Spirited Creations

Spirits have a transformative power in foods. They add concentrated flavor accents, thanks to their distilled nature, while contributing label appeal when used in the description. However, developing applications with distilled spirits can lead to headaches due to restrictions and taxes set by the U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau (TTB). Therefore, product developers typically look to denatured versions of popular spirits—those that incorporate a small amount of salt to make them nonpotable and exempt from taxes.

Imperial Brands Gourmet & Specialty Division, formerly known as Todhunter Foods & Monarch Wine Company, offers a range of denatured spirits—some of which are available kosher. Available denatured spirits include light and dark rums, white and gold tequilas, French brandy, whisky, and vodka. These denatured, distilled spirits are 80 proof (40% alcohol by volume) with 3% salt added as a denaturant.

Denatured spirits find use in a range of popular applications, including soups, sauces, marinades, condiments and desserts. A range of ethnic foods, including sauces and marinades from Caribbean, Italian and Asian cuisines, present opportunities for their use. For example, salted vodka, when added at a typical use level of 0.25%, adds a characteristic note and flavor enhancement to popular Italian tomato-based sauces like marinara. Also, whisky, rum and brandy add distinctive flavors to further-processed meats via marinades. Salted French brandy adds an interesting twist to bread pudding.

These denatured spirits match the accepted standards for the color, flavor and aroma of their undenatured counterparts— albeit with a hint of salt, which product developers can compensate for in the finished-product formula. They have a shelf life of two years or more at ambient temperatures. Best of all, the denatured spirits are the real thing, and add a flavor value that no other added natural flavor or seasoning can beat.

Imperial Brands Gourmet & Specialty Division 
11505 Fairchild Gardens Avenue, Suite 204 
Palm Beach Gardens, FL 33410 
Phone: 561/624-5662 
Fax: 561/624-5778 
E-mail: [email protected]