice as likely to exercise.”

The letter from the US trade associations to the Surgeon:

Dear Vice Admiral Murthy,

As the national trade associations representing producers and importers of beer, wine and distilled spirits products sold in the United States, we are writing regarding your upcoming report on the health effects of drugs, illicit or otherwise, as well as alcohol misuse. While the overwhelming majority of Americans consume alcohol lawfully and responsibly, we welcome your efforts to destigmatize treatment and recovery for those for whom alcohol consumption is a concern.

We appreciate your care in ensuring that you base any conclusions and recommendations on widely-accepted evidence endorsed by the scientific community with expertise in prevention and treatment. You have great resources in NIAAA and SAMHSA, which lead this country’s research efforts on evidence-based ways to prevent and treat alcohol abuse. We hope you will look to those agencies for meaningful guidance and reject calls for the inclusion of unproven population-based policy recommendations aimed at consumers in general rather than abusive
drinkers. Recommendations that penalize responsible consumers of alcohol have no place in a report of this nature.

We would welcome the opportunity to meet with you to convey our concerns in greater detail and discuss the state of the science in this regard. We also urge you to consider offering the public an opportunity to comment on the report prior to its final

release. This will help ensure that the report provides targeted guidance to the American people that will be both helpful in terms of encouraging treatment and recovery and well-respected in terms of its scientific underpinnings.

Sincerely yours,

Read More at https://www.thedrinksbusiness.com/2016/09/us-surgeon-general-urged-not-to-penalise-responsible-drinkers/

Or at http://www.rstreet.org/?media-mention=u-s-surgeon-general-urged-not-to-penalize-responsible-drinkers