1.
Most of the whiskey and vodka bottled wines currently on the market have an alcohol content of 40% vol. Some tasting manuals say that the alcohol content of 40% vol is the "golden alcohol content" of whiskey. The table was given by Mendeleev, the proposer of the table. The myth of a certain alcohol content also exists in Chinese wines, such as Moutai. The 53% volume of Feitian Moutai has also been promoted by some articles as the best association ratio of alcohol molecules and water molecules.
Let's not focus on the optimal association ratio of Moutai for the moment. Let's first look at how the "golden alcohol content" of whiskey of 40%vol comes from.
The alcohol content of Macallan 12 Years Old, 1700 Connoisseur White Label and 1700 Connoisseur Gold Label is all 40%vol.
2.
Mendeleev was a great chemist, and his research fields were indeed very broad. In addition to proposing the periodic table of elements, he also studied the origin of petroleum, wine making, and cheese. It is said that he read a paper on the periodic table of elements. On that day, he was busy explaining how to make cheese to a cheese factory owner and had no time to read it out. He invited a friend to read it out, which later led to controversy about the inventor of the periodic table of elements.
He actually did research on the alcohol content of vodka and wrote a paper - "The Mixing of Alcohol and Water". In the paper, he believed that from the perspective of human physiology and the effects of alcohol on the human body, the alcohol concentration of vodka 40% should be optimal. At this alcohol content, the hydrogen bonds between alcohol molecules and water molecules are best associated. Probably due to the influence of Mendeleev, most vodkas in Russia are 40% vo).
However, the 40% mentioned by Mendeleev is the mass fraction, not the volume fraction. When converted to our current common volume fraction, it is equivalent to 50%vol.
3.
The origin of the alcohol content of British whiskey is relatively clear, but it has nothing to do with Mendeleev, but has something to do with taxation. The tax on spirits in the UK is very high, accounting for about 3/4 of the selling price. These taxes mainly consist of two parts, one is value-added tax and the other is special tax. The value-added tax rate is 17.5%, while the special tax is levied on pure alcohol. The tax on one liter of pure alcohol is approximately £19.78.
It can be seen from the taxation method that the more alcohol there is in a bottle of whiskey, the more tax you have to pay. For producers, the lower the alcohol content in a bottle of wine, the less tax they pay and the higher their profits. Therefore, producers will add water to the wine to reduce the alcohol content. Adding water to wine to increase profit margins is one of the oldest methods of counterfeiting, and the result of this method is the proliferation of bad wine. The government needs to introduce legal intervention.
The first laws emerged as whiskey producers battled with the government. The 1879 Amendment to the Sale of Food and Drugs Act stipulated that the minimum alcohol content of spirits is 75proof (approximately 43%vol). In 1916, the "Unripe Spirits Act" followed this alcohol content regulation, and in 1917 it was changed to 70proof (approximately 40%vol). This provision continues to this day. We can generally understand that this is the minimum standard set by the government, that is, wine merchants cannot add water to wine more than 60% of the total volume, and the alcohol content cannot be less than 40% of the total volume. This is a game between wine merchants and the government. result.
It can be seen that 40% is not a "golden alcohol content".
After 1990, non-condensed whiskey became popular in the British market, so the alcohol content of whiskey was increased to 46% (vol). This kind of non-chill-filtered whiskey is the same as the method used by Chinese liquor drinkers to identify pure grain solid liquor. When some drinkers judge whether a liquor is brewed from pure grain solid liquor, they will add water to the liquor. What will become turbid after adding water is Pure grain solid wine, if it is not turbid, it is not pure grain solid wine. Whiskey that has been filtered by condensation will not become turbid after adding water, while unfiltered whiskey will become turbid after adding water.
In recent years, due to the popularity of single malt whiskey, more and more consumers are pursuing the original flavor and prefer original barrel strength liquor without adding water, which is barrel strength liquor. In Taiwan, China, it is also called whiskey original liquor. The alcohol content of barrel-strength wine is basically more than 50%vol, 56%vol, 57%vol, etc.
4.
Whether judging from Mendeleev's research results or the actual change process of the alcohol content of British whiskey, there is actually no concept of "golden alcohol content" in science. The popularity of wines with a certain alcohol content in the market at a certain stage is closely related to the market environment and sommelier management at that time, and is also closely related to marketing. Since it has become the alcohol content of most wines, in terms of marketing rhetoric It has been deified as the "golden alcohol content".
