Think you know a lot about alcohol? See if you which of these alcohol-related “facts” are actually fiction!
Letting cold beer warm up changes the taste
Fiction
The issue here is not a change in temperature, but the change in the presence of light. Beer is extremely susceptible to damage by light that give it a “skunky” taste. This is the reason that most beers come in brown bottles or in cans. Many beers that come in green or clear bottles, like Heineken or Corona, are intentionally creating that flavor, and in the case of Corona, the lime is suggested to further augment this flavor.
Champagne affects you faster than still wine
Fact
This is true for all carbonated drinks, including beer and cocktails made with tonics or other carbonated mixers. Scientist have proven that those consuming carbonated beverages absorb alcohol more quickly, but they’re not sure why. One theory is carbonation increases the air pressure in the stomach which forces the alcohol into your bloodstream at a faster rate than wine or other mixed drinks.
Bourbon has to be from Kentucky
Fiction
Legally, any drink labeled Bourbon has to have followed three main rules:
1) has to be made from at least 51% corn mash
2) has to be from the US
3) has to be aged in new charred oak barrels.
Bourbon can be made in any state at any time.
Absinthe makes you hallucinate
Fiction
Though there was a harmful, seizure-inducing chemical called thujone in some early forms of absinthe, there have never been any hallucinogens in this drink. Much of absinthe’s bad reputation comes from French winemakers whose wine had lost market share to the much cheaper absinthe. They launched a smear campaign that eventually led to the drink being banned in much of Europe and the United States. As of 2007, however, absinthe is now legal so long as it contains only trace elements of thujone. Interestingly enough, most absinthe makers agree that one would need to consume about 300,000 gallons (about half an Olympic sized pool) of absinthe to be affected by thujone.
Wine is vegan
Fiction
Though wine is made only of grapes, many animal products, including egg whites, bone marrow, and fish bladders are often used in a winemaking process called “fining.” This process removes elements that would otherwise make the wine seem cloudy. Though the animal parts are always removed before bottling, this precludes the wine from being labeled as vegan. There are, however, several vegan wineries who don’t use animal products in the fining process and plenty of unfined wines available.
