What is liquor

Liqueur ( lat. liquor - "liquid") - fragrant alcoholic beverage with a sweet flavor produced using sugar, flavoring additives, extracts and distillates of aromatic herbs with the addition of roots, spices , berry and fruit juices, as well as essential oils. Instead sugar so same applies honey or glucose, and also burnt sugar. The strength of the drink varies from 15% to 75%, and the sugar content — more than 100 g/l.

Classification of liqueurs in different countries is carried out in different ways: depending on the strength, sugar content, method of manufacture or type of raw materials.

Depending on the type of raw materials, the following liqueurs can be selected:

• Herbal. At the heart of its production are various herbs that have a bitter taste, but have a healing effect.
• Fruit. It contains fruit extracts that give the drink a mild flavor and a sweet flavor.
• Cream liqueur. His homeland is considered to be France, and in this country you can buy the highest quality liquor, prepared on the basis of one type of fruit. For example, it can be an Apple cream liqueur.
• Egg. Unlike other types of drink, egg liqueur is often used to combine with various desserts. This is the main feature of its use.
• Creamy. The birthplace of the drink of Ireland, where he came up with to produce a liqueur based on cream and Irish whiskey.

Commercial production of liqueurs began in the Middle ages, when alchemists, doctors and monks sought elixir of life. This led to the creation of a large number of well-known liqueurs, including bearing the names of religious orders, which these drinks were first obtained.

Now, the liqueurs are produced throughout. But among this group of drinks there are established favorites, which are a sin not to mention:

• Advocat (Advocaat, Advokaat) — bright yellow Dutch egg liqueur, a mixture of grape brandy and egg-leg (ie egg yolks, sugar and milk), very smooth, homogeneous, velvet texture. It is also available in Austria. The fortress of "Advokat" in most cases is from 14% to 20 %.
• Amaretto-dark brown liqueur based on almonds and / or apricot kernels and spices. It tastes like marzipan, has the aroma of almond. The alcohol content of 21-28 %. The original Amaretto liqueur, Amaretto di Saronno, its roots comes from the area of Saronno in Italy.
• Amarula (persistent. Amarula) is a South African cream liqueur made from the fruit of the Marula tree (also known as the elephant tree). Sugar content 20%, alcohol 17%. Produced by Southern Liqueur co.
• Baileys (England) Baileys) - Irish cream liqueur produced by R. A. Bailey & co. Fortress 17%. Produced since 1974. It consists of Irish whiskey and Irish cream.
• Benedictine (FR. Benedictine) - strong French liquor based on alcohol from sugar beet, herbs and honey. Benedictine was invented in 1510 by monk don Bernardo Vincelli of the convent of St. Benedict in Fécamp, Basse-Normandie, France. The fortress of 40%.
• Barenfang (it. Barenfang - "bear hunting")-a traditional liqueur of German cuisine, which was previously done in the East Prussian families. It consists mainly of honey, which is mixed with vodka or any other drink with a high alcohol content and is infused for several days with a cinnamon stick and lemon peel. Liquor does not have to be kept cold, otherwise the honey will Sacharissa.
• Becherovka(Czech. Becherovka) — Czech hard liquor (Fernet), a native of Karlovy vary, on grasss. Becherovka owes its name to the Karlovy vary pharmacist of German origin, Josef Vitus Becher. Initially, this liquor was made as a gastric medicine. The fortress is 38%.
• Vana Tallinn (ect. Vana Tallinn-Old Tallinn)-Estonian dark brown strong liqueur based on rum. It was invented in 1962 by a group of comrades, among whom are noted Ian Siim and Bernard Jurmo. Available in 3 versions 40, 45 and 50 %.
• Drambuie (sotl. Drambuie) - liqueur made from aged single malt Scotch whiskey with the aroma of honey, anise, saffron, nutmeg and various herbs. Alcohol content-40%. Available a family firm Machinenow under Edinburgh.
• Jegermeister, (it. Jagermeister) is a popular German strong liqueur, an infusion of herbs. Liquor is obtained by maceration of 56 components-plants (including licorice), roots, crusts — the exact composition is kept secret, and kept for 12 months, six of which — in oak barrels.
• Genepi (FR. Genepi) - a traditional strong Alpine liqueur. Produced by infusion of alcohol on herbs of the genus Artemisia. The drink usually has a pale yellow or green color, sweet taste, spicy aroma; strength — 40-50 %.
• Jinja, Jinja (port. Ginjinha, Ginja) is a Portuguese liqueur made from cherries, infused with aguardente (unseasoned wine alcohol) or brandy with sugar.
• Calua (Spanish Kahlua) — Mexican coffee liqueur (alcohol content-20-36% depending on the variety and sales market). Produced since 1936.
• Cointreau (FR. Cointreau)-French transparent liqueur with floral and fruity aroma based on a combination of sweet and bitter orange. The recipe was developed by Edouard Cointreau, which began production in 1875.
• Curacao (Curacao) — fragrant liqueur produced from wine alcohol with the addition of dried orange peel, nutmeg, cloves and cinnamon. Can be orange, blue, green or colorless. The strength of the drink is 30%.
• Limoncello (Italian. Limoncello) - a popular Italian lemon liqueur. For the most part produced in southern Italy. The liqueur is made by steeping lemon peel.
• Malibu-Rum-coconut liqueur. Liquor is a unique mixture of Caribbean white rum and coconut in the original white bottle. For the first time it began to mix and pour in the 1980s. The strength of 21 %.
• Mintue (fin. Minttu — mint) — alcoholic beverage, clear creme de menthe. Liquor has a strong, fresh taste and aroma of mint. Alcohol mintue range varies from 40% and 50%.
• Riga black balsam (Latvian. Rigas Melnais balzams)-dark strong liquor with a rich and slightly bitter-sweet taste, produced in Latvia. Its taste is emphasized by various natural additives, including Linden, birch buds, raspberries, cranberries, ginger root. The strength of 30 %.
• Sambuca (Italian. Sambuca) is an Italian liqueur with an anise flavor. Usually it is a transparent sweet liquid with a specific aroma and alcohol content of 38-42 %. At the same time, there are dark and even red varieties of Sambuca.
• Chartreuse is a French liqueur made from a mixture of plants and herbs made by the monks of the Carthusian order in the wine cellars of Voiron in isère. The strength from 40% to 56%.
• Sheridan (eng. Sheridans Coffee Layered Liqueur)-two — tone Irish whiskey-based liqueur in the original two-piece bottle, one part of which is a white vanilla and cream component, the second-dark coffee and chocolate.
• Southern comfort (eng. Southern Comfort) is a liqueur created in New Orleans by Martin Wilkison Heron (Martin Wilkes Heron) in 1874, the year and patented in 1898-m. Due to the complex recipe that has more than one hundred components, has an extremely pleasant, somewhat fruity taste with lots of shades.
• Dooleys is a German cream liqueur, combining iris and vodka. Produced by the German family company the Kirkwood Group in eckernförde. Bottled in a red-and-blue opaque bottle. Liquor has a cream color.
• Galliano-Italian liqueur on a vegetable basis (about 30 ingredients are used — various herbs and spices, vanilla, star anise, juniper, lavender, mint, etc.). It was created in 1896 by the distillation master Arthur Vakari (Arturo Vaccari), in honor of the hero of the first Italian-Ethiopian war of the late XIX century Giuseppe Galliano. The strength of 30 %.
• Grand Marnier (FR. Grand Marnier) is a liqueur created in 1880 by Louis-Alexandre Marnier with Lapostole, which brought to life a bold idea to combine the tartness of wild oranges with the scent of cognac. Liquor is a mixture of cognac, distillate green Caribbean oranges and other components. The strength 40 %.

Harm liqueurs. Liquor is a bomb of alcohol, calories and sugars. And without that being in difficult conditions of ethanol processing, (and harmless "minimum" for the liver of ethanol doses does not exist) the liver is forced to deal with an excess of incoming glucose. In a state of high intensity work is and pancreas. Also at the heart of the liquor can be used products that cause allergies.