Other Liquors Category

This is made by Scandinavians, who distill it from potatoes or grains and flavor it with caraway seeds or other spices. They like to drink it chilled and straight, in small, narrow glasses. Don't confuse it with aqua vitae, or fruit brandy.

Baijiu is a strong (40% to 60% alcohol) clear Chinese liquor. Its origins date back to the Han Dynasty around 150 BCE. Baijiu is normally made from fermented sorghum. Baijiu is presented in anything from elaborate gift bottles to sport drink bottles.

This is an aromatic rum that's produced in Java.

This is pure alcohol--odorless, tasteless, and very potent at 190 proof. Cooks use it to make liqueurs, but since it can also be used to purify crack cocaine, eyebrows may be raised if you buy a large bottle. Well-known brands include Everclear and Sunset. Grain alcohol should always be diluted before consumption, since it's so harsh and potent. Don't substitute methyl alcohol or rubbing alcohol for grain alcohol--both of these are toxic.

Liquor refers to distilled alcoholic beverages like whiskey, gin, rum, vodka, tequila, and brandy. These are almost always more potent than fermented alcoholic beverages like beer and wine. It's best to store liquor in a cool, dark place, and to drink it within a year after opening the bottle. Unlike wine, liquor stops aging once it's bottled. Don't confuse liquors with liqueurs, which are made with liquor but sweetened and flavored with herbs, fruit, spices, flowers, nuts, or roots.

This somewhat harsh Mexican liquor is similar to tequila, except that the agave plant is fire-roasted before the sap is extracted, fermented, and distilled. This gives mezcal a distinctive smoky flavor. Some brands have an agave worm (actually a caterpillar) in the bottle, which you're supposed to eat.

Irish moonshine or vodka. Made from potatoes like vodka.

Like tequila, this is made from the sap of the agave plant. It's popular in Mexico, though it's a bit harsher and heavier than tequila.

This fiery liquor is produced in Mexico from the fermented sap of the blue agave cactus. Mexicans like to drink it straight after licking salt from the back of their hands (which they squirt first with lime juice to help the salt adhere). Tequila is also used in several cocktails, including the Tequila Sunrise. Gold tequilas and white tequilas are very similar. Tequilas añejas are aged--and more expensive. The very finest tequilas are labeled "100 percent blue agave." José Cuervo is a well-regarded brand. Tequila should always be served ice cold.

This flavorless, colorless liquor is a great mixer, since it blends unobtrusively with other ingredients. Some prefer to drink it straight, poured from bottles they store in the freezer. Since vodka is virtually flavorless, the differences between the brands are all but imperceptible to the mortal tongue. Buy the cheapest brand if you're using the vodka in mixed drinks. Flavored vodkas also are available; here the differences in quality may be more noticeable.