Så stor en gave må du give konfirmanden

I Danmark er der tradition for at give store gaver til konfirmationer. Selv om nogle unge modtager arveforskud og luksusrejser, er der dog grænser for, hvor store gaver konfirmanden må modtage – og af hvem.

I de kommende uger vil tusindevis af unge landet over lade sig konfirmere og fejre af deres familier, og er familierne ligeså gavmilde, som de plejer, kan de unge mennesker se frem til store gaver og bugnende bankkonti. Konfirmationen er nemlig en af de fester i tilværelsen, som kaster de allerstørste gaver af sig.

”For flere konfirmander betyder det både aktier, arveforskud og luksusrejser, men det er vigtigt at være opmærksom på, at der rent faktisk er grænser for, hvor store gaver konfirmanden må modtage, ” fortæller Lars Emde Poulsen, der er advokat hos ADVODAN og specialist i skatteret.

De nærmeste må give de største gaver
I 2016 kan den nærmeste familie give konfirmanden en gave til en værdi af 61.500 kr., uden at han eller hun skal betale gaveafgift. Hvis gavens værdi overskrider den fastsatte loft, skal konfirmanden betale en afgift på 15 procent af det beløb, der overskrider grænsen.

”Den nærmeste familie tæller dog kun forældre og stedforældre, plejeforældre, bedste- og oldeforældre og søskende, som konfirmanden bor sammen med. For mostre, onkler og andre familiemedlemmer gælder der andre regler for, hvor gavmild man må være med gaverne, ” forklarer Lars Emde Poulsen.

Uklare grænser
Konfirmanden skal ifølge SKAT’s hjemmeside betale skat af gaver fra andre end den nærmeste familie, hvis de er større, end hvad der almindeligvis er passende. Dog er der ingen faste grænser for, hvornår en gave bliver for stor og skal beskattes.

”Det er ikke muligt at opstille præcise retningslinjer, som man kan indrette sig efter for at være sikker på, at gaven ikke er skattepligtig. Ud over begivenheden kigger SKAT også på gavens størrelse i forhold til relationen mellem giver og modtager, samt om gavens størrelse ligger i et naturligt niveau. Giver man normalt gaver i den dyrere ende, så er det ikke unaturligt at gavens størrelse til en konfirmation også er tilsvarende høj,” siger han.

Bourbon In The Making

It is a well-rounded argument that the Scottish has the market sewn up as far as making the best product on the planet; however there are a few studs in other stables worth a mention. Bourbon has long been associated with Kentucky and for good reason as it is the state where this craft was first developed.

Elijah Craig a Baptist minister in the late 18th century in Georgetown Kentucky unveiled to farmers and townsfolk alike the first Bourbon whiskey where the trend just took off. It is said that even the father of the great Abraham Lincoln got into the action.

European settlers brought this trade secret with them to North America and in turn shared it with their new neighbors. Giving way to a boom in production. 1791 was the timeframe for the whiskey rebellion that took place in Pennsylvania where the government elected to impose tax on whiskey and whiskey sales.

This did not sit well with distillers so they made their way to the Kentucky Mountains to avoid the collectors of said tax. Eighty percent of all Bourbon today is distilled in the state of Kentucky. A royal family of French decent carried the name that now brandishes the bottles of this Kentucky gold. The name was introduced in 1758.

The attempt of American independence from British rule saw the French giving support so as the independence grew new land developments in America were named in French as tribute. In the year 1785, Kentucky was known as the Kentucky district of Virginia and not a separate state.

Through some of the river ports in Kentucky the whiskies were shipped down the Ohio River to New Orleans. Northeastern Bourbon county and Limestone county combined in 1789 to forge Mason county Virginia.

Although Bourbon is less restricted than Scotch, there are some regulations in place today.  State regulation on Bourbon distilling requires the brew to be made from 51% corn; however barley wheat and rye may be used for blending purposes. It must be between 80-160% proof.

The soft texture and sweet taste come from the corn itself. After it is distilled in a continual still, it is then filled to casks made of oak for maturing for a much regulated minimum of no less than two years.  These regulations make Bourbon what it is today, a very popular whiskey among all who drink.

Buying Italian Food Online

There seems to be a trend today to return to authentic Italian food.  People are no longer satisfied with the Americanized Italian food that is often served at restaurants, especially chain restaurants.  There is also a move to make more and more Italian food at home.  People like to have control over the food and make healthy substitutions or personalize Italian food recipes.  This is due in large part to the internet.  Before the internet people who wanted to make or buy authentic Italian food had to hope that an Italian family or international market had setup shop in their town or a neighboring city.  Also, the Americanized version of Italian food became popular because it was easy and cheap to make.  However, with the internet people can now learn online in the comfort of their own homes the secrets to making good Italian food and now that shoppers can buy directly from the source it is cheaper to buy ingredients and prepared food.

The internet is truly opening doors not just in Italian food, but in all international cuisine.  But, you do need to be careful when shopping for Italian food online.  The first thing you want to do is make sure that the vendor you are buying from is as close to the source as possible.  If you are looking for a specific ingredient then look for a vendor that specializes in that particular area.  This will help you maintain an authentic taste as well as cut on the costs if you're not dealing with a middle man.  See how long the vendor has been in business and what their experience is with Italian food.  There are dozens of these Italian food specialty shops online, you just need to find the ones that you feel most comfortable with.

Another thing you want to pay special attention to is the shipping charges, especially if you are buying from another country.  In Italian food there are many non perishable items and you will want to buy them in bulk since it is cheaper to ship it in the same order than to order it again.  Avoid any online vendors that charge you shipping per item since all your purchases will be shipped together.  The bulk of the shipping should be charged with the first item you order and rise gradually with each additional item.  Many vendors will just charge flat rate shipping or you may be able to find specials with free shipping.  Make sure you also read the fine print to understand all their charges.  You don't want to be surprised by any processing charges or other extra fees.

When buying Italian food online it is also important to look at the company's return policy.  A vendor should be willing to take back any food that is spoiled or ruined upon delivery.  Italian food depends on fresh ingredients and online shopping is a great way to get not only the ingredients, but whole Italian food dishes already prepared.  Just make sure you don't get stuck paying for Italian food that isn't fresh.  These days online Italian food companies have mastered shipping fresh food to make sure it arrives fresh at your doorstep.

Demand the best from the vendors you deal with.  If you haven't already, take the plunge and try buying Italian food online.  You might discover a new favorite, or experience another side of Italian food without having to go out to a fancy Italian food restaurant.

The History of the Espresso Machine

Even though it may seem like espresso has always been made from a machine chances are that some people think that way just because they know of no other way in which espresso is made. However, long before there were espresso machines to do our work for us, inhabitants of southern Europe and Milan, Italy, began making espresso as soon as they found out how! It wasn't until the mid 1940's that people and coffee shops all over began using espresso machines to make the beverage, at least in the United States that is.

On the other hand, espresso machines were popular in European countries quite awhile before the popularity of these machines came to the United States. You may be surprised to find out that the first espresso machine in Europe become known some 100 years before they were actually introduced in America. As the story goes, though, a man named Louis Bernard Babaut invented an espresso machine in the first half of the 19th Century. He also had a partner named Santais, but he was mainly responsible for the advertising of the espresso machine itself. But what kind of an espresso machine needs advertised? It would seem like if there was an easier way to make espresso in the early 1800s then people would have naturally flocked to the idea.

Nevertheless, Babaut's espresso machine was introduced to the world in the beginning of the 19th Century, but as many people could have guessed, the machine was not a perfect machine as no electronic device ever is! However, this is not to say that Babaut didn't have success with making espresso. Even though the purpose of the espresso machine, however, was to make espresso in an easier way, the machine still had to be handled by someone who knew what they were doing. On the whole, though, Babaut was successful and it could spit out espresso beverages just as quick as they could be consumed. Many people say that his first espresso machine could handle at least one thousand shots of espresso an hour, which is an impressive rate for the first espresso machine built!

Further down the road, though, another espresso machine made it into production and this time Luigi Bezzera was responsible for making it. He called the invention the "Voila" espresso coffee machine and even though he didn't get the popularity of the espresso machine off the ground himself, he found a man named Pavoni to do the marketing for him!

If you're interested in the automatic espresso machine, though, this concept was later introduced in the first half of the 1900s. An individual known as Illeta actually used compressed air to make the whole espresso-making process faster, which it was able to accomplish successfully!

There you have it: everything you have ever wanted to know about how espresso machines came into production! They are very popular in the United States and all over the world today, but we must remember that they were introduced by several other avid espresso drinkers just like us!

Gratis webshops til virksomheder slår hul i markedet

Den østjyske tøjleverandør Pro-Dress tilbyder nu som de første på markedet gratis webshops til virksomheder, som med fordelagtige rabatordninger tilgodeser virksomhedernes medarbejdere.

Udbytte for både virksomhed og medarbejder

Pro-Dress har, med deres innovative tiltag om gratis og lettilgængelige webshops til forskellige brancher, skabt nye muligheder for både virksomheder og deres medarbejdere, når det kommer til køb af arbejdstøj. Grunden er, at medarbejderne via virksomhedernes webshop kan få let adgang til at købe arbejdstøj med 20 % rabat, mens virksomheden kan levere en god service uden at bruge ressourcer på design og daglig drift af shoppen.

Personligt præg på produkterne

Samtidig med at medarbejderne sparer tid på tøjindkøb ved at anvende webshoppen via Pro-Dress, får virksomheden fordelene ved en personlig webshop. Når en medarbejder logger ind på den givne webshop, mødes de af en webshop med deres virksomheds eget logo og 20 % rabat. Det er også muligt at få påtrykt virksomhedens logo på tøjet efter aftale, og køberen får derfor en oplevelse, som er skræddersyet efter virksomhedens ønsker.

Pro-Dress forhandler arbejds- og fritidstøj af høj kvalitet, både til virksomheder og privatpersoner. Her er der fokus på et enkelt design til både herrer og damer. Læs mere om Pro-Dress på: http://www.pro-dress.com.