🥃 Spirits

Whisky, gin, rum and vodka may sit on one shelf, but each is a separate legal category. Spirits are alcoholic drinks of at least 15 % ABV, made by distilling fermented products, by macerating plants in alcohol, or by blending finished distillates. EU Regulation 2019/787 lists 44 categories, from whisky, rum and vodka to liqueurs, bitters and aniseed-flavoured drinks.

It all starts with fermentation: yeast turns the sugar in grain, grapes, fruit, sugar cane or honey into alcohol, and distillation separates it and raises its strength, measured as a percentage of alcohol by volume at 20 °C. The distillate is then aged in wooden casks, blended and diluted with water; liqueurs are also sweetened.

The main families are whisky; brandy from wine, pomace and fruit; vodka; rum; agave drinks; aniseed drinks; gin; aquavit; bitters; liqueurs; and egg and honey drinks. Each has its own limits: minimum strength, raw materials, ageing period and permitted additions. Aromatised wines such as vermouth are not spirits.

Every region has its traditions: Scotland and Ireland are famed for whisky, France for Cognac, Armagnac and Calvados, Mexico for tequila and mezcal, Poland and Ukraine for vodka, Japan for shochu and awamori, and China for baijiu. The pages of this section describe each family and tradition separately.

Why it matters to you. The name on the label is a legal category: it tells you about raw material, minimum strength (whisky 40 %, rum 37.5 %) and ageing. An age statement refers to the youngest component. According to the WHO, no safe level of alcohol consumption exists.