Alcohol has been known to mankind since the Neolithic era – archaeologists found the oldest remains of fermented drinks on fragments of clay vessels of the Stone Age. The history of the use and production of alcoholic beverages is replete with interesting and unusual facts.
Historical facts about alcohol
1. The oldest brewery in the world was discovered in ancient burial sites near Haifa. The foamy drink was made in a cave, wheat and barley served as raw materials – traces of grain were found in mortars carved right into the stone floor. It is established that the construction is about 13 thousand years old.
2. In the XNUMXth century BC. e. wine was made in the Middle East and China. In the Celestial Empire, a drink was made from berries, honey and rice; Arab winemakers used barley and grapes as raw materials.
3. The ancient Greeks believed that the cult of winemaking distinguishes an enlightened people from barbarians. Although alcoholic beverages were part of the daily diet, drunkenness was not welcome – in the writings of the philosophers Xenophon and Plato, there is sharp criticism of immoderate libations.
4. South American Indians were great masters in the manufacture of intoxicating drinks. Agave, corn, pineapples and even tree bark and plant roots served as raw materials.
5. The first distillation apparatus was tested at the Salerno Medical School in the XNUMXth century.
6. In 1500, the first book on the art of distillation was published. Its author was a German surgeon, alchemist and botanist Jerome Braunschweig.
7. In the Middle Ages, weak beer replaced water for residents of large European cities, since rivers and wells were sources of infection.
8. Champagne began to gain popularity in the XNUMXth century. The first batches of Dom Perignon were bottled in thick glass with a very tight cork, as the sparkling wine often exploded due to imperfect technology.
9. At the beginning of the XNUMXth century, Great Britain experienced the so-called “gin epidemic”. A cheap strong drink with sugar and juniper caused mass alcoholism among the population. The government managed to cope with the disaster only by imposing harsh penalties for the underground production and trade of gin.
10. During Prohibition in the United States, whiskey could only be legally purchased at a pharmacy. Doctors wrote prescriptions for alcohol en masse, with diagnoses ranging from snake bites to lactation problems.
Facts about alcohol and health
1. Alcohol is considered a depressant. Like all substances in this group, it causes the release of dopamine, the hormone responsible for pleasure.
2. With regular alcohol abuse, the work of neurotransmitters is disrupted, which leads to depression and an unstable mental state.
3. Contrary to popular belief, alcohol alone does not cause weight gain. Scientists have repeatedly conducted research in this area and have not been able to establish a link between alcohol consumption and obesity. It’s all about the calorie snack.
4. With the same amount of alcohol consumed in the blood of women, the concentration of ethanol will be higher than that of men. This fact is due to the fact that the female body less intensively produces the enzyme that breaks down alcohol dehydrogenase.
5. Strong drinks cause a feeling of warmth, but this feeling is deceptive – in fact, the expansion of blood vessels leads to a decrease in body temperature.
6. Excessive alcohol consumption provokes an increased production of cytokines – molecules that affect the growth and interaction of cells. As a result, the immune system suffers and the person becomes more susceptible to inflammatory diseases.
7. Coffee, energy drinks and other common sobering methods cannot remove alcohol from the body. The liver breaks down ethanol at a certain rate, which depends on the characteristics of metabolism, and invigorating drinks are not able to affect this process.
8. Reasonable alcohol consumption does not destroy brain cells, but even improves their functions. Studies show that moderate drinkers are less likely to suffer from senile dementia than total teetotalers.
9. Doctors advise drinking alcohol no later than an hour before a night’s rest. Ethanol shortens REM sleep, resulting in a feeling of weakness in the morning.
10. Unpleasant smell after drinking alcoholic beverages (fume) comes from the lungs, and not from the stomach or mouth. The fume will be until the lungs are cleared.
Facts about unusual alcohol
1. The world’s most expensive beer was brewed at Australian craft brewery Nail Brewing in late 2010. The drink is made from water obtained from a melted piece of ice from an Antarctic iceberg. Antarctic Nail Ale was released in a limited edition of thirty bottles, the price for ale at auctions rose to 1850 US dollars. All proceeds were donated to the Marine Animals Protection Fund.
2. Jeppson’s Malört is officially recognized as the most disgusting tasting liqueur. The main ingredient of the drink is wormwood, the recipe was invented by Chicago resident Carl Jepson, who had problems with taste buds due to excessive smoking. Liquor tasters rate it as “unforgettable” and find hints of burnt rubber, ink and wood shavings, lightly flavored with citrus, in the bouquet.
3. Fishky is one of the most unusual whiskeys in the world. The drink is made on the Scottish island of Islay, its peculiarity is in a special exposure, which takes place in barrels from under herring. During maturation, whiskey acquires shades of iodine, algae and sea salt. The brand has its fans, although critics note the aftertaste as greasy and unpleasant.
4. Watenshi is an exclusive gin produced by the British distillery Cambridge. The drink is made from fumes during distillation, no more than 15 milliliters are obtained in one distillation. The cost of one bottle is 2000 pounds sterling, the gin is poured into handmade decanters, trimmed with silver.
5. The Blackwood Distillers plant produces an elite alcoholic drink Diva Premium Vodka. The peculiarity of vodka lies in multi-stage purification: first, a mixture of alcohol and water is passed through birch charcoal, then through a special filter filled with diamonds, emeralds and rubies. The drink is sold in collectible bottles, inside of which there is a glass tube filled with precious stones.