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.

Beer and wine were historically limited to a maximum alcohol content of about 15% ABV. Most yeasts cannot reproduce when the concentration of alcohol is higher than 15%; consequently, fermentation ceases at that point, preventing the production of more alcohol.

The term spirit refers to a distilled beverage that contains no added sugar and has at least 20% ABV. Popular spirits include brandy, fruit brandy (aka eau-de-vie), gin, rum, tequila, vodka, and whisky.

Distilled beverages that are bottled with added sugar and added flavorings, such as Grand Marnier, Frangelico, and American schnapps, are liqueurs. In common usage, the distinction between spirits and liqueurs is widely unknown or ignored; consequently all alcoholic beverages other than beer and wine are generally referred to simply as spirits.

Fortified wines are created by adding a distilled beverage (usually brandy) to a wine.

Serving

• Neat or straight — The spirit is served at room temperature without any additional ingredient.
• Straight up — This term refers to an alcoholic drink that is shaken or stirred with ice, strained, and served in a stemmed glass.
• On the rocks — The spirit is served over ice.
• With water.
• With a simple mixer such as club soda, tonic water, juice, or cola.
• As an ingredient of a cocktail.
• With water poured over sugar, e.g., absinthe.

Etymology

The origin of “liquor” and its close relative “liquid,” was the Latin verb liquere, meaning “to be fluid.” According to the Oxford English Dictionary, an early use of the word in the English language, meaning simply "a liquid," can be dated to 1225. The first use that the OED mentions in reference to a “liquid for drinking” occurred in the early- to mid-1300s. Its use as a term for “an intoxicating alcoholic drink” appeared in the 16th century.

History of distillation

main: Distillation

Medieval Europe

Distilled alcoholic beverages first appeared in Europe in the 12th century among alchemists who were more interested in brewing medical elixirs than in making gold from lead. They first appeared under the name aqua ardens (burning water) in the Compendium Salerni from the medical school at Salerno. The production method was written in code, suggesting that it was being kept secret. Taddeo Alderotti in his Consilia medicinalis referred to serpente, which are believed to have been the coiled tube of a still.