8 October - The Diplomatica Rum Story & Dr Charles Bamforth, Beer Specialist.

Manny Pena

Brand Ambassador for Rum Diplomático

Emmanuel “Manny” Pena is the National Brand Ambassador for Diplomático Rum, the best sipping rum from Venezuela. As the official face of Diplomático, Manny’s duties include touring the US sharing the story of Diplomatico, educating the consumer, media and the trade on Diplomático’s different rum expressions, the art of sipping rum, and the versatility Diplomático brings to classic and modern cocktails.

Manny has spent the past 18 years working in the hospitality and wines and spirits industry. Born and raised in the Dominican Republic, Manny moved to Miami after finishing high school and graduated from the University of Miami In 2002, with a degree in Hospitality. Following his passion for the culinary arts, he moved to Florence, Italy to attend Apicius International School of Hospitality where he focused his studies on Mediterranean cuisine. Two years later, Manny traveled to Spain to study at University of La Rioja in Logroño where he learned oenology and viticulture.

He returned to the United States and was tapped as a portfolio manager at Southern Wine and Spirits specializing in Spanish and South American wine accounts. In 2010, Manny accepted the position as Beverage Director and Sommelier at Spanish restaurant Bar Basque in New York City. Here he was responsible for the restaurant’s extensive wine list. Under Manny’s direction, the restaurant received recognition by Wine Spectator for “Best Spanish Wine List in the Country.” In 2012, Manny accepted the position as Brand Ambassador for Diplomático.

In his spare time, Manny can be found at Astor Row Café, which he co-owns with his wife Rose. He is constantly trying to find the best ingredients and create distinct flavor pairings of food and cocktails. Manny also enjoys pottery, melting glass, welding and woodwork.

Diplomático 

Rum Diplomático is a Venezuelan rum brand produced by Destilerías Unidas S.A. (D.U.S.A.) and is recognized as one of the finest rums in the world. It holds the DOC Rums certification from Venezuela and has become one of the international standards when speaking of premium and super premium rums.

Rum Diplomático was inspired by the character of Don Juan Nieto Melendez. According to stories told by those from the region where the distillery is located, Don Juancho had a burning passion for exploring the sources and processes responsible for the flavors of traditional beverages, in particular, rum. He collected an exhaustive array of exotic rums from his travels, which was known among friends as “The Ambassador’s Reserves,” a reference to its owner’s class and good nature. To honor his dedication, savoir-faire, chivalry and authenticity, his portrait is illustrated on the label of the brand’s products.

The Diplomático distillery, located at the foot of the Andes Mountains, combines traditional methods with modern technology to produce the finest rums. The Rum Diplomático production area boasts great conditions for the growth of sugar cane, including fertile lands and abundant water. Weather in this area also plays an important role in sugar cane production, fermentation and rum aging process. The distillery has been producing top- quality spirits since 1959 and is a leader in environmental initiatives, as they are certified with an ISO 14001.

The rums of Diplomático are made from sugar cane, molasses and honeys (with a high concentration of sugar), which are then fermented with the distillery’s own yeast strain. The fermented products are then distilled through a unique process including continuous columns, a batch kettle and ancient copper pot stills. The rum is then aged in different types of casks, predominantly former bourbon and malt whisky barrels, and sherry casks. Maestro Ronero Tito Cordero, awarded “Rum Blender of the Year” twice at the London Rum Barrel Awards in 2011 and 2013, works hard to create unique and complex rums.

The product range includes blends of dark and light rums aged from two to twelve years. The Diplomático products consist of the Prestige Range: the Single Vintage 2002 and Ambassador, both aged for 12 years and finished in sherry casks for one and two years respectively, and the New Tradition Range: Reserva Exclusiva (aged up to 12 years), Planas (aged up to 6 years), and Mantuano (aged up to 8 years).

Rum Diplomático is imported by Domaine Select Wine Estates with national availability. For more information please visit http://www.rondiplomatico.com/ and join in the conversation at Facebook.com/DiplomaticoRum | @DiplomaticoRum

    

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

All About Beer with Dr. Charlie Bamforth

by CIA at Copia

Session 1: A general introduction to beer with acclaimed beer master, Dr. Charlie Bamforth

Join legendary beer brewing master and scientist Dr. Charles Bamforth, Ph.D., at CIA at Copia as he takes you on a journey to discover the rich diversity of beer! During the first session of this four-part series, Dr. Bamforth will explain how beer is made and the importance of different malts, hops, water, and yeast. He’ll cover proper pouring technique, temperature, and storage tips, as well special terms to describe beer’s aroma and taste. Samples included!

November 16, 2018
All About Beer: Learn About Lagers with Dr. Charlie Bamforth

January 18, 2019
All About Beer: Exploring Ales with Dr. Charlie Bamforth

February 15, 2019
All About Beer: Discover German & Belgian Ales with Dr. Charlie Bamforth

Dr. Charlie Bamforth

Distinguished Professor

Department of Food Science and Technology

University of California

Davis

Dr. Charlie Bamforth is Distinguished Professor in the Department of Food Science & Technology and Anheuser-Busch Endowed Professor of Malting & Brewing Sciences at UC Davis. He has been part of the brewing industry for more than 40 years. He is formerly Deputy Director-General of Brewing Research International and Research Manager and Quality Assurance Manager of Bass Brewers.

He is an Honorary Professor in the School of Biosciences at the University of Nottingham, England and was previously Visiting Professor of Brewing at Heriot-Watt University in Edinburgh, Scotland. Charlie is a Fellow of the Institute of Brewing & Distilling, Fellow of the Society of Biology and Fellow of the International Academy of Food Science and Technology.

Bamforth recently retired after 18 years as Editor in Chief of the Journal of the American Society of Brewing Chemists. He is also a long-standing member of the editorial board of the Journal of the Institute of Brewing. He has published more than 300 papers and articles and has written or edited 19 books, several of which have been translated into Portuguese, Russian and Italian. Two of his books have been recorded by actors as audiobooks and he himself is the voice on the seven CD The Brewmasters Art. He has written even more prolifically on soccer since 1985. His recent scientific contributions have included the fourth of a 6-part series on beer quality called simply Color and Clarity as well as editing Brewing Materials and Processes: A Practical Approach to Beer Excellence (Elsevier) and (with Nick Bokulich) Brewing Microbiology: Current Research, Omics and Microbial Ecology (Caister). He was a member of the Advisory Board and a contributor of many entries in The Oxford Companion to Beer (2012). In October 2010 he was on The Honor Roll as one of the 20 professors who are changing the classroom in the US (Playboy magazine).

Charlie has featured extensively in the media, including the BBC, Discovery Channel, NPR’s Science Friday, PBS, New Scientist, Popular Mechanics, Los Angeles Times, San Francisco Chronicle, Popular Science, Brew Dogs and many more. His credits at IMDb include The Art & Science of Beer, How Beer Saved the World, How Stuff Works and Ultimate Factories. He has presented at innumerable venues including Google, the New York Academy of Sciences, the Smithsonian, the National Press Club and Xerox Parc Forum. In 2011 Charlie was honored by the Award of Distinction from the American Society of Brewing Chemists for “exceptional contributions and long diligent service to brewing science and the brewing industry”. He has been honored by the students of UC Davis as one of the top three educators in his college.

He is the immediate Past President of the Institute of Brewing and Distilling, the world’s leading professional society for brewers and distillers. In January 2014, he was the star of the film that won the Food Awards gold medal in Hollywood for viewers’ choice, short documentary. He received an Outstanding Service Award for the academic year 2012-2013 from UC Davis Extension. Charlie was awarded an Honorary Doctorate from Heriot-Watt University in 2015 “in recognition of his leading contribution to advancements in the study and practice of brewing science over the course of a long and distinguished career”. In 2016 Charlie was given the Lifetime Achievement Stewardship Award by the UC Davis Foundation. In 2018 he received the Recognition Award from the Brewers Association in recognition of “his inspiration, enthusiasm and support contributed to the American Craft Brewing Movement”. Bamforth was awarded the Horace Brown Medal by the Institute of Brewing and Distilling (IBD) in 2018. The award is “for eminent services on the scientific or technical side of the fermentation industries” and is the highest accolade in the IBD. He was also presented in 2018 with the Award of Honor by the Master Brewers Association of the Americas. Further, in 2018 he was presented with the Award of Distinction by the College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences at UC Davis.