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History of Distilled Spirits
"Distillation" finds it roots in
the Latin, destillare which means to drop, or to trickle
down. This refers to the visible dripping of the end product of
any liquid distillation after having been vaporized and then
re-condensed.
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Introduction to Liquors
When, where or how was liquor
discovered or made is lost in the pages of ancient
history. No one nation, race, or class of people
can truly claim that they were the first to know
of this intoxicating brew. For surely it is the
brew that should have come first, from which is
derived all distilled liquors.
The ancient records of all races be it oriental or
occidental has some where some place a reference
to this most sought after drink. It facilitated
religious ecstasy and communion with the mystical
super-mundane powers thought to control tribal and
individual fate. Consumed at social festivities it
enabled the personal happiness of the
participants, thus also serving as the medium of
popular recreation. |
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Historians have not yet been able to
pinpoint the time or
era when distillation was first discovered, however, we
have references to various texts of ancient India, China
and Greece where some sort of distillation has been
described.
Distillation is a very old technique which was known to
be used by the Chinese in 3000 B.C., the East Indians in
2500 B.C., the Egyptians in 2000 B.C., the Greeks in
1000 B.C., and the Romans in 200 B.C. In all the above
cultures, a liquid was produced for medicinal purposes
and to make perfume.
In Europe the systematic and scientifically founded
distillation process has been attributed to the Salerno
medical school. This was around 1100 AD.
The word alcohol, however, comes from the Arabic Al
Ko'hl which translates into 'the powder' and refers to a
finely powdered distillate from which the future
distillation of spirits derived its name. It was around
the 16th century that alcohol was used
specifically in reference to distilled spirits.
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