You’ve likely heard, seen or enjoyed Vodka, Rum, Whiskey, Brandy, Tequila or Gin at some point in time or another. All these alcoholic beverages and more fall under the category we call ‘Spirits’. In the world of adult beverages, spirits have a much higher ABV (Alcohol by Volume) than wine or beer products. This stems from how a spirit is made.
A Spirit is made from the distillation of an already alcoholic liquid. The original alcoholic liquid is the result of a fermentation whereby yeast is added to a simple sugar (think mashed grains or grape juice). The yeast eat away at the sugars creating CO2 & Ethyl Alcohol. The process of distillation aims to further concentrate that alcohol by heating the liquid to a specific point where alcohol is is boiling but water is not. Resulting in a vapor that is channeled to a place to condensate back into liquid form. That liquid is now a distilled Spirit!
The ABV for Spirits can range from as low as 20%, all the way up to 90%, though a vast majority hover somewhere around 40%.
What’s more? Within the Spirit selection you’ll see there are the different types we mentioned at the top of this article. Distilling spirits is a practice dating back centuries and one that man has tinkered with in just about every corner of the globe. Each region and subsequent culture of the world has gone through it’s own evolution in ‘perfecting’ distilled spirits. Add to each the unique natural resources available around the world and there are countless variations of the spirit. The most popular styles of spirits are defined further below.
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