Opuscula All Bourbon and beer Is not strictly kosher

VISITING MY #1 (as in oldest) son the other day I thumbed through a book on potent potables — just to get into the “spirit” of things. (Book Information below line.)

I discovered that the old saw that “all Bourbons are kosher” ain’t necessarily so.

Turns out there are several Bourbons aged in casks formerly used for wine.

Worse, there are a number of beers that also are “matured” in barrels formerly used to age wine.

It turns out that there are a few Bourbons that are aged — a questionable term since the “minimum age” for a potable to be classified as a “Bourbon” is measured in a months; three year old Bourbons are, alas, the norm, even for many “name bands” -- in containers other than specified by U.S. law.

The question is: Can “Bourbons” aged in former wine casks really be called ”Bourbon” given that U.S. law requires Bourbon to be aged in new barrels from the U.S.

Flavored Bourbons — “adulterated” Bourbons — always needed a good kosher label. (Standard caveat: “Check with your rabbi if a label is acceptable in your community.”)

The Whiskey Wash web site lists and describes eight Bourbons aged in barrels that once held port wine. The site describes each product and its availability. Included are, alphabetically:

Angel’s Envy
Ascendants Spirits
Barton 1792
Big Bottom
Breckenridge
Litchfiel
Luxco (Blood Oath)
Traverse City

Similar to flavored Bourbons, flavored beers need a good kosher label (ibid.)

“Regular” — unadulterated — beers, ales, stouts, et al and etc. — generally are kosher. Add a flavor or color and a problem has been added to the fluid.

Adding to the beer confusion — assuming there is confusion — is that some new (since 1990s) beers are aged in former Bourbon barrels. Since most “adulterated” Bourbons — that is, Bourbons aged in casks formerly containing wine — are first aged in barrels confirming to U.S. law and only later transferred to the former wine casks, the should be no problem with beer aged in former Bourbon barrels. “Should” being the operative word. Find a rabbi who likes beer and Bourbon — not necessarily at the same time — and get his opinion.

Some beers are aged in former wine or scotch barrels, making their kashrut questionable. Was the scotch cask used to age the beer a kosher scotch? What authority is followed — a lenient one who might allow a scotch cask to be used if it was unused for “n” years? Did the 1/60th rule apply to the scotch? Does the 1/60th rule apply to the beer even though the use of the former scotch cask is intended to give the beer a unique taste, color, or smell?

The “key words” for beer aged in formerly used — by any potable — barrel are Barrel aged. Modern “name” beers, stouts, ales, etc., are aged in metal.

According to the Serious eats web site, "These days, brewing equipment made of metal is commonplace. From efficient copper kettles to stainless steel fermenters." This was not always the case; "for thousands of years, beers were not only aged in wood but brewed, fermented, and transported in wood, too. Oak was durable and portable, but it also came with its share of downsides. Wooden barrels are expensive and labor intensive to make, so brewers needed to reuse a barrel multiple times. They're incredibly difficult to clean and because of oak's porous texture, barrels make a great home for spoilers like bacteria and wild yeast" the site relates.

The Beer Advocate contains a user-provided list of beers known to the users to be aged in former wine casks.

The list probably is not “all inclusive,” new “craft” beers appear almost daily.

The Men's Journal lists The 25 Best Barrel-Aged Beers to Try - by definition, all are aged in barrels formerly used by other beverages. Of the 25, the following samples are aged in former wine casks:

Melange a Trois (chardonnay)
Harvest Ale (various wines & scotch)
Hair of the Dog (rum and brandy)
Firestone Walker Brewing (California wines)

Go to the Men's Journal web site (ibid) for additional beers.

The following beers are aged in barrels never used for wines or other whiskies.

Cask Aged Tripel (a wheat whiskey)
Lost Abbey (Bourbon)
Allagash's Curieux (former Jim Beam barrels)
Backwoods Bastard (Bourbon)
Hair of the Dog (American oak)
Bourbon Barrel Quad (Bourbon)

Go to the Men's Journal web site (ibid) for additional beers.

---

Book information
American Whiskey Bourbon & Rye by Clay Risen
ISBN-13:9781454916888, Publisher: Sterling Epicure, 10/27/2015

Wine barrel Bourbon web sites

(In no particular order)

Port Barrel Finished Bourbons: The Tasty Treats They Are

Amador Whiskey Co. Double Barrel

Angels Envy

Parker’s Heritage Collection (Heaven Hill): "The barrels selected for this series include Bourbon, rye and wheat whiskeys, among others."

Port Finish

Wine aged beers web sites

(In no particular order)

Beer Advocate

Men’s Journal

Barrel aged

Opuscula I hope Trump knows That not all Jews Are liberal bigots

"Open Orthodox" leader and founder of religious 'social justice' movement Shmuly Yanklowitz says he can't recite the standard prayer for success of the president after Trump’s win.

He is so certain — based on half-truths and biased media reports — that America’s new president will destroy everything the liberals stand for — that he has rewritten the prayer for the government to basically state: “Save us from the president we don’t like.”

IT WAS NOT TRUMP that robbed Medicare. It was not Trump that raided Social Security. It was not Trump that added NINE TRILLIONS to the national debt. All that damage was done during the term of the liberals' Obama.

It IS true that Trump probably will stand with Israel; that he will move the U.S. embassy to Jerusalem, Israel’s — not “Palestine’s” — capital. It is true that Trump will make life difficult for people to enter the U.S. illegally. It is true that Trump will R-E-P-L-A-C-E the so-called “Affordable Care Act” (Obamacare), but Obamacare will remain — Trump repeatedly stated — until there is a R-E-P-L-A-C-E-M-E-N-T plan to protect Americans.

Just how many Americans have gone to their doctor and found their doctor won’t accept Obamacare? How many Americans have gone to a doctor or hospital and discovered that their Obamacare deductibles and co-pays bankrupted them?

It IS true that some illegals will be deported; hopefully not just Mexicans, and hopefully there will be penalties for those Americans who employ them. It was Obama, not Trump, who cancelled the “Wet foot/Dry foot” policy that allowed Cubans seeking a better economy to get special treatment as soon as they set foot on U.S. soil. Where are the liberals now? Selective liberalism.

It IS true that Trump will negotiate better deals for the U.S. than his predecessor – the Iran deal that had the U.S. giving billions to a regime that wants to replace our semblance of democracy with a caliphate headed by Daesh (Islamist extremists).

It IS true that “sanctuary cities” will pay a price for thumbing their political noses at U.S. laws … U.S. laws that were promulgated decades ago.

So what is Yanklowitz’ “prayer?”

Click on image to enlarge

It seems that Yanklowitz is HOPING that Trump will do everything the Californian is “praying” he won’t do.

America suffered eight years of what many Republicans — and a few others as well — considered an incompetent president. Obama made bad deals after bad deals. He caused the U.S. to be denigrated by countries big and small. He set the Arab world on fire with his “Arab Spring.” He encouraged the “Palestinians” to stay away from negotiations with Israel, the only country that can assure them a decent economy, that provides water, electricity, and medical care and decent-paying jobs to its citizens. “Palestinians” look to Israel, not Jordan or Syria, for assistance. (The president of “Palestine” sends his mother to an Israeli hospital for treatment rather than to Jordon or even Europe.)

Nothing Obama did that backfired on him or America was Obama’s fault — at least he never admitted he was wrong about anything.

FOR THE RECORD, Obama DID give Israel a huge defense loan. The strings on the loan are that Israel must “Buy American.” In actuality. Obama — like presidents before him — gave foreign aid to prop up American companies, some of which actually still manufacture goods in the U.S.

Obama never was “my” president, but he was elected to the office and I accepted that. Like-minded people did not take to the streets. We didn’t trash our cities (as Hillary’s people did) — we watched as Obama’s damage unfolded, waiting for 2012.

Did George Bush whine when Obama won the first election?

Did then-president Bush help Obama transition? (Yes)

Did Hillary whine when Trump won? (Yes)

Is Obama obstructing the Trump transition? (Yes)

Is the behavior of Hillary’s — and Obama’s — followers have some sort of Democrat disease? If it is, it may spread to the GOP, further polarizing America; another Obama legacy.

I’m 74 and I’ve watched campaigns since Ike defeated Harry S — and Harry S was a great president, an honest president. I’ve seen good president from the Democrat part and good presidents from the GOP — and bad ones from both parties as well. I have NEVER seen Americans behave as badly as they are behaving now.

I expect Yanklowitz’ prayer will catch on with his far left followers, but I hope that the rest of America’s observant Jews don’t follow suit.

I certainly won’t.

C H U T Z P A H ! Abu Mazzen warns Trump not to move Embassy to capital

Terrorist Abu Mazen, a/k/a Mahmoud Abbas, has written to US President-elect Donald Trump telling him not to move the US embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem, according to official Palestinian media reports.

According to Aljazeera, In an official letter, Abbas gave warning that such a move would have a "disastrous impact on the peace process, on the two-state solution and on the stability and security of the entire region", Palestinian news agency Wafa said on Monday.

Adding insult to injury, Abu Mazen also sent letters to other world powers, including Russia, China and the European Union, calling on them to "spare no effort" to prevent the US from making the move, Wafa reported.

Imagine, threatening Donald Trump. Hard to believe.

Abu Mazen basically is parroting what soon-to-be-former U.S. Secretary of State Kerry already told Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu on behalf of Kerry's boss, lame duck president Obama.

So far, Trump has not responded to Abu Mazen's threat, apparently treating the threat -- and its source -- much as an elephant reacts to an ant on its back.

Trump’s position, and that of the Republican-dominated Congress, it to move the U.S. embassy to Jerusalem, a defacto recognition of the city as Israel's capital.

It must be amusing to Trump and his advisors and to Israelis that Abu Mazen's threat predicts a "disastrous impact on the peace process, on the two-state solution and on the stability and security of the entire region."

What peace process?" Abu Mazen & friends refuse to discuss anything with the Israelis until the Israelis meet an always changing list of pre-conditions.

What two state solution? Without bilateral talks, sans pre-conditions, there can be no "two state" solution.

What stability and security of the entire region? Does Abu Mazen really believe his pique against Israel inflames the region. Did he forget or just ignore Obama's "Arab Spring" that did indeed ignite the Middle East; is he blind in one eye and can't see out of the other to ignore Iran's influence in the region? Israel and the PA actually are in the most stable and secure area of the region, even with the PA's and Hamas' continued attacks on Israelis.

If Trump reacts to Abu Mazen as he has to other ants on the elephant's back, there will be a "social media" response and a stronger push to quickly relocate the embassy to Jerusalem.

Unlike his predecessors, Trump may actually keep his pre-election promises, including moving the embassy. (It pays to listen to what Trump says rather than reading what the media would have us believe.)

Abu Mazen has missed many opportunities to negotiate with Israel, to improve the lot of his citizens. Goading Trump almost guarantees he will miss any future opportunities; he was unwilling to negotiate when he had the U.S. president in pocket; as of January 20, his pockets will be empty.

Ants never should try to bully elephants; they never win.

URLs citing Abu Mazen's threat:

Press TV (Iran)

Middle East Eye (UK)

Aljazeera (Qatar)

Newsweek (U.S.)

Chutzpah! Jordan tells U.S. Not to move embassy To Israel’s capital city

IN THREE SIMILAR ARTICLES Americans are told that moving the US. Embassy to Israel’s capital city would displease the Hashemite kingdom.

Two of three headlines used the almost ubiquitous term “red line” – a line politicians seem to casually set with no plans to act when the “line” is crossed (e.g., Obama’s Syrian “red line”).

ACCORDING TO Internet media outlets,

US News/AP: Jordan Not Pleased With Proposed Embassy Move

ABC News: Jordan Says Moving US Embassy to Jerusalem Is 'Red Line'

Arutz Sheva:Jordan: Moving American embassy to Jerusalem is a 'red line'

All reports carried basically the same leed (opening paragraph: Jordan's government spokesman warned on Thursday of "catastrophic" repercussions if President-elect Donald Trump makes good on a campaign promise to move the U.S. Embassy in Israel to contested Jerusalem.

Jordanian Information Minister Mohammed Momani said An embassy move would be a "red line" for Jordan, would "inflame the Islamic and Arab streets" and serve as a "gift to extremists," he said, adding that Jordan would use all possible political and diplomatic means to try and prevent such a decision.

Apparently there has been a sub rosa understanding between previous U.S. presidents and the Muslim world that while the campaigning president “hinted” the U.S. would recognize Jerusalem as Israel’s capital and back that up by moving the embassy to the capital city; all pre-Trump presidents knew they would prevent the move in order to kowtow to the Muslims.

It remains to be seen if Trump, when he takes office on 20 January, will be a “man of his word” or will renege on his promise, especially in light of the fact that the majority of Jews vocally and financially supported Clinton.

Jordan, although an Arab Muslim state, has had friendly relations with the U.S. for decades; it likewise has a peace agreement with Israel. For its part, Israel allows Jordan to control the Temple Mount, a site undisputedly Jewish. The Muslims use the Mount as a football (soccer) field and as a site to throw stones at passing Jews, meanwhile Jordan does nothing.

To its credit, the Jordanian spokesman said Jordan would use all possible political and diplomatic means to convince Trump to keep the embassy in its present location, rather than upgrading the consulate in Jerusalem to embassy status and downgrading the embassy in the coastal plain to consulate status.

The fact that Israel has been the U.S.’ most consistent and loyal ally in the region since its founding has, until Trump, been ignored due to Arab Muslim threats, most of which were not, as Jordan promises, “political and diplomatic”.

Probably most Israelis — regardless of political position — want to assure the peace agreement with Jordan is maintained. The agreement also benefits Jordan, particularly in light of the disaster of Obama’s “Arab Spring.”

For all that, Jordan’s chutzpah to tell the U.S. where to put is embassy in another country is outstanding.

As an aside,

Three-Year MOU on U.S. Foreign Aid to Jordan
On February 3, 2015, the Obama Administration and the Jordanian government signed a nonbinding, three-year memorandum of understanding (MOU), in which the United States pledges to provide the kingdom with $1 billion annually in total U.S. foreign assistance, subject to the approval of Congress, from FY2015 through FY2017. The new MOU followed a previous five-year agreement in which the United States had pledged to provide a total of $660 million annually from FY2009 through FY2014. During those five years, Congress actually provided Jordan with $4.753 billion in total aid, or $1.453 billion ($290.6 million annually) above what was agreed to in the five-year MOU, including more than $1 billion in FY2014. According to the Department of State, “The United States and Jordan share a commitment to promoting regional security and stability, furthering Jordan’s economic development, and advancing social, political, and economic reform in Jordan. The United States recognizes Jordan’s increased immediate needs resulting from regional unrest, the efforts Jordan is undertaking at the forefront of the fight against ISIL and other extremist ideology and terrorism, the influx of refugees from Syria and Iraq, the disruption of foreign energy supplies, and other unprecedented strains.”
Source: Congressional Research Service (Page 12)

Source: Congressional Research Service (Page 13)

If Trump were vindictive — his giving Clinton a “pass” on her classified emails proves he is not — he might move the U.S. embassy in Jordan from Amman to, as an example, Aqiba; convenient to tourists visiting the Red Sea as well as Egypt and Israel’s Eilat; a consulate could be left in Amman.

While I have no doubt that Jordan officially will restrict its formal actions against the embassy move to “political and diplomatic”, Information Minister Mohammed Momani’s comment that the move “would "inflame the Islamic and Arab streets" and serve as a "gift to extremists,” gives a hint that Jordan may be inciting Arab Muslims to take to the streets and for the extremists to act. The most likely candidates to act on Momani’s suggestion are the Palestinians living in Judea and Samaria (Yesha); these people need no excuse to attack Israelis — Christian, Jewish, and Muslim alike.

Where the U.S. decides to put its embassy in Israel is between the U.S. and Israel, not the U.S., Israel, and Jordan.

As an aside, one that perhaps Jordan failed to consider: the embassy in Jerusalem would be more convenient for Arabs from the so-called “West Bank” to do business with the U.S. government.

Opuscula Israel & Muslim states Cooperate, why not Financially strapped PA?

IF ANYONE STILL THINKS the Israel-PA impasse is either (a) ALL or (b) MOSTLY Israel’s fault, consider two items from the January 5, 2016 “TIP” email that shows how Muslim-dominated, non-Arab countries welcome trade with Israel and how even Arab Muslim states in the region are tightening their purse strings vis-a-vis the PA.

Expert: Israel-Azerbaijan ties show viability of strong Jewish-Muslim relations (From The Israel Project (TIP) for 5 January 2016.)

The relationship between Israel and Azerbaijan is a positive one indicating that friendship can exist between a Jewish and a Muslim state, Alexander Murinson, a senior fellow at the Begin-Sadat Center at Bar Ilan University, wrote in The Hill on Tuesday. “[T]hese two nations prove the viability of a Jewish state and a Muslim majority state serving as true and steadfast allies to one another and that Muslims and Jews can, indeed, coexist. It is not simply a matter of just ‘getting along,’ but thriving with and because of the other,” Murinson explained. The scholar highlighted the strong ties between the two countries, which exist on several planes: military, commerce, diplomacy, agriculture, energy, and technology.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu visited Azerbaijan last month to meet with Azeri President Ilham Aliyev. Netanyahu said, “Here we have an example of Muslims and Jews working together to promise a better future for both of us.” Just a few days after their meeting, Azerbaijan announced that it had purchased the Iron Dome missile system from Israel.

Israel has a strong economic and security relationship with Azerbaijan, buying more than a quarter of its oil from the country. It is also reportedly one of Azerbaijan’s largest weapons merchants, selling close to $5 billion in defense equipment. “Azerbaijan is more important for Israel than France,” Israel’s Defense Minister Avigdor Liberman said in 2012, noting at the time that Israel did more trade with Azerbaijan than France.

A day after visiting Azerbaijan, Netanyahu traveled to Kazakhstan, another Muslim-majority nation, where he said, “Our relations with our Muslim Arab neighbors are changing dramatically. Not all of [it] is public, some of it is, but it’s changing dramatically. And I view the relations with Kazakhstan as being part of this great change that the world is waiting for.” Netanyahu was the first Israeli prime minister to ever visit the Central Asian nation.

ALSO ON TIP FOR 5 JANUARY

In a story headed Palestinian Authority faces budget cuts after drop in foreign funding , part of which is excerpted below, the TIP writes:

Saudi Arabia, Turkey, and United Arab Emirates in particular have cut back their contributions to the PA in recent months, Reuters reported. Saudi Arabia contributed around $20 million each month to the PA until last April, but has reportedly stopped payments in part to pressure PA President Mahmoud Abbas to implement political reforms.

UN Security Council resolutions and the soon-to-be replaced U.S. president notwithstanding, it is becoming obvious to even the most deaf and blind liberal Israel hater that Israel is NOT the roadblock to “peace in the Middle East.”

In comparison to some other areas infected by the soon-to-be former president’s highly touted “Arab Spring,” interaction between Israel and the PA is relatively quiet despite the PA’s ongoing incitement and “kill the Jews” textbooks for pre-K to high school and kiddy tv shows.

For as long as this scrivener can remember, Israel has quietly been doing business with its Arab-Muslim neighbors, both politically and with real goods (e.g., air conditioners, refrigerators). At one point, Iran was marketing Israeli military communications equipment to its neighbors.

In the air, El Al once had daily flights to Cairo (CAI). Royal Jordanian, with flights between Lod (TLV) and Amman (AMM), even has a Hebrew language web site ! Unfortunately, since El Al cancelled its Lod-Cairo flights due to unrest in Egypt, most flights between TLV and CAI are via Turkish Airways and Istanbul and for the return CAI-TLV via Royal Jordanian and AMM. Most flights require more than 10 hours travel time (due to home country layovers).

After a drawn out web search for TLV-CAI flights, Expedia found a one-stop TLV-AMM-CAI flight with a duration of only 6 hours and 15 minutes (including a four-hour layover in Amman) and a return flight with EgyptAir’s Air Sinai for an 85 minute non-stop flight CAI-TLV. The catch: a round trip price of US$1,150 (compared to US$753 for a Turkish Air/Royal Jordanian round trip).

The reality of Israel and its neighbors is that despite the PA’s hate mongering, relations — both overt and clandestine — are improving; perhaps two steps forward and one step back, but progressing none-the-less.

Now, if only Abu Mazen and the PA would get into step with the rest of the Arab world, perhaps the PA could have a state and Israel would have one more peace agreement.

If.