European Stars And Stripes (Newspaper) - November 5, 1985, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Is it lot to Dan Voltam of Chnappi in hour. William Ernst or Lemberg and Swabia were very poor Ernst said. There were no metals and no real Industry. When William i came in that was 1816 to 1864 he wanted to bring in More Industry. There v i lots of wines Here then but wine was something everybody drank on sunday. During the week people drank rough  Ernst said rough elder is an alcoholic elder with a High percentage of acid. You la lose your underwear if you drink that  he said. People made it themselves from old apples and  on Way la government tried to bolster Industry was to encourage people to give their extra fruit to a factory for distilling rather than making elder from it. If you had some fruit hanging around in your Yard and you did t know what to do with it the distilleries would Send out barrels to pick it up he said. Once the distilleries made the schnapps they kept some for the distilling Lee used some to pay their taxes and gave Back the rest to the  Ernst said torn drinks unlike schnapps Are relatively new in Germany. Apple and Plum Korn. For example Are concoctions made by mixing fruit juice with the alcohol of distilled wheat and a Little sugar. Kom in German Means Grain. When used in reference to spirits Kom Means the drink is made from dec led wheat a Tang Lime ago men and women would sit at Marate tables at  Ernst said. The men would drink straight Kom and the ladles drank Apple juice and Plum juice. Then some Clever Guy came along and decided to put both together in one bottle. That Guy s probably making a Fortune  Ernst can remember ordering Apfel pm 15 years ago in German Gasthaus and receiving one shot of Apple juice we another shot of Kom. Which he had to mix. Schnapps in t aged. Like anything that s distilled. It. Corns through the distilling process Crys Al Clear. Spirits that Are aged get a lot of their character and most of their colouring during aging. American whiskey Tor example is aged in Pine kegs in which the Insl Dea have been burned giving the whiskey its Smoky taste and color. Generally speaking the stronger the 1 v to Chrappa. The less to Avo it will have. Ernst said. " Mot Thrapp runs Between 32 and 60 percent to Cohol. Or from 64 to 120 proof. Schnapps comes though the distilling process at about 80 percent alcohol. Then it s strained to take out some of the punch and put Back in some of the character. But All the numbers aside. Ernst said the Only Way to m h a schnapps la Good is to drink it. French cognacs have grades from to to sop. He mid that Tette you something about the booze because a based on aging. But with schnapps it s really a matter of taste. And it does t really do any Good to have a it write in Germany because then you go someplace and they Don t have your favorite anyway. & under Borg Dit Wilbry left Dalti from 1b71 right the Horbol drink on in wooden a a it Woof Rwy Tilv und Armra byjoe Mapother Bremerhaven Bureau k Urt Albers acknowledges there i alcohol in the herbal product his company Sells in More than 100 countries but he say sit is neither a schnapps nor a Medicine. It is Well Underberg after a Good to Al As the advertising slogan says. What i always Tell the customers is that under be. Is something different Albers said. Albers who has offices at the company s Rhenberg Headquarters says he s not sure what exactly goes into the paper wrapped bottles found in most German taverns Many International airports and at drug stores in the United states. The Only Man in the world Albers can Point to who definitely knows what the drink is made of is 44-year-old Emil Underberg the latest in a line of family Herb mixers dating Back to Hubert Underberg Albrecht who in 1846 began producing the dark mixture said to contain herbs from 43 countries. There is a mixing room at each of the family business s three distilleries. In Rhenberg. Berlin and let Olkon Switzerland. Pm Underberg locks himself in the mixing room of each distillery to put together the formula handed Down by word of Mouth through generations of undo bergs. In on Day. Emil Underberg can put together enough herbs in the automated mixing room to keep the Rhenberg Plant operating for two months Albers said. We know when he is weighing the herbs because he wears an apron Albers said. One dozen pots of different sizes Are filled half with herbs and half with alcohol. The mix sits for a number of weeks at room temperature after which the ingredients Are poured into a vat. There the concoction sits Tor another nine months. Drinkers of Underberg rarely have More than one supporting albers1 Contention that the mix is not a True schnapps. The elixir is taken to offset the effects of a Large meal or to soothe an upset stomach. The origins of Underberg Are dutch. Hubert Underberg was studying banking and Trade in Holland where he Learned about a mixture of herbs that was combined with genever a traditional dutch schnapps. The mix varied according to which bartender was doing the Ming according to a company history. Hubert Underberg. Becoming the Henry Ford of elixirs decided there was Money to be made in standardizing the herbal mixture. On the Day he wed Catharina Albecht Hubert founded the Underberg concern if Rhenberg. Evan then the bottles were individually wrapped. The latin slogan Semper Idem always the same was stamped on each package. However several years ago the company decided to lower the alcoholic Content of Underberg from 49 percent to 44 percent per bottle. A did t and 49 percent to obtain the benefits of  Albers said. The former percentage of alcohol was a Holdover from times when All distilled spirits were made stronger he said. Nowadays sales of Underberg. Though substantial Are less than half of the total business the company does each year. The company has branched out As the agent for a number of other distilleries. It also owns vineyards in Canada. Historically Underberg is closest to our  Albers said but business else it is not the most  manufacturing in Rhenberg is on its Way out. Only administrative personnel will stay in Tow City where Underberg got its Start. Albers said. The Underberg formula is in Little danger of extinction. Emil Underberg has five children from whom to choose a successor or successors to carry on the family secret. Underberg after dinner elixir whose secret is still Safe sober 5,1985 the stars and stripes Page 15