Alcoholic Drink
Alcoholic drinks are frequently used as ingredients in recipes. This page lists the most common types used as ingredients. See the Bartending book for mixed drink recipes and other topics relating to direct uncooked consumption of alcoholic drinks.
Small amounts of alcohol can be useful for cardiovascular reasons. Harvard says “For men, a good balance point is 1 to 2 drinks a day. For women, it’s at most one drink a day.” The USDA agrees, while also stating that women of childbearing age who could become pregnant should completely avoid alcohol. See the warnings listed below though, while being aware that many people have difficulty keeping consumption moderate.
Beer
Beer is any variety of alcoholic drink produced by the brewing process: fermentation of starchy material derived from grains or other plant sources, such as malted barley or wheat. Beer typically has an alcoholic strength of from 3 to 8 percent.
Wine
Wine usually has an alcohol content of between 10 and 15 percent, and is made by fermentation of grape juice. Fruit wines are wine-like beverages made from fruits other than grapes. Fortified wine such as port and sherry is made by adding brandy to wine, increasing the strength to around 20 percent.
Mead
Mead is an alcoholic beverage made of honey, water, and yeast. It is roughly of the same alcoholic strength as wine, and is sometimes known as “honey wine”. Before import of grape wine became economical, mead was very popular in Northern Europe, including the British Isles, Poland and Scandinavia. In Viking Age Scandinavia, mead was considered to inspire skaldic poetry. Mead is probably also the origin of the word honeymoon as the father of the bride was said to give as a dowry a month’s supply of the liquor.
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