Liquor (/ˈlɪkər/LIK-ər) is an alcoholic drink produced by the distillation of grains, fruits, vegetables, or sugar that have already gone through alcoholic fermentation. Other terms for liquor include: spirit, distilled beverage, booze, spirituous liquor or hard liquor. The distillation process concentrates the liquid to increase its alcohol by volume. As liquors contain significantly more alcohol (ethanol) than other alcoholic drinks, they are considered "harder." In North America, the term hard liquor is sometimes used to distinguish distilled alcoholic drinks from non-distilled ones, whereas the term spirits is more commonly used in the UK. Some examples of liquors include vodka, rum, gin, and tequila. Liquors are often aged in barrels, such as for the production of brandy and whiskey, or are infused with flavorings to form flavored liquors, such as absinthe.
While the word liquor ordinarily refers to distilled alcoholic spirits rather than beverages produced by fermentation alone, it can sometimes be used more broadly to refer to any alcoholic beverage (or even non-alcoholic products of distillation or various other liquids). (Full article...)
Kalua Restaurant (Seattle, 1953)A tiki bar is a themed drinking establishment that serves elaborate cocktails, especially rum-based mixed drinks such as the Mai Tai and Zombie cocktails. Tiki bars are aesthetically defined by their tiki culture décor which is based upon a romanticized conception of tropical cultures, most commonly Polynesian. Some bars also incorporate general nautical themes or retro elements from the early atomic age.
Many early tiki bars were attached to hotels or were the bar sections for large Asian restaurants. While some are freestanding, cocktail-only affairs, many still serve food; and some hotel-related tiki establishments are still in existence. Large tiki bars may also incorporate a stage for live entertainment. Musicians such as Alfred Apaka and Don Ho played a historically important role in their popularity, and the bars also booked acts such as exotica-style bands and Polynesian dance floor shows. (Full article...)
The paloma (Spanish for "dove") is a tequila-based cocktail. This drink is most commonly prepared by mixing tequila, lime juice, and a grapefruit-flavored soda such as Fresca, Squirt, or Jarritos and served on the rocks with a lime wedge. Adding salt to the rim of the glass is also an option.
Baijiu (Chinese: 白酒; pinyin: báijiǔ; lit. 'white (clear) liquor'), or shaojiu (烧酒/燒酒), is a colorless Chinese liquor typically coming in between 35% and 60% alcohol by volume (ABV). Each type of baijiu uses its own type of qū for fermentation to create a distinct and characteristic flavor profile.
Baijiu is a clear liquid usually distilled from fermented sorghum, although other grains may be used; some southeastern Chinese styles may employ rice or glutinous rice, while other Chinese varieties may use wheat, barley, millet, or Job's tears (Chinese: 薏苡; pinyin: yìyǐ) in their mash bills. The qū starter culture used in the production of baijiu is usually made from pulverized wheat grain or steamed rice. (Full article...)
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Bottles of the two most famous brands of erguotou, Red Star and Niulanshan (at far right)
The process of erguotou production is what sets it apart from other qingxiang baijiu's like Fenjiu. Three ingredients, sorghum, fuqu (麸曲; a wheat bran based qū), and water make up the ingredient base. The sorghum is crushed, cooked, cooled, and mixed with the qū before being added, in a liquid state, to a stone or steel fermentation vessel where it will be left to ferment for a relatively short period of about four to eight days. After the qū has converted the starches and sugars in the sorghum into ethanol, the grain is transferred to a still that will extract the ethanol from the mixture. The distilled output is then rested in ceramic jars for a relatively short six to twelve months before being blended, proofed, bottled, and sold. (Full article...)
Mezcal (/mɛˈskæl/, Latin American Spanish:[mesˈkal]ⓘ), sometimes spelled mescal, is a distilled alcoholic beverage made from any type of agave. The word mezcal comes from Nahuatlmexcalli[meʃˈkalːi], which means "oven-cooked agave", from metl[met͡ɬ] and ixcalli[iʃˈkalːi]. Traditionally the word "mezcal" has been used generally in Mexico for all agave spirits and it continues to be used for many agave spirits whether these spirits have been legally certified as "mezcal" or not.
Agaves or magueys are endemic to the Americas and found globally as ornamental plants. More than 90% of mezcal is made in the Mexican state of Oaxaca, but is also produced and commercialized throughout Mexico for the national and international market. Native fermented drinks from maguey plant, such as pulque, existed before the arrival of the Spanish, but the origin of mezcal is tied to the introduction of Filipino-type stills to New Spain by Filipino migrants via the Manila galleons in the late 1500s and early 1600s. These stills were initially used to make vino de coco, but they were quickly adopted by the indigenous peoples of the Pacific coastal regions of Mexico and applied to the distillation of agave to make mezcal. (Full article...)
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A glass of whisky
Whisky or whiskey is a type of liquor made from fermentedgrainmash. Various grains (which may be malted) are used for different varieties, including barley, corn, rye, and wheat. Whisky is typically aged in wooden casks, which are typically made of charred white oak. Uncharred white oak casks previously used for the aging of port, rum or sherry are also sometimes used.
Whisky is a strictly regulated spirit worldwide with many classes and types. The typical unifying characteristics of the different classes and types are the fermentation of grains, distillation, and aging in wooden barrels. (Full article...)
Cocktails often also contain one or more types of juice, fruit, honey, milk or cream, spices, or other flavorings. Cocktails may vary in their ingredients from bartender to bartender, and from region to region. Two creations may have the same name but taste very different because of differences in how the drinks are prepared. (Full article...)
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A negroni
The negroni is a cocktail, made of equal parts gin, vermouth rosso (red, semi-sweet), and Campari, generally served on the rocks, and commonly garnished with an orange slice or orange peel. It is considered an apéritif.
The drink has been documented in Italy since the late 1940s, and became popular in the 1950s, but the origin is uncertain, and early recipes differ somewhat from the modern standard. The basic recipe – an equal-parts cocktail of these three ingredients – is first recorded in French cocktail books of the late 1920s, alongside many similar drinks; in Italy a long drink of equal parts vermouth and Campari (but no gin), topped with soda and served over ice, has existed since the 1800s under the names Milano–Torino or Americano. There are claims of Italian drinks by the name "Negroni" containing gin from 1919, though these differ significantly from the modern drink; see § History for details. (Full article...)
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The Vesper is a cocktail that was originally made of gin, vodka, and Kina Lillet. Since that form of Lillet is no longer produced, modern bartenders need to modify the recipe to mimic the original taste, with Lillet Blanc or Cocchi Americano as a typical substitute.
The drink was popularised by author Ian Fleming (1908–1964) in his 1953 novel Casino Royale, in which the character James Bond invents the recipe and names the cocktail. Fleming's Bond calls it a "special martini", and though it lacks the vermouth that defined a martini in Fleming's day, it is sometimes called a Vesper martini. (Full article...)
The Martinez is a classic cocktail that is widely regarded as the direct precursor to the Martini. It serves as the basis for many modern cocktails, and several different versions of the original exist. These are generally distinguished by the accompaniment of either Maraschino or Curacao, as well as differences in gin or bitters. (Full article...)
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A typical fernet con coca from Argentina, and also spread to adjacent areas in Southern South America
The cocktail first became popular among the youth of the college town of Córdoba, in the 1980s and—impulsed by an advertising campaign led by Fratelli Branca—its consumption grew in popularity during the following decades to become widespread throughout the country, surpassed only by that of beer and wine. It is now considered a cultural icon of Argentina and is especially associated with its home province of Córdoba, where the drink is most consumed. The popularity of fernet con coca is such that Argentina consumes more than 75% of all fernet produced globally. The cocktail can also be found in some of its bordering countries, like Uruguay. (Full article...)
A recipe for the cocktail appears as early as "Professor" Jerry Thomas' Bon Vivant's Companion (1862), which omits the brandy or cognac and is considered to be the "classic" American version. Harry Johnson was one of the bartenders who revived the model by adding other fruit to the mix. (Full article...)
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The Long Island iced tea was named for its visual resemblance to non-alcoholic iced tea.
Freeze distillation is a misnomer, because it is not distillation but rather a process of enriching a solution by partially freezing it and removing frozen material that is poorer in the dissolved material than is the liquid portion left behind. Such enrichment parallels enrichment by true distillation, where the evaporated and re-condensed portion is richer than the liquid portion left behind.
Ethanol and liquid water are completely miscible, but ethanol is practically insoluble in water ice. That means almost pure water ice can be precipitated from a lean ethanol-water mixture by cooling it sufficiently. The precipitation of water ice from the mixture enriches ethanol in the remaining liquid phase. The two phases can then be separated by filtration or decanting. The temperature at which water ice starts to precipitate depends on the ethanol concentration. Consequently, at a given temperature and ethanol concentration, the freezing process will reach an equilibrium at a specific ratio of water ice and enriched ethanol solution with a specific ethanol concentration. The temperatures and mixing ratios of these phase equilibria can be read from the phase diagram of ethanol and water. The maximum enrichment of ethanol in the liquid phase is reached at the eutectic point of ethanol and water, approximately 92.4 weight-% ethanol at -123 °C. (Full article...)
French 75 is a cocktail made from gin, champagne, lemon juice, and sugar. It is also called a 75 Cocktail, or in French simply a Soixante Quinze (Seventy Five).
... that to comply with a law that restricted liquor sales near churches, the Peninsula New York placed its cocktail lounge up a flight of stairs and down a long hallway?
... that Thomas Dickson Archibald, when speaking against increasing fines for violating liquor licenses, said "we need only go a step further and make the violation a hanging matter"?
... that WNJU, a Spanish-language television station serving New York City, was the first in the United States to air a hard-liquor advertisement?
This is a Good article, an article that meets a core set of high editorial standards.
Stork Club was a nightclub in Manhattan, New York City. During its existence from 1929 to 1965, it became one of the most prestigious clubs in the world. A symbol of café society, the wealthy elite, including movie stars, celebrities, showgirls, and aristocrats all mixed in the VIP Cub Room. The club was established on West 58th Street in 1929 by Sherman Billingsley, a former bootlegger from Enid, Oklahoma. After an incident when Billingsley was kidnapped and held for ransom by Mad Dog Coll, a rival of his mobster partners, he became the sole owner of the Stork Club. It remained at its original location until it was raided by Prohibition agents in 1931 after which it moved to East 51st Street. From 1934 until its closure in 1965, it was located at 3 East 53rd Street, just east of Fifth Avenue, when it became world-renowned with its celebrity clientele and luxury. Billingsley was known for his lavish gifts, which brought a steady stream of celebrities to the club and also ensured that those interested in the famous would have a reason to visit.
Until World War II, the club consisted of a dining room and bar with restrooms on upper floors with many mirrors and fresh flowers throughout. Billingsley originally built the well-known Cub Room as a private place where he could play cards with friends. Described as a "lopsided oval", the room had wood paneled walls hung with portraits of beautiful women and had no windows. A head waiter known as "Saint Peter" determined who was allowed entry to the Cub Room, where Walter Winchell wrote his columns and broadcast his radio programs from Table 50. (Full article...)
Image 17Map of Europe with individual countries grouped by preferred type of alcoholic drink, based on recorded alcohol consumption per capita (age 15+) (in liters of pure alcohol) in 2016.
Image 6A whiskey sour, served in a coupe glass, is garnished with a spiral of lemon peel and two maraschino cherries on a cocktail pick, along with drops of bitters swirled into the foam (from egg white) atop the drink. (from Cocktail garnish)
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A martini is a classic gin-based cocktail. (from List of cocktails)
Distillation equipment used by the 3rd century alchemist Zosimos of Panopolis, from the Byzantine Greek manuscript Parisinus graecus 2327. (from Liquor)
These flaming cocktails illustrate that some liquors will readily catch fire and burn. (from Liquor)
A pisco sour (from List of cocktails)
A B-52 (from List of cocktails)
A martini cocktail (from List of cocktails)
A grasshopper (from List of cocktails)
A cosmopolitan (from List of cocktails)
A piña colada (from List of cocktails)
A mojito served in Slovakia (from List of cocktails)
Mulled wine steeping (Swedish glögg) (from List of cocktails)
Map of Europe with individual countries grouped by preferred type of alcoholic drink, based on recorded alcohol consumption per capita (age 15+) (in liters of pure alcohol) in 2016.WineBeerSpirits(from Liquor)
A display of various liquors in a supermarket (from Liquor)
An illustration of brewing and distilling industry methods in England, 1858 (from Liquor)
Some single-drink liquor bottles available in Germany (from Liquor)
A Ramos gin fizz (from List of cocktails)
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Lemon slice (from Cocktail garnish)
Lime twist (from Cocktail garnish)
Raspberry (from Cocktail garnish)
A whiskey sour, served in a coupe glass, is garnished with a spiral of lemon peel and two maraschino cherries on a cocktail pick, along with drops of bitters swirled into the foam (from egg white) atop the drink. (from Cocktail garnish)
Shrimp (from Cocktail garnish)
Cocktail olive (from Cocktail garnish)
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