Palinka
Encyclopedia
Hungary
Hungary , officially the Republic of Hungary , is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is situated in the Carpathian Basin and is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine and Romania to the east, Serbia and Croatia to the south, Slovenia to the southwest and Austria to the west. The...
, Romania
Romania
Romania is a country located at the crossroads of Central and Southeastern Europe, on the Lower Danube, within and outside the Carpathian arch, bordering on the Black Sea...
and parts of Austria
Austria
Austria , officially the Republic of Austria , is a landlocked country of roughly 8.4 million people in Central Europe. It is bordered by the Czech Republic and Germany to the north, Slovakia and Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the...
. It is commonly made from the fermentation of plum
Plum
A plum or gage is a stone fruit tree in the genus Prunus, subgenus Prunus. The subgenus is distinguished from other subgenera in the shoots having a terminal bud and solitary side buds , the flowers in groups of one to five together on short stems, and the fruit having a groove running down one...
s, but other fruits used include apricot
Apricot
The apricot, Prunus armeniaca, is a species of Prunus, classified with the plum in the subgenus Prunus. The native range is somewhat uncertain due to its extensive prehistoric cultivation.- Description :...
s, apple
Apple
The apple is the pomaceous fruit of the apple tree, species Malus domestica in the rose family . It is one of the most widely cultivated tree fruits, and the most widely known of the many members of genus Malus that are used by humans. Apple grow on small, deciduous trees that blossom in the spring...
s, pear
Pear
The pear is any of several tree species of genus Pyrus and also the name of the pomaceous fruit of these trees. Several species of pear are valued by humans for their edible fruit, but the fruit of other species is small, hard, and astringent....
s, peach
Peach
The peach tree is a deciduous tree growing to tall and 6 in. in diameter, belonging to the subfamily Prunoideae of the family Rosaceae. It bears an edible juicy fruit called a peach...
es and cherries
Cherry
The cherry is the fruit of many plants of the genus Prunus, and is a fleshy stone fruit. The cherry fruits of commerce are usually obtained from a limited number of species, including especially cultivars of the wild cherry, Prunus avium....
. The traditional double distillation process results in a strong alcohol content of 40 to 70 percent ABV
ABV
ABV is a three-letter acronym that may refer to:* Alcohol by volume, a measure of the alcohol content of alcoholic drinks* Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja, Nigeria, from its IATA airport code...
.
In 2008, the European Union established exclusive trademark rights for the name. "Pálinka" refers to product made in Hungary and four states of Austria (Niederösterreich, Burgenland
Burgenland
Burgenland is the easternmost and least populous state or Land of Austria. It consists of two Statutarstädte and seven districts with in total 171 municipalities. It is 166 km long from north to south but much narrower from west to east...
, Steiermark and Vienna
Vienna
Vienna is the capital and largest city of the Republic of Austria and one of the nine states of Austria. Vienna is Austria's primary city, with a population of about 1.723 million , and is by far the largest city in Austria, as well as its cultural, economic, and political centre...
). "Palincă" refers to the brandy made in Romania. Additionally, the trademark to several specific regional varieties were given to Hungarian brands of Almapálinka, Barackpálinka, Szilvapálinka, and Törkölypálinka.
EU Legal definition
The production of pálinka in the European Union is regulated by order 1-3-1576/89, which took effect on 1 July 2002. According to the regulation, an alcoholic beverage may be called pálinka in the EU only if:- it is made exclusively from fruits, herbs or pomacePomacePomace , or marc , is the solid remains of grapes, olives, or other fruit after pressing for juice or oil. It contains the skins, pulp, seeds, and stems of the fruit....
indigenous to the Carpathian Basin region, and free of additional ingredients or additives, - is grown, distilled and bottled in Hungary,
- its alcohol content is between 37.5% and 86% ABVABVABV is a three-letter acronym that may refer to:* Alcohol by volume, a measure of the alcohol content of alcoholic drinks* Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja, Nigeria, from its IATA airport code...
.
As a consequence of this regulation, a whole family of popular products was rebranded as "szeszes ital" (spirit drinks). Traditional pálinkas mixed with honey were rebranded as "szeszes ital" as well, even if there was no unorthodox step in the process of distillation. Most of the brands re-categorized as spirit drinks are a cheap mixture of flavorings, water, and rectified spirit
Rectified spirit
A rectified spirit, rectified alcohol, or neutral spirit is highly concentrated ethanol which has been purified by means of repeated distillation, a process that is called rectification. It typically contains 95% alcohol by volume...
.
In 2004 the European Union accepted pálinka as a Hungarian speciality, and hence its production is limited to Hungary (and four provinces of Austria for pálinka made from apricot). This caused some confusion in neighbouring countries, as some claimed that producers of fruit brandies would have to pay a royalty to Hungary. This is however not the case. It is the brand "pálinka" that is protected by Hungarian and EU law, hence producers outside of Hungary are not allowed to use the brand "pálinka" for their products, but they are free to produce fruit brandies and sell them under different names. This is in spite of the drink being historically distilled in most of historical Hungary, many regions of which fall outside the present-day borders.
The production is regulated by the 2008. LXXIII. Law of the Republic of Hungary. Under the relevant EU and Hungarian law, pálinka can be made only from healthy and legally allowed fruits by way of distillation. Pálinka falls under generic protected designation of origin
Palinka with PDO
-Legal description:Palinka with protected designation of origin : Palinka has been officially registered in Europe as a Hungaricum since 2004. Its production is regulated by the 2008. LXXIII. Law of the Republic of Hungary...
.
In 2008, the European Union established exclusive trademark rights for the name. "Pálinka" refers to product made in Hungary and four states of Austria (Niederösterreich, Burgenland
Burgenland
Burgenland is the easternmost and least populous state or Land of Austria. It consists of two Statutarstädte and seven districts with in total 171 municipalities. It is 166 km long from north to south but much narrower from west to east...
, Steiermark and Vien). "Palincă" refers to the brandy made in Romania. Additionally, the trademark to several specific regional varieties were given to Hungarian brands of Almapálinka, Barackpálinka, Szilvapálinka, and Törkölypálinka.
History
The first records of the Hungarian spirit date back to the fourteenth century, and refer as "Aqua vitae reginae Hungariae" to the aqua vitae of the wife of the King Charles I of HungaryCharles I of Hungary
Charles I , also known as Charles Robert , was the first King of Hungary and Croatia of the House of Anjou. He was also descended from the old Hungarian Árpád dynasty. His claim to the throne of Hungary was contested by several pretenders...
. This spirit was probably a brandy blended with rosemary, and had its use in medicine, as both the king and the queen suffered from arthritis.
The word pálinka derives from the Slavonic stem
Word stem
In linguistics, a stem is a part of a word. The term is used with slightly different meanings.In one usage, a stem is a form to which affixes can be attached. Thus, in this usage, the English word friendships contains the stem friend, to which the derivational suffix -ship is attached to form a new...
"páliť", to burn. In Hungarian the word is most probably of Slovak origin, as "Tótpálinka" (literally Slovak pálinka) was used in Hungary to refer to alcoholic drinks derived from wheat.
The word pálinka became widespread in Hungary in the seventeenth century, but it still referred to distillates made from grain.
The meaning was later transferred to fruit brandies, while wheat distillates were referred to as "crematura". Distillation became a privilege of the landlords, which led to the proliferation of home stills. Law forbade the use of bread-stuffs for distillation, hence the use of fruits. Private distilleries and factories started to appear towards the end of the eighteenth century, which led to legislation and to the introduction of a Pálinka tax.
The patron of Pálinka distillation is Saint Nicholas
Saint Nicholas
Saint Nicholas , also called Nikolaos of Myra, was a historic 4th-century saint and Greek Bishop of Myra . Because of the many miracles attributed to his intercession, he is also known as Nikolaos the Wonderworker...
.
Pálinka has an important role in traditional celebrations and social occasions. A traditional Hungarian greeting is "Pálinkás jó reggelt!" which means "Good morning with pálinka!".
Types of Pálinka
- Kisüsti (literally "Small pot, cauldron") is a double-distilled pálinka made in a copper pot not exceeding a volume of 1000 litres.- Érlelt (Aged) is a pálinka aged for at least 3 months in a wooden cask smaller than 1000 litres, or for at least 6 months in a wooden cask of 1000 litres or above.
- Ó (Old) is a pálinka aged for at least 12 months in a wooden cask smaller than 1000 litres, or for at least 24 months in a wooden cask of 1000 litres or above.
- Ágyas ("bedside") is a pálinka aged for at least 3 months together with fruits. The fruits can be of the same sort used to obtain the distillate or of another sort. To 100 liters of pálinka at least 10 kg of ripe or 5 kg of dried fruits have to be added.
- Törköly
Törkölypálinka
Törkölypálinka is a Hungarian pomace brandy, an alcoholic beverage produced by distillation from grape residues left over from winemaking. One of the oldest types of pálinka, it helps digestion, and is usually consumed in small quantities after meals.Under the 2008. LXXIII...
(Pomace pálinka, also Törkölypálinka) is a pálinka made from grape pomace
Pomace
Pomace , or marc , is the solid remains of grapes, olives, or other fruit after pressing for juice or oil. It contains the skins, pulp, seeds, and stems of the fruit....
. One of the oldest types of pálinka; it helps digestion, and is usually consumed in small quantities after meals.
Varieties
A popular saying in Hungary says: what can be used to prepare jam can also be used to produce pálinka. (Clearly, for a fruit to be suitable for jam production it has to contain some sugar.) This saying suggests that pálinka can be made from a large variety of fruits, and indeed it is made from most of the fruits available in Hungary.The most common pálinkas are made from apricots, pears, and plums. Other fruits that are often used are sour cherries, apples, mulberries and quince. Nevertheless, pálinka made from chestnuts is also available.
Barack is a type of pálinka made of apricot
Apricot
The apricot, Prunus armeniaca, is a species of Prunus, classified with the plum in the subgenus Prunus. The native range is somewhat uncertain due to its extensive prehistoric cultivation.- Description :...
s. The word barack is a collective term for both apricot (in Hungarian sárgabarack, lit. "yellow-peach") and peach
Peach
The peach tree is a deciduous tree growing to tall and 6 in. in diameter, belonging to the subfamily Prunoideae of the family Rosaceae. It bears an edible juicy fruit called a peach...
(in Hungarian őszibarack, lit. "autumn-peach").
Pálinka made of pomace (törkölypálinka) is very popular as well, and is a typical drink in the wine producing regions of the country.
An unusual way of presenting pear palinka is when the bottle contains a whole fruit inside. The tiny immature fruit and its branch are threaded into the bottle, and the pear matures there to a point where it is much larger than the bottle opening.
Consumption
Pálinka is best consumed at 18-20 °C because it is at this temperature when the fine smell and taste of the fruits can be best enjoyed. If served too cold, the smell and the taste will be difficult to notice.The form of the glass used to drink pálinka has a big influence on the drinking experience. The ideal shaped glass is wide at the bottom and narrow at the rim, that is, it has the shape of a tulip. The relatively narrow neck of the glass leads to the nose the smell released on the relatively big surface at the bottom of the glass, and so it magnifies the smell of the drink.
Pálinka is usually drunk as a shot.
Modern production
Modern commercial production occurs in HungaryHungary
Hungary , officially the Republic of Hungary , is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is situated in the Carpathian Basin and is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine and Romania to the east, Serbia and Croatia to the south, Slovenia to the southwest and Austria to the west. The...
, Romania
Romania
Romania is a country located at the crossroads of Central and Southeastern Europe, on the Lower Danube, within and outside the Carpathian arch, bordering on the Black Sea...
and parts of Austria
Austria
Austria , officially the Republic of Austria , is a landlocked country of roughly 8.4 million people in Central Europe. It is bordered by the Czech Republic and Germany to the north, Slovakia and Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the...
. It is commonly made from the fermentation of plum
Plum
A plum or gage is a stone fruit tree in the genus Prunus, subgenus Prunus. The subgenus is distinguished from other subgenera in the shoots having a terminal bud and solitary side buds , the flowers in groups of one to five together on short stems, and the fruit having a groove running down one...
s, but other fruits used include apricot
Apricot
The apricot, Prunus armeniaca, is a species of Prunus, classified with the plum in the subgenus Prunus. The native range is somewhat uncertain due to its extensive prehistoric cultivation.- Description :...
s, apple
Apple
The apple is the pomaceous fruit of the apple tree, species Malus domestica in the rose family . It is one of the most widely cultivated tree fruits, and the most widely known of the many members of genus Malus that are used by humans. Apple grow on small, deciduous trees that blossom in the spring...
s, pear
Pear
The pear is any of several tree species of genus Pyrus and also the name of the pomaceous fruit of these trees. Several species of pear are valued by humans for their edible fruit, but the fruit of other species is small, hard, and astringent....
s, peach
Peach
The peach tree is a deciduous tree growing to tall and 6 in. in diameter, belonging to the subfamily Prunoideae of the family Rosaceae. It bears an edible juicy fruit called a peach...
es and cherries
Cherry
The cherry is the fruit of many plants of the genus Prunus, and is a fleshy stone fruit. The cherry fruits of commerce are usually obtained from a limited number of species, including especially cultivars of the wild cherry, Prunus avium....
. The traditional double distillation process results in a strong alcohol content of 40 to 70 percentABV
ABV
ABV is a three-letter acronym that may refer to:* Alcohol by volume, a measure of the alcohol content of alcoholic drinks* Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja, Nigeria, from its IATA airport code...
.
Commercial production
Commercially available pálinka is always distilled in one of the registered distilleries.The quality of pálinka is largely influenced by the quality of the fruits used, hence the distiller has to choose good quality fruits with a rich taste.
The first step in the production process is the preparation of the fruit mash. The stony seed is removed from the fruits that
have such (e.g., cherry, apricot, plum) in order avoid the cyanide contained in these seeds from ending up in the distillate.
Some fruits (e.g., apple, pear, quince) will be ground in order to make the mash soft.
The second step in the production process is the fermentation. Some fruits, like quince, require an additive to start the fermentation process (e.g., citric acid). The fermentation is carried out in an anaerobic environment. The ideal temperature for the fermentation process is between 14-16 degrees Celsius, and the process takes between 10 and 15 days.
The third step in the production process is the distillation. There are two types of distillation processes used: in a pot still or in a column still.
Distillation in a pot still ("kisüsti" pálinka refers to a pálinka distilled in a pot still no bigger than 1000 litres) is considered to be the traditional way of distillation. Pálinka distilled in a pot still is always double distilled. In the first step the alcohol is extracted from the fermented mash, the result is called "alszesz" (low alcohol). In the second step it is the taste of the fruits that is extracted from the fermented mash. The second distillation is the one that has the biggest influence on the quality of the pálinka, and hence requires special skills. During the second distillation one distinguishes between "előpárlat" (foreshots), "középpárlat" (middle cut) and "utópárlat" (feints). The "előpárlat" is not used, even though much of the taste is contained in this cut. The "középpárlat" is the one that gives the body of the distillate.
Distillation in a column still involves a single distillation. The process is faster and cheaper than distillation in a pot still, and hence, the resulting pálinka is cheaper.
The last step in the process is aging. Pálinka can be aged in wooden casks (made of, e.g., mulberry wood) or in tanks made of metal. Not all varieties of pálinka can be aged in wooden casks, because the wood can cancel the fruity taste of the drink.
Non-commercial production
In Hungary, one can ferment a batch of fruit mashMashing
In brewing and distilling, mashing is the process of combining a mix of milled grain , known as the "grain bill", and water, known as "liquor", and heating this mixture...
at home, then take the fermented mash to a distiller, who can then legally distill the mash to the desired strength. Legislation legalized small home distillers in 2010.
The most alcoholic pálinkas are (informally) referred to as "kerítésszaggató" in Hungarian, which literally means "fence-ripper" (referring to a drunkard's loss of balance). These potent, home-made, "házi" (home-made) pálinkas are commercially available in small portions and are very common in the countryside.
See also
- National symbols of HungaryNational symbols of HungaryThe national symbols of Hungary are flags, icons or cultural expressions that are emblematic, representative or otherwise characteristic of Hungary or Hungarian culture...
- Palinka with PDOPalinka with PDO-Legal description:Palinka with protected designation of origin : Palinka has been officially registered in Europe as a Hungaricum since 2004. Its production is regulated by the 2008. LXXIII. Law of the Republic of Hungary...
Some other brandies produced in Central Europe:
- SlivovitzSlivovitzSlivovitz or Slivovitsais a distilled beverage made from Damson plums. It is frequently called plum brandy, and in the Balkans is part of the category of drinks called rakia...
, plum brandy - RakiaRakiaRakia is an alcoholic beverage that is produced by distillation of fermented fruit; it is a popular beverage throughout the Balkans. Its alcohol content is normally 40% ABV, but home-produced rakia can be stronger . Prepečenica is double-distilled rakia which has an alcohol content that may...
, a brandy made throughout Southeastern Europe - ŢuicăTuicaŢuică is a traditional Romanian spirit of somewhere in between 45%-60% alcohol by volume. It is usually made from plums.Ţuică is the official name for the drink when it is prepared only from plums...
, a similar drink in Romania. - PálenkaPalenkaPálenka denotes any kind of distillate, but especially fruit distillate, in Hungary. It is also often used as a generic word for all kinds of liquors, including vodka, gin, borovička, etc...
, distillate of fruits or grains
External links
- The History of Pálinka A site dedicated for the beverage (in English)
- palinka.lap.hu A site with a collection of links about Pálinka