Portal:Liquor

Distilled beverages at a bar The Liquor Portal Liquor shelves at a hotel

Introduction

A cocktail glass

Swan necked copper pot stills in the Glenfiddich distillery

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, 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...)

Selected article -

Raksi (Devanagari:रक्सी) or Rakshi (Bantawa language: Hengmawa/Hengma, Limbu language: Sijongwaa aara, Nepal Bhasa: aila) is the Nepali term for a traditional distilled alcoholic beverage in Nepal, India (Darjeeling, Sikkim) and Tibet. It is often made at home.

Raksi is a strong drink, clear like vodka or gin, tasting somewhat like Japanese sake. It is usually made from kodo millet (kodo) or rice; different grains produce different flavors. It is made by distilling a chhaang, a brewed alcoholic drink. The Limbus and Kirati people , for whom it is a traditional beverage, drink tongba and raksi served with pieces of pork, water buffalo or goat meat sekuwa. For the Newars, aila is indispensable during festivals and various religious rituals as libation, prasad or sagan.

In CNN's list of the world's 50 most delicious drinks, raksi was ranked 41st and was described as follows: "made from millet or rice, raksi is strong on the nose and sends a burning sensation straight down your throat that resolves itself into a surprisingly smooth, velvety sensation. Nepalese drink this home brew to celebrate festivals, though some think that the prized drink itself is the reason to celebrate." (Full article...)

List of selected articles

Selected biography -

Isaac Wolfe Bernheim

Isaac Wolfe Bernheim (November 4, 1848 – April 1, 1945) was an American businessman notable for starting the I. W. Harper brand of premium bourbon whiskey (a historically important brand currently owned by Diageo). The success of his distillery and distribution business helped to consolidate the Louisville area as a major center of Kentucky bourbon distilling. Bernheim was also a philanthropist, establishing the 14,000-acre (5,700 ha; 22 sq mi) Bernheim Arboretum and Research Forest in Bullitt County. (Full article...)

List of selected biographies
Eva Ekeblad Jack Daniel James C. Crow Elijah Craig Bronfman family Roustam Tariko Hiram Walker Harry C. Hatch William Gooderham Sr. Lewis Rosenstiel John Philip Wiser John Walker (grocer) Samuel Bronfman Popcorn Sutton Dale DeGroff

General articles -

Image 1

The hanky panky is a cocktail made from gin, sweet vermouth, and Fernet-Branca. It is a variation on the sweet martini, or Martinez, made distinctive by the Fernet-Branca, a bitter Italian digestivo. It was created by Ada "Coley" Coleman, head bartender at the Savoy Hotel, London. (Full article...)
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Bottles of legally produced poitín

Poitín (Irish pronunciation: [ˈpˠɛtʲiːnʲ]), anglicized as poteen (/pəˈt(ʃ)iːn, pɒˈtiːn/) or potcheen, is a traditional Irish distilled beverage (40–90% ABV). Former common names for Poitín were "Irish moonshine" and "mountain dew". It was traditionally distilled in a small pot still and the term is a diminutive of the Irish word pota, meaning "pot". The Irish word for a hangover is póit. In accordance with the Irish Poteen/Irish Poitín technical file, it can only be made from cereals, grain, whey, sugar beet, molasses and potatoes. (Full article...)
Image 3

Arak with water and ice

Arak or araq (Arabic: ﻋﺮﻕ) is a distilled Levantine spirit of the anise drinks family. It is translucent and unsweetened. (Full article...)
Image 4

A Russian spring punch cocktail

The Russian spring punch is a highball cocktail of vodka and liqueur, per IBA specified ingredients. The International Bartenders Association lists the beverage in its New Era Drinks category.

The Russian spring punch was created in London, England by Dick Bradsell in the 1980s. He claims not to remember which bar he was working at at the time, but tells the story of how he created the recipe for personal friends wishing to hold a cocktail party while minimizing the amount of money they had to spend on alcohol. Participants were provided with the vodka, cassis, sugar syrup and lemon juice, and were asked to bring their own sparkling wine. It is named for the Russian vodka, and the Tom Collins, which is a spring drink. (Full article...)
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The Americano is an IBA official cocktail composed of Campari, sweet vermouth, and for the sparkling version, club soda and garnished with a slice of lemon. (Full article...)
Image 6

Tommy's margarita as it is served at Tommy's

Tommy's margarita is a variant of the margarita cocktail. It is recognized by the IBA as a new era drink. (Full article...)
Image 7

The Bramble is a cocktail created by Dick Bradsell in 1980s London, England. Best described as a spring cocktail, the Bramble brings together dry gin, lemon juice, sugar syrup, crème de mûre, and crushed ice. Bradsell also suggests finishing off the cocktail with some fresh red fruits (such as blackberries, cranberries) and a slice of lemon.

If crème de mûre is unavailable, many bartenders will substitute creme de cassis for it. (Full article...)
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A liquor store in Breckinridge, Colorado, United States (2009)

A liquor store is a retail business that predominantly sells prepackaged liquors (typically in bottles), wine or beer, usually intended to be consumed off the store's premises. Depending on region and local idiom, they may also be called an off-licence (in the UK and Ireland), off-sale (in parts of Canada and the US), bottle shop, bottle store (South Africa) or, colloquially, bottle-o (in Australia, New Zealand and parts of Canada), liquor store (in Canada, the US, Australia and New Zealand) or other similar terms. A very limited number of jurisdictions have an alcohol monopoly. In US states that are alcoholic beverage control (ABC) states, the term ABC store may be used. (Full article...)
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Sea breeze

A sea breeze is a cocktail containing vodka with cranberry juice and grapefruit juice. The cocktail is usually consumed during summer months. The drink may be shaken in order to create a foamy surface. It is considered an IBA Official Cocktail.

The drink follows the classic cocktail principle of balancing strong (alcohol) with weak (fruit juice) and sweet and sour. (Full article...)
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Bees knees cocktail with Barr Hill Gin, honey, and lemon

A bees knees (or bee's knees) is a Prohibition era cocktail made with gin, fresh lemon juice, and honey. It is served shaken and chilled, often with a lemon twist.

The name comes from prohibition-era slang meaning "the best". (Full article...)
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Sex on the beach

A sex on the beach is an alcoholic cocktail containing vodka, peach schnapps, orange juice and cranberry juice. It is an International Bartenders Association Official Cocktail. (Full article...)
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Lemon drop

A lemon drop is a vodka-based cocktail that has a lemony, sweet and sour flavor, prepared using lemon juice, triple sec and simple syrup. It has been described as a variant of, or as "a take on", the vodka martini, but is in fact closer to a white lady variant. It is typically prepared and served straight up – chilled with ice and strained.

The drink was invented sometime in the 1970s by Norman Jay Hobday, the founder and proprietor of Henry Africa's bar in San Francisco, California. Some variations of the drink exist, such as blueberry and raspberry lemon drops. It is served at some bars and restaurants in the United States, and in such establishments in other areas of the world. (Full article...)
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The Ve.n.to is an IBA official cocktail made of Grappa, honey syrup, fresh lemon juice, and chamomile liqueur. (Full article...)
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The Singapore sling is a gin-based sling cocktail from Singapore. This long drink was developed sometime before 1915 by Ngiam Tong Boon (traditional Chinese: 嚴崇文; simplified Chinese: 严崇文; pinyin: Yán Chóngwén; Wade–Giles: Yen Ch'ung-wen), a bartender at the Long Bar in Raffles Hotel, Singapore. It was initially called the gin sling. (Full article...)
Image 15

Bottles of the two most famous brands of erguotou, Red Star and Niulanshan (at far right)

Erguotou (simplified Chinese: 二锅头; traditional Chinese: 二鍋頭; pinyin: èrguōtóu; lit. 'second pot head', 'i.e. second distillation') is a style of qingxiang baijiu originating in Beijing and primarily made in the region surrounding.

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 4–8 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 6–12 months before being blended, proofed, bottled, and sold. (Full article...)
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A Grasshopper is a sweet, mint-flavored, after-dinner drink named for its green color, which comes from crème de menthe. Tujague's, a bar in the French Quarter of New Orleans, Louisiana, claims its owner Philip Guichet invented the drink in 1918. The drink gained popularity during the 1950s and 1960s throughout the American South. (Full article...)
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The paper plane is an IBA official cocktail. Developed around 2007 by Sasha Petraske and Sam Ross of Milk & Honey for their former colleague Toby Maloney's Chicago bar The Violet Hour. The recipe is a riff on a last word, which is a riff on the classic corpse reviver #2. The cocktail consists of equal parts bourbon whiskey, Aperol, Amaro, and lemon juice. The cocktail's name is a reference to the M.I.A. track "Paper Planes", which was apparently a guilty pleasure of Petraske's. (Full article...)
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Classic Daiquiri served in a cocktail glass

The daiquiri (/ˈdaɪkəri, ˈdæk-/; Spanish: daiquirí [dajkiˈɾi]) is a cocktail whose main ingredients are rum, citrus juice (typically lime juice), and sugar or other sweetener.

The daiquiri is one of the six basic drinks listed in David A. Embury's classic The Fine Art of Mixing Drinks, which also lists some variations. (Full article...)
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A Vieux Carré

The Vieux Carré is an IBA official cocktail made with rye whiskey, cognac, sweet vermouth, Bénédictine, and Peychaud's bitters. It originated with Walter Bergeron, a bartender at the Carousel Bar in Hotel Monteleone, New Orleans. The name is French for "old square”, in reference to the city's French Quarter neighborhood. The drink is classified as one of the Unforgettables by the IBA. (Full article...)
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The Monkey Gland is a cocktail of gin, orange juice, grenadine and absinthe created in the 1920s by Harry MacElhone, owner of Harry's New York Bar in Paris, France.

Some recipes substitute absinthe with pastis or Bénédictine. (Full article...)
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The illegal is an IBA official cocktail. The illegal cocktail is named after the mezcal brand "Ilegal Mezcal," which is one of its key ingredients. Mezcal is a type of Mexican distilled spirit made from agave plants, similar to tequila but with a distinct smoky flavor. (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 popularized 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...)
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Canchanchara

The Canchanchara is an IBA official cocktail made with Cuban aguardiente, honey, and fresh lime juice. (Full article...)
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Two kinds of Arrack from Sri Lanka

Arrack is a distilled alcoholic drink typically produced in India, Sri Lanka and Southeast Asia, made from the fermented sap of coconut flowers or sugarcane, and also with grain (e.g. red rice) or fruit depending upon the country of origin. It is sometimes spelled arak, or simply referred to as 'rack or 'rak. It is not to be confused with the anise-flavored distilled spirit called arak or araq. In many parts of India arrack is colloquially known as "desi daru".

There are two primary styles of arrack that are very different from one another: Batavia arrack is often clear in color but has a flavor profile more similar to dark rum, with a distinctive "funk" or "hogo" imparted to it from fermented red rice. Sri Lankan (Ceylon) arrack, by contrast, is a more refined and subtle spirit. It has hints of cognac and rum character and a wealth of delicate floral notes. Both styles are also made "in house" by local citizenry and can be more akin to moonshine in their presentation. (Full article...)
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A glass of dark rum

Rum is a liquor made by fermenting and then distilling sugarcane molasses or sugarcane juice. The distillate, a clear liquid, is often aged in barrels of oak. While strongly associated with the Caribbean to this day due to its Barbadian origin, rum is nowadays produced in nearly every major sugar-producing region of the world, such as the Philippines, where Tanduay Distillers, the largest producer of rum worldwide, has its headquarters.

Rums are produced in various grades. Light rums are commonly used in cocktails, whereas "golden" and "dark" rums were typically consumed straight or neat, iced ("on the rocks"), or used for cooking, but are now commonly consumed with mixers. Premium rums are made to be consumed either straight or iced. (Full article...)

Did you know -

... that one-sixth of all liquor establishments in Bombay were attacked in the 1921 Prince of Wales riots?
... that WNJU, a Spanish-language television station serving New York City, was the first in the United States to air a hard-liquor advertisement?
... 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"?

Good article -

This is a Good article, an article that meets a core set of high editorial standards.

The facade of the 5-8 Club

The 5-8 Club Tavern & Grill is a restaurant in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Founded in 1928 as a speakeasy, the eatery is one of two Minneapolis establishments that claim to have invented the Juicy Lucy cheeseburger in the 1950s, the other being Matt's Bar. The 5-8 Club also serves its Saucy Sally burger and other dishes including fried cheese curds and onion straws. The restaurant, which has been featured on several Travel Channel TV series, has three additional locations in Minnesota. (Full article...)

List of Good articles
Lemon drop (cocktail) The Glenlivet distillery Alcoholic beverages in Oregon Rum and Coke Black Cat Bar Stork Club Caesar (cocktail) Gypsy Restaurant and Velvet Lounge Sip 'n Dip Lounge Lutz Tavern Christian views on alcohol Whiskey Rebellion

Selected image -

Eau de vie

Eau de vie is a clear, colorless fruit brandy that is produced by means of fermentation and double distillation

Related portals

Topics

– Whisky –

– Cocktails –

– Producers –

– Glassware –

– Governance –

General images -

The following are images from various liquor-related articles on Wikipedia.

Image 1A row of alcoholic beverages – in this case, spirits – in a bar (from Liquor)
Image 2Some single-drink liquor bottles available in Germany (from Liquor)
Image 3A mojito served in Slovakia (from List of cocktails)
Image 4A display of various liquors in a supermarket (from Liquor)
Image 5A grasshopper (from List of cocktails)
Image 6A Ramos gin fizz (from List of cocktails)
Image 7A pisco sour (from List of cocktails)
Image 8A Queen Mary beer cocktail: beer, grenadine and maraschino cherries (from List of cocktails)
Image 9An old whiskey still (from Liquor)
Image 10Viru Valge, an Estonian vodka (from Liquor)
Image 11A cosmopolitan (from List of cocktails)
Image 12An illustration of brewing and distilling industry methods in England, 1858 (from Liquor)
Image 13This fruity, blended piña colada is typical of many rum-based cocktails. (from List of cocktails)
Image 14Mulled wine steeping (Swedish glögg) (from List of cocktails)
Image 15These flaming cocktails illustrate that some liquors will readily catch fire and burn. (from Liquor)
Image 16A martini is a classic gin-based cocktail. (from List of cocktails)
Image 17A piña colada (from List of cocktails)
Image 18Distillation equipment used by the 3rd century alchemist Zosimos of Panopolis, from the Byzantine Greek manuscript Parisinus graecus 2327. (from Liquor)
Image 19Map 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.
  Wine
  Beer
  Spirits
(from Liquor)
Image 20A martini cocktail (from List of cocktails)
Image 21Abandoned 19th-century vodka distillery in Estonia (from Liquor)
Image 22A B-52 (from List of cocktails)

Garnishes

Various cocktail garnishes

Image 1Maraschino cherry (from Cocktail garnish)
Image 2Cocktail olive (from Cocktail garnish)
Image 3Pineapple wedge (from Cocktail garnish)
Image 4A 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)
Image 5Lemon slice (from Cocktail garnish)
Image 6Orange, mint, and lime (from Cocktail garnish)
Image 7Shrimp (from Cocktail garnish)
Image 8Raspberry (from Cocktail garnish)
Image 9Carrot, celery, lemon, and olives (from Cocktail garnish)
Image 10Lime twist (from Cocktail garnish)

List articles

Producers

Stub articles

The following stub articles can be expanded.

Bartending stubs
Distilled drink stubs
Mixed drink stubs
Whisky stubs

Related WikiProjects

WikiProject Agriculture
WikiProject Beer
WikiProject Food and Drink
WikiProject Spirits (semi-active)
Wikiproject Wine (semi-active)

WikiProject Bartending (Inactive)
WikiProject Breakfast (inactive)
Wikiproject Bacon (inactive)

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