An alcoholic beverage is a drink A drink, or beverage, is a liquid which is specifically prepared for human consumption. In addition to filling a basic human need, beverages form part of the culture of human society that contains ethanol Ethanol, also called ethyl alcohol, pure alcohol, grain alcohol, or drinking alcohol, is a volatile, flammable, colorless liquid. It is a potent psychoactive drug, best known as the type of alcohol found in alcoholic beverages and in modern thermometers. Ethanol is one of the oldest recreational drugs. In common usage, it is often referred to (commonly called alcohol). Alcoholic beverages are divided into three general classes: beers Beer is the world's oldest and most widely consumed alcoholic beverage and the third most popular drink overall after water and tea. It is produced by the brewing and fermentation of starches, mainly derived from cereal grains—most commonly malted barley, although wheat, maize , and rice are widely used. Most beer is flavoured with hops, which, wines Wine is an alcoholic beverage typically made of fermented grape juice. The natural chemical balance of grapes is such that they can ferment without the addition of sugars, acids, enzymes or other nutrients. Wine is produced by fermenting crushed grapes using various types of yeast. Yeast consumes the sugars found in the grapes and converts them, and spirits A distilled beverage, liquor, or spirit is a drinkable liquid containing ethanol that is produced by means of distilling fermented grain, fruit, or vegetables. This excludes undistilled fermented beverages such as beer and wine.
Alcoholic beverages are consumed in most sovereign states A sovereign state, commonly simply referred to as a state, is a political association with effective internal and external sovereignty over a geographic area and population which is not dependent on, or subject to any other power or state. While in abstract terms a sovereign state can exist without being recognised by other sovereign states,. Each nation has laws that regulate their production, sale, and consumption. In particular, such laws specify the minimum age at which a person may legally buy or drink them. The minimum age varies between 16 and 25 depending on the nation and the type of drink. Most nations set it at 18 years of age.[1]
The production and consumption of alcohol occurs in most cultures of the world, from hunter-gatherer A hunter-gatherer society is one whose primary subsistence method involves the direct procurement of edible plants and animals from the wild, foraging and hunting without significant recourse to the domestication of either. Hunter-gatherers obtain most from gathering rather than hunting; up to 80% of the food is obtained by gathering. The peoples to nation-states The nation-state is a certain form of state that derives its political legitimacy from serving as a sovereign entity for a nation as a sovereign territorial unit. The state is a political and geopolitical entity; the nation is a cultural and/or ethnic entity. The term "nation-state" implies that the two geographically coincide, and this. Alcoholic beverages are often an important part of social events in these cultures. In many cultures, drinking Although types of alcoholic beverages and social attitudes toward drinking vary around the world, nearly every civilization has independently discovered the processes of brewing beer, fermenting wine, and distilling spirits plays a significant role in social interaction — mainly because of alcohol’s neurological effects.
Alcohol is a psychoactive drug that has a depressant Depressants are psychoactive drugs which temporarily diminish the function or activity of a specific part of the body or mind. Examples of these kinds of effects may include anxiolysis, sedation, and hypotension. Due to their effects typically having a "down" quality to them, depressants are also occasionally referred to as "downers& effect. A high blood alcohol content Blood alcohol content or blood alcohol concentration is the concentration of alcohol in a person's blood. BAC is most commonly used as a metric of intoxication for legal or medical purposes. It is usually expressed in terms of volume of alcohol per volume of blood in the body. That is a unit-less ratio commonly expressed as parts per million (PPM) is usually considered to be legal drunkenness Alcohol intoxication is a physiological state occurring when an organism has a high level of ethanol in its bloodstream, or when ethanol otherwise causes a physiological effect. In humans, common symptoms may include slurred speech, impaired balance, poor coordination, flushed face, reddened eyes, reduced inhibition, and erratic behavior because it reduces attention Attention is the cognitive process of selectively concentrating on one aspect of the environment while ignoring other things. Attention has also been referred to as the allocation of processing resources and slows reaction speed. Alcoholic beverages can be addictive, and the state of addiction The meaning of the word addiction in the english lexicon varies according to context. A positive addiction is a beneficial habit--where the benefits outweigh the costs. A negative addiction is a detrimental habit--where the benefits are not worth the costs. A neutral addiction is a habit in which it is not clear if the organism benefits from the to alcohol is known as alcoholism Alcoholism has multiple and conflicting definitions. In common and historic usage, alcoholism is any condition that results in the continued consumption of alcoholic beverages, despite health problems and negative social consequences. Modern medical definitions describe alcoholism as a disease and addiction which results in a persistent use of.
Types
Main article: List of alcoholic beverages Categories: Alcoholic beverages | Alcohol-related lists | Lists of beveragesAlcoholic beverages that have a lower alcohol content (beer and wine) are produced by fermentation Ethanol fermentation, also referred to as alcoholic fermentation, is a biological process in which sugars such as glucose, fructose, and sucrose are converted into cellular energy and thereby produce ethanol and carbon dioxide as metabolic waste products. Because yeasts perform this process in the absence of oxygen, ethanol fermentation is of sugar- or starch-containing plant material; beverages of higher alcohol content (spirits) are produced by fermentation followed by distillation Distillation is a method of separating mixtures based on differences in their volatilities in a boiling liquid mixture. Distillation is a unit operation, or a physical separation process, and not a chemical reaction.
Beer
Main articles: Beer Beer is the world's oldest and most widely consumed alcoholic beverage and the third most popular drink overall after water and tea. It is produced by the brewing and fermentation of starches, mainly derived from cereal grains—most commonly malted barley, although wheat, maize , and rice are widely used. Most beer is flavoured with hops, which, Brewery A brewery is a dedicated building for the making of beer, though beer can be made at home, and has been for much of beer's history. A company which makes beer is called either a brewery or a brewing company, Brewing Brewing is the production of alcoholic beverages and alcohol fuel through fermentation. The term is used for the production of beer, although the word "brewing" is also used to describe the fermentation process used to create wine and mead. It can also refer to the process of producing sake and soy sauce. "Brewing" is also, and Mashing In brewing and distilling, mashing is the process of combining a mix of milled grain , known as the "grain bill", and water, known as "liquor", and heating this mixture with pauses at certain temperatures (notably 45°C, 62°C and 73°C ) to allow the enzymes in the malt to break down the starch in the grain into sugars,Beer Beer is the world's oldest and most widely consumed alcoholic beverage and the third most popular drink overall after water and tea. It is produced by the brewing and fermentation of starches, mainly derived from cereal grains—most commonly malted barley, although wheat, maize , and rice are widely used. Most beer is flavoured with hops, which is the world's oldest[2] and most widely consumed[3] alcoholic beverage and the third most popular drink overall after water and tea.[4] It is produced by the brewing Brewing is the production of alcoholic beverages and alcohol fuel through fermentation. The term is used for the production of beer, although the word "brewing" is also used to describe the fermentation process used to create wine and mead. It can also refer to the process of producing sake and soy sauce. "Brewing" is also and fermentation Ethanol fermentation, also referred to as alcoholic fermentation, is a biological process in which sugars such as glucose, fructose, and sucrose are converted into cellular energy and thereby produce ethanol and carbon dioxide as metabolic waste products. Because yeasts perform this process in the absence of oxygen, ethanol fermentation is of starches Starch or amylum is a polysaccharide carbohydrate consisting of a large number of glucose units joined together by glycosidic bonds. Starch is produced by all green plants as an energy store. It is the most important carbohydrate in the human diet and is contained in such staple foods as potatoes, wheat, maize , rice, and cassava which are mainly derived from cereal grains Cereals, grains or cereal grains, are grasses cultivated for the edible components of their fruit seeds (botanically, a type of fruit called a caryopsis) - the endocarp, germ and bran. Cereal grains are grown in greater quantities and provide more food energy worldwide than any other type of crop; they are therefore staple crops. In their natural — most commonly malted Malting is a process applied to cereal grains, in which the grains are made to germinate by soaking in water and are then quickly halted from germinating further by drying/heating with hot air. Thus, malting is a combination of two processes: the sprouting process and the kiln-drying process. These latter terms are often preferred when referring barley Barley is a cereal grain derived from the annual grass Hordeum vulgare although wheat, maize (corn), and rice are also used. Alcoholic beverages which are distilled Distillation is a method of separating mixtures based on differences in their volatilities in a boiling liquid mixture. Distillation is a unit operation, or a physical separation process, and not a chemical reaction after fermentation, fermented from non-cereal sources such as grapes or honey, or fermented from un-malted cereal grain Cereals, grains or cereal grains, are grasses cultivated for the edible components of their fruit seeds (botanically, a type of fruit called a caryopsis) - the endocarp, germ and bran. Cereal grains are grown in greater quantities and provide more food energy worldwide than any other type of crop; they are therefore staple crops. In their natural, are not classified as beer.
Most beer is flavored with hops Hops are the female flower clusters, commonly called cones or strobiles, of the hop plant . The hop is part of the family Cannabaceae, which also includes the genus Cannabis (hemp). They are used primarily as a flavoring and stability agent in beer, though hops are also used for various purposes in other beverages and herbal medicine. The first, which add bitterness and act as a natural preservative A preservative is a natural or synthetic chemical that is added to products such as foods, pharmaceuticals, paints, biological samples, wood, etc. to prevent decomposition by microbial growth or by undesirable chemical changes. Other flavorings, such as fruits or herbs, may also be used. The alcoholic strength of beer is usually 4% to 6% alcohol by volume (abv Alcohol by volume is a standard measure of how much alcohol (ethanol) is contained in an alcoholic beverage (expressed as a percentage of total volume). The ABV standard is used worldwide), but it may be less than 1% or more than 20%.
Beer is part of the culture Although types of alcoholic beverages and social attitudes toward drinking vary around the world, nearly every civilization has independently discovered the processes of brewing beer, fermenting wine, and distilling spirits of various nations and has acquired social traditions such as beer festivals A Beer Festival is an organised event during which a variety of beers are available for tasting and purchase. Beer festivals are held in a number of countries. A Beer Exhibition is usually synonymous with a Beer Festival but, whilst a beer festival may involve a limited range of beer styles or manufacturers, with an emphasis on entertainment, use and pub culture A public house, informally known as a pub, is a drinking-establishment licensed to serve alcoholic drinks for consumption on the premises in countries and regions of British influence. Although the terms are increasingly used to refer to the same thing, there is a definitive difference between pubs, bars, inns, taverns and lounges where alcohol is, which involves activities such as pub crawling A pub crawl is the act of one or more people drinking in multiple pubs or bars in a single night, normally walking to each one between drinking and pub games Pub games are games which are or were played in pubs, bars, inns, and taverns, particularly traditional games played in English pubs. Most are indoor games, though some are played outdoors.
The basics of brewing beer are shared across national and cultural boundaries. The two main types of beer are lager Lager is a type of beer that is stored for at least three weeks before being served, often chilled. It is a general term that includes several variations or styles, such as Pilsener, Export and Märzen. The most common form is pale lager and ale Ale is a type of beer brewed from malted barley using a top-fermenting brewers' yeast. This yeast ferments the beer quickly, giving it a sweet, full bodied and fruity taste. Most ales contain hops, which impart a bitter herbal flavour that helps to balance the sweetness of the malt and preserve the beer, which is further classified into varieties Ale is a type of beer brewed from malted barley using a top-fermenting brewers' yeast. This yeast ferments the beer quickly, giving it a sweet, full bodied and fruity taste. Most ales contain hops, which impart a bitter herbal flavour that helps to balance the sweetness of the malt and preserve the beer such as pale ale Pale ale is a term used to describe a variety of beers which use ale yeast and predominantly pale malts. It is widely considered to be one of the major beer style groups. All major ale-producing countries produce a version of pale ale, stout Stout and porter are dark beers, and more specifically ales, made using roasted malt or barley, hops, water, and ale yeast. Stouts were traditionally the generic term for the strongest or stoutest beers, typically 7% or 8%, produced by a brewery, and brown ale Brown ale is a style of beer with a dark amber or brown colour. The term was first used by London brewers in the late 1600s to describe their products, such as mild ale. Though the term had a rather different meaning than it does today. 18th-century Brown Ales were lightly-hopped and brewed from 100% brown malt. The beer-brewing industry is a global business, consisting of several dominant multinational companies A multinational corporation or transnational corporation (TNC), also called multinational enterprise (MNE), is a corporation or enterprise that manages production or delivers services in more than one country. It can also be referred as an international corporation. ILO defined MNC as a corporation which has his managerial head quarters in one and thousands of smaller producers, which range from brewpubs A microbrewery, or craft brewery, is a brewery which produces a limited amount of beer. The maximum amount of beer a brewery can produce and still be classed as a microbrewery varies by region and by authority, though is usually around 15,000 US beer barrels a year.[not in citation given] to regional breweries Regional brewery is a term used in the United Kingdom to describe a long-established brewery that supplied beer to tied pubs in a fixed geographical location such as South Wales, the Midlands or the Isle of Man. These breweries were generally founded before 1900, though one, Holdens Brewery, was founded in 1920. Some date back to the early age of.
Wine
Main articles: Aging of wine The aging of wine, and its ability to potentially improve in quality, distinguishes wine from most other consumable goods. While wine is perishable and capable of deteriorating, complex chemical reactions involving a wine's sugars, acids and phenolic compounds can alter the aroma, color, mouthfeel and taste of the wine in a way that may be more, Grape A grape is the non-climacteric fruit, botanically a true berry, that grows on the perennial and deciduous woody vines of the genus Vitis. Grapes can be eaten raw or used for making jam, juice, jelly, vinegar, drugs, wine, grape seed extracts, raisins, and grape seed oil. Grapes are also used in some kinds of confectionery. A grape is sometimes, Must, Oenology, Wine, and WinemakingWine involves a longer (complete) fermentation process and a long aging process (months or years) that results in an alcohol content of 9%–16% ABV. Sparkling wine can be made by adding a small amount of sugar before bottling, which causes a secondary fermentation to occur in the bottle.
Spirits
Main articles: Distillation, Distilled beverage, Ethanol, and LiqueurUnsweetened, distilled, alcoholic beverages that have an alcohol content of at least 20% ABV are called spirits.[5] Spirits are produced by distillation of a fermented product; this process concentrates the alcohol and eliminates some of the congeners.
Spirits can be added to wines to create fortified wines, such as port and sherry.
Alcohol content of beverages
Main article: Alcohol by volumeThe concentration of alcohol in a beverage is usually stated as the percentage of alcohol by volume (ABV) or—in the United States—as proof. In the U.S.A., proof is twice the percentage of alcohol by volume at 60 degrees Fahrenheit (e.g., 80 proof = 40% ABV). Degrees proof were formerly used in the United Kingdom, where 100 degrees proof was equivalent to 57.1% ABV. Historically, this was the most dilute spirit that would sustain the combustion of gunpowder.
Ordinary distillation cannot produce alcohol of more than 95.6% ABV (191.2 proof) because at that point alcohol is an azeotrope with water. Alcohol of this high level of purity is commonly called neutral grain spirit.
Most yeasts cannot reproduce when the concentration of alcohol is higher than about 18%, so that is the practical limit for the strength of fermented beverages such as wine, beer, and sake. Strains of yeast have been developed that can reproduce in solutions of up to 25% ABV.
Serving sizes
United Kingdom
In the United Kingdom, serving size in licensed premises is regulated under the Weights and Measures Act (1985). Spirits (gin, whisky, rum, and vodka) must be sold in quantities of 25 milliliters or multiples thereof, or 35 milliliters or multiples thereof. A sign must be displayed stating whether the 25 ml or the 35 ml measure is being used.[6] See alcoholic spirits measures.
Beer is typically sold in pints (568 ml) or half-pints. Traditionally, a crown stamp on a glass was used to indicate that the glass was a full-sized measure. In 2008 however, this was replaced by a Europe-wide mark “CE” (Conformite Europeenne), leading to public outcry at the removal of a stamp that had been in use for over 300 years.[7]
In addition to this, a system of units of alcohol exists as a guideline for alcohol consumption. A unit of alcohol is defined as 10 millilitres of pure ethanol. The number of units present in a typical drink is printed on bottles. The system is intended as an aid to people regulating the amount of alcohol they drink; it is not used to determine serving sizes.
United States
In the United States, the standardized serving of an alcoholic beverage contains 0.6 US fluid ounces (18 ml) of pure ethanol. That is approximately the amount of ethanol in a 12-US-fluid-ounce (350 ml) serving of beer, a 5-US-fluid-ounce (150 ml) glass of wine, or a 1.5-US-fluid-ounce (44 ml) glass of a 40% ABV spirit.
Flavoring
Alcohol is a moderately good solvent for many fatty substances and essential oils. This attribute facilitates the use of flavoring and coloring compounds in alcoholic beverages, especially distilled beverages. Flavors may be naturally present in the beverage’s base material. Beer and wine may be flavored before fermentation. Spirits may be flavored before, during, or after distillation.
Sometimes flavor is obtained by allowing the beverage to stand for months or years in oak barrels, usually American or French oak.
A few brands of spirits have fruit or herbs inserted into the bottle at the time of bottling.
Uses
In many countries, people drink alcoholic beverages at lunch and dinner.
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At times and places of poor public sanitation (such as Medieval Europe), the consumption of alcoholic drinks was a way of avoiding water-borne diseases such as cholera. Small beer and faux wine, in particular, were used for this purpose. Although alcohol kills bacteria, its low concentration in these beverages would have had only a limited effect. More important was that the boiling of water (required for the brewing of beer) and the growth of yeast (required for fermentation of beer and wine) would tend to kill dangerous microorganisms. The alcohol content of these beverages allowed them to be stored for months or years in simple wood or clay containers without spoiling. For this reason, they were commonly kept aboard sailing vessels as an important (or even the sole) source of hydration for the crew, especially during the long voyages of the early modern period.
In cold climates, strong alcoholic beverages such as vodka are popularly seen as a way to “warm up” the body, possibly because alcohol is a quickly absorbed source of food energy and because it dilates peripheral blood vessels (peripherovascular dilation). This is a misconception because the perception of warmth is actually caused by the transfer of heat from the body’s core to its extremities, where it is quickly lost to the environment.
Drunk driving
Most countries have laws against drunk driving, i.e., driving with a certain concentration of alcohol in the blood. Punishments for violation include fines, temporary loss of driving license, and imprisonment.
The legal threshold of blood alcohol content ranges from 0.0% to 0.08%, according to local law. Similar prohibitions exist for drunk sailing, drunk bicycling, and even drunk rollerblading.
In many places in the United States, it is illegal to have an open container of an alcoholic beverage in the passenger compartment of a vehicle.
Effects
See also: Blood alcohol content The Lancet shows ethanol in comparison to other psychoactive drugs.[8]Short-term effects of alcohol consumption include intoxication, dehydration, and ultimately alcohol poisoning.
Long-term effects of alcohol include changes to metabolism in the liver and brain, and possible addiction (alcoholism).
Studies have found that when food is eaten before drinking alcohol, alcohol absorption is reduced[9] and the rate at which alcohol is eliminated from the blood is increased. The mechanism for the faster alcohol elimination appears to be unrelated to the type of food. The likely mechanism is food-induced increases in alcohol-metabolizing enzymes and liver blood flow.[9]
Short term effects
Main article: Short-term effects of alcohol See also: Long-term effects of alcohol See also: Alcohol and sexAlcohol intoxication affects the brain, causing slurred speech, clumsiness, and delayed reflexes. Alcohol stimulates insulin production, which speeds up the glucose metabolism and can result in low blood sugar, causing irritability, and possibly death for diabetics; in normal subjects severe alcohol poisoning can also be lethal. A blood alcohol content of 0.45 represents the LD50, or the amount which would prove fatal in 50% of test subjects. This is about six times the level of intoxication (0.08%), but vomiting and/or unconsciousness are triggered much sooner in people with a low tolerance, among whom such high levels are rarely reached unless a large amount of alcohol is consumed very quickly.[10] However, chronic heavy drinkers' high tolerance may allow some of them to remain conscious at levels above .4%, despite the serious health dangers.
Mortality rate
Main article: Long-term effects of alcohol#Alcohol-related_deathsA 2001 report estimates that medium and high consumption of alcohol led to 75,754 deaths in the USA. Low consumption has some beneficial effects, so a net 59,180 deaths were attributed to alcohol.[11]
In the U.K., heavy drinking is blamed for up to 33,000 deaths a year.[12]
A study in Sweden found that 29% to 44% of "unnatural" deaths (those not caused by i