Patiala Peg

I belong to a Punjabi family. And, drinking alcohol comes naturally to us. Every person has their own story of drinking or non-drinking alcohol. Many people don't drink alcohol for health reasons, some for religious reasons.

In a few religious scriptures, we do find mention of wine and alcoholic beverages. Whereas other scriptures totally forbid the use of alcoholic drinks.

In India, many argue that Lord Shiva used to drink and smoke. Also, Alcohol is offered to the mother Kali. In the Bible, we also find mention of making wine from water by Jesus. While Islam totally forbids the use of alcohol.

But, when drinking alcohol became the status symbol or virtue of riches, I don't know.

Alcoholic drinks and beverages are very common in Europe. They are everywhere. Whether you go to a grocery store, shopping mall, pub, restaurant, hotel, and in newspaper flyers. You will find a huge section of menu drinks dedicated to alcoholic beverages.

While living the life of an expat, it becomes very important to have a good idea of this stuff. Many people argue if I don't drink then why should I know about all this stuff. True, I do agree. But, when I go to buy the crystal wares, buy glasses for my dinner set. I find such a huge variety of glasses. As I am personally a non-drinker, so I find it consuming what glasses are meant for what. So, to make an informed decision and to do wise shopping, I should have an idea about all these things.

I love to cook and eat food. When people argue that you do not drink then why do you eat 'Panta baat', it is a fermented cooked rice delicacy served in Bengal, India or also known as congie in China and Hong Kong region.

Fermented things are good for the body, so how drinking wine can be bad for health.

Alcoholic drinks or beverages are made from ethanol, a type of alcohol which is made from the fermentation of cereal grains or fruits or other sources of sugar.

There are mainly three classes: beer, wine, and spirits.

Spirits are hard liquor or distilled beverages. As it is distilled and has an increased proportion of alcohol i.e. ABV(alcohol by volume).

1. Wine: It is fermented alcohol made from grapes(i.e. fruits). E.g. 
1. Red wine
1. Syrah (or Shiraz)
2. Merlot
3. Cabernet sauvignon
4. Malbec
5. Pinot noir
6. Zinfandel
7. Barbera
8. Sangiovese
2. white wine
1. Sauvignon Blanc
2. Chardonnay
3. rose wine
4. rice wine(sake)
5. fruit wine: made from any fruit other than grapes.
6. honey wine
7. Dessert wine
2. Beer: It is made from cereal grain starches like barley, wheat, rice etc.
3. Spirits:
1. Whiskey: It is aged and made from grain mash. Brand: Golfer's shot; Signature
2. Vodka: It is also made from cereal grains or potatoes. It is usually not aged.
3. Rum: It is made from sugarcane.
4. Gin: Made from Juniper berries. It is also considered a ladies drink.
5. Brandy: It is made from the distillation of wine.
6. Tequila: It is from the city of Tequila in Mexico.
7. Amaretto (Italian for "a little bitter") is a sweet Italian liqueur that originated in Saronno, Italy. 
8. Campari is an alcoholic liqueur, considered an apéritif, obtained from the infusion of herbs and fruit in alcohol and water.

Common Cocktails:

1. Martini: It is made from gin(or vodka) and vermouth(aromatized, fermented wine flavored with various botanical).
2. Margarita: It is made from tequila and any citrus fruit juice like orange.
3. Mojito: It is made from white rum, lime or lemon juice, sugar, mint, ice and carbonated or soda water.

Wine Classification:

1. Table wine: ordinary wine which is neither fortified nor sparkling(with a significant level of Carbon dioxide in it e.g. champagne from France ) nor expensive. This often does not specify the grape variety used or the region of origin.
2. Still wine: no carbon dioxide.
3. Dessert wine: are sweet wines typically served with pudding. In the UK, a dessert wine is considered to be any sweet wine drunk with a meal, as opposed to the white fortified wines (fino and amontillado sherry) drunk before the meal, and the red fortified wines (port and madeira) drunk after it. 

Single malt Whiskey: It is unblended with any other malt.
Single malt Vs Blended.