Kumquat liqueurs from Corfu

A liqueur (US /lɪˈkʊr/ or UK /lɪˈkjʊər/) is an alcoholic beverage made from distilled alcohol that has been flavored with fruit, herbs, nuts, spices, flowers, or cream and bottled with added sugar. Liqueurs are typically quite sweet; they are usually not aged for long but may have resting periods during their production to allow flavors to marry.

In the United States, where spirits are often called "liquor", there is often confusion over liqueurs and liquors, especially as many spirits today are available in flavored form (e.g. flavored vodka). The most reliable rule of thumb is that liqueurs are quite sweet and often syrupy in consistency, while liquors are not.

In parts of the United States, liqueurs may also be called cordials or schnapps,^[1][2][3][4] while in large parts of the British Commonwealth, cordial means a concentrated non-alcoholic fruit syrup that is diluted to taste and consumed as a non-carbonated soft drink, and in Germany and Scandinavia, schnapps means a form of brandy or aquavit.

Most liqueurs have a lower alcohol content (15%-30% ABV) than spirits, but some contain as much as 55% ABV.

History[link]

Liqueurs are historical descendants of herbal medicines; they were made in Italy as early as the 13th century and were often prepared by monks (e.g. Chartreuse and Bénédictine).

Nowadays, liqueurs are made worldwide and are served in many ways: by themselves, poured over ice, with coffee, mixed with cream or other mixers to create cocktails, etc. They are often served with or after a dessert. Liqueurs are also used in cooking.

Some liqueurs are prepared by infusing certain woods, fruits, or flowers, in either water or alcohol, and adding sugar or other items. Others are distilled from aromatic or flavoring agents. Anise liqueurs have the interesting property of turning from transparent to cloudy when added to water: the oil of anise remains in solution in the presence of a high concentration of alcohol, but crystallizes when the alcohol concentration is reduced; this is known as the ouzo effect.

Layered drinks are made by floating different-colored liqueurs in separate layers. Each liqueur is poured slowly into a glass over the back of a spoon or down a glass rod, so that the liquids of different densities remain unmixed, creating a striped effect.

The word liqueur comes from the Latin liquifacere ("to liquefy").

See also[link]

Drink portal

References[link]

External links[link]

Look up liqueur in Wiktionary, the free dictionary.

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Liqueurs

• Liqueurs – The Cook's Thesaurus

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Jack Daniel
Born	Jasper Newton Daniel September 5, 1846 Lynchburg, Tennessee, United States
Died	October 10, 1911(1911-10-10) (aged 65) Lynchburg, Tennessee, United States
Ethnicity	American
Occupation	Distiller/Businessman
Years active	1862–1911
Known for	Jack Daniel's
Website
Official Jack Daniel's website

Jasper Newton "Jack" Daniel (September 5, 1846 – October 10, 1911) was an American distiller and the founder of Jack Daniel's Tennessee whiskey distillery.

Biography[link]

Daniel was the youngest of ten children born to Calaway and Lucinda (née Cook) Daniel.^[1] Jack Daniel's paternal grandparents immigrated to America in the late 18th century. His grandfather Joseph “Job” Daniel was born in Wales, while his grandmother, Elizabeth Calaway, was born in Scotland. He was of Welsh, Scots-Irish and Scottish descent.^[1]

According to one source, he was born in January 1849.^[1] However, the Brown-Forman Corporation, current producer of the Jack Daniel's brand, says that it is customary to celebrate his birthday in September.^[2] A town fire had destroyed the courthouse records, and conflicting dates on his and his mother's headstones have left his date of birth in question.^[2] His mother died shortly after his birth, most likely due to complications from the childbirth.^[1] He was the youngest of his parents' 10 children,^[1] and on June 26, 1851, his father remarried and then had another three children with his stepmother Matilda Vanzant.^[1]

The company that now owns the distillery claims that it was first licensed in 1866.^[2] However, in the 2004 biography Blood & Whiskey: The Life and Times of Jack Daniel author Peter Krass maintains that land and deed records show that the distillery was actually not founded until 1875.

Since Daniel never married and did not have any children, he took his favorite nephew, Lem Motlow, under his wing. Motlow had a head for numbers and was soon doing all the distillery's bookkeeping. In 1907, due to failing health, Daniel gave the distillery to his nephew.

Jack Daniel's safe

Jack Daniel's Statue

Daniel died from blood poisoning at Lynchburg in 1911. The infection allegedly set up originally in a toe, which Daniel injured in kicking his safe in anger when he could not get it open early one morning at work — he had always had trouble remembering the combination. His last words were "One last drink, please". This incident was the subject of a marketing poster used on the London Underground in January 2006, with the line "Moral: Never go to work early." A common joke that is told during the tour of the distillery is that all Jack had to do to cure his infection was to dip his toe in a glass of his own whiskey to clean it. His death was portrayed on Spike Television's 1000 Ways To Die.

References[link]