Inventory for July 3rd, 2016

Happy summer all! This week a Oklahoma bar manager was jailed for three days for infusing vodka with bacon, Forbes took a look at how the Brexit could affect the whisky industry, a new mate lemonade was launched by Hamburg-based Fritz Cola, Johnnie Walker is putting nutritional labels on its bottles, and a company figured out how to produce a leather like product made from pineapple leaves. Cheers!

Next week, on July 14th, Kreuzberg’s Vabrique will be host to the first Open Air Bar Market. Outside, food, drinks, and music. What more could you want? BBQ and meat will be provided by Blackbeard and while many classic Berlin bar institutions will be showcasing their drinks. Think Reingold, Bar am Steinplatz, Bar Zentral, Thelonious Bar, Booze Bar, Buck and Breck, and Prinzipal Kreuzberg to name a few. Have a look at the Facebook event here.

Bar Manager Jailed over Bacon Infused Vodka

What the what? Oklahoma City resident Colin Grizzle, the on-duty manager at The Pump Bar, was arrested and spent three (!!) whole days in jail after the police found “unsealed bottles of vodka containing bacon, beef, pickles, garlic, and jalapeños” in the bar’s storage area. The Pump Bar is known for its infused spirits and cocktails, The Spirits Business notes. Now the bar’s owner is fighting the charge against Grizzle. “A criminal case is now pending”.

How the Brexit Affects the Whisky Industry

We’re all aware that any economic changes related to the Brexit will certainly affect the whisky market, which is scotland’s largest drinks export at an estimated worth of  £4 billion per year. Last week’s Forbes articles notes the many benefits that Scotch Whisky has from a EU membership. “The EU has managed to negotiate some substantial foreign deals for Scotch whisky as part of the FTA (Free Trade Agreements) that they cut around the world. The agreements include a deal with South Korea that reduced tariffs on Scotch whisky to zero, reducing tariffs in Vietnam on Scotch from 45% to zero over time (both of these are significant as the Asian market is a huge target for the industry), and an agreement with Colombia that makes it illegal to discriminate against foreign spirits, or to restrict availability of Scotch Whisky in their markets”.

Also by EU law the term Scotch Whisky is “ is under protection of Geographical Indication (GI) in the same way that Champagne is protected for the French sparkling wine of that region”. All in all, Forbes author Felipe Schrieberg doesn’t seem to concerned, considering the fact that “the production of whisky has survived war, prohibition, and the closing of markets”.

Hamburg Lemonade Manufactures Launches Fritz Mate

Most of you will be familiar with the hugely popular mate tea, that’s sold as a punchy, caffeine-heavy lemonade. Fritz is adding its own product to the ranks: fritz-mate. It seems like this move comes slightly delayed (mate celebrated its European heyday around 2012 and many variations have been released since), but fritz left themselves plenty of time to perfect its recipe. The mate’s is said to be slightly bitter, spicy, and intensely smoky and contains 25 mg of natural caffeine per 100 ml. Naturally, it’s vegan.

Why The World’s Largest Alcohol Producer Wants You To Know What You’re Drinking

Forbes reports that “Johnnie Walker will be its first global brand to list per-serving nutritional content on its label outside of the U.S”. The website rationalizes the fact that you won’t find nutritional contents for most beer, wine, and spirit manufactures on “diet-savvy drinkers who will imbibe less if they see reminders that each 2 oz. pour of Bailey’s Irish Cream in their coffee contains more than 327 calories and 13 grams of fat”.

Last week, Johnnie Walker announced that it’ll be Diageo’s first global brand to list per-serving nutritional content on its label outside of the U.S”. Diageo’s Chief Executive Ivan Menezes released a statement saying “We believe people should have the best possible information to make informed choices about what they drink: this includes alcohol content and nutritional information per typical serve. Johnnie Walker is one of our largest global brands, which means these new labels will arm millions of people around the world with clear information about what’s in their glass and in a way they can understand at a glance”. The plan is that eventually, all of Diageo’s portfolio will carry the same label in the same place to ensure consistency across the board.

Sustainable Leather made from Pineapple Leaves

A company called Ananas Anam has developed an “innovative, natural and sustainable non-woven textile called Piñatex, made from pineapple leaf fibres”. The “leather” (pleather?) provides additional income for farmers through a product that is usually left to rot on the fields. This by-product means that “no extra land, water, fertilizers or pesticides are required to produce them”. This is important to our industry because of pineapple’s importance to the bar. If we can help create a better industry for farmers then more of this! You can see a short video of the production process here.