Culture > Drinks > Alcoholic

Now updated for CSW19. New words, if any, and new inflections of existing words, are shown in red.

advocaat a liqueur containing rum and raw eggs.
aguardiente a kind of Spanish or Portuguese brandy. [Sp. agua ardiente, burning water].
akvavit aquavit a Scandinavian spirit made from potatoes or grain and flavoured with caraway seeds.
alcohol a liquid generated by the fermentation of sugar or other saccharine matter and forming the intoxicating element of fermented liquors.
alcool a form of pure grain spirit distilled in Quebec.
alcopop an alcoholic drink tasting like soft drink.
ale a beer fermented in an open vessel using yeasts that rise to the top of the brew; (formerly) an alcoholic drink made by fermenting a cereal, esp. barley, but differing from beer by being unflavoured by hops.
alexander a kind of cocktail, as in brandy alexander.
alicant a wine made near Alicante in Sapin.
amabile of wines etc., sweet.
amaretto a kind of liqueur flavoured with almonds > AMARETTOS. (AMARETTI also exists but it means macaroons flavoured with almonds).
amarone a strong dry red Italian wine > AMARONES.
amontillado a kind of sherry > AMONTILLADOS.
amoroso a dark sweet sherry > AMOROSOS.
anisette a cordial or liqueur flavored with anise seeds.
aperitif a drink taken as an appetiser.
applecart applejack apple brandy, distilled from fermented apple juice.
appletini a cocktail of vodka and apple juice.
arak arrack a spirit made from TODDY.
armagnac a dry brandy distilled in SW France.
ava kava kavakava an aromatic plant of the pepper family; a narcotic drink prepared from this.
bacharach a wine from Bacharach, on the Rhine.
barolo a red Italian wine > BAROLOS.
beaujolais a kind of wine > BEAUJOLAISES.
beer an alcoholic drink made from malted barley flavoured with hops.
beerily (adv.) BEERY, like beer.
beeriness the quality of being BEERY.
beersies (New Zealand slang) beer.
beery like beer > BEERIER, BEERIEST.
beeswing a crust found on old bottled port.
beeswinged so old as to show BEESWING, a crust found on old bottled port.
bellini a cocktail consisting of prosecco and peach pur�e.
bevvy bevy an alcoholic drink; a drinking session.
bitter a particularly foul-tasting variety of ALE; (verb) to make bitter.
blackstrap a drink made of a mixture of rum and treacle > BLACKSTRAPS.
bock a strong German wine.
boilermaker a drink of whiskey followed by a beer chaser.
bombo cheap wine > BOMBOS.
bordeaux a red or white wine from the Bordeaux region. Not to be confused with Bordeaux mixture, a mixture of lime and copper sulphate, used to kill insect pests on plants, which tastes slightly better.
bourbon a kind of WHISKY.
brandy a strong spirit distilled from wine, or from fermented fruit-juice; (verb) to mix or treat with brandy.
brewage malt liquor; drink brewed.
brewski beer > BREWSKIS or BREWSKIES.
brut of wines, unsweetened, dry.
bub a strong drink.
bubbly champagne; (adj.) containing bubbles > BUBBLIER, BUBBLIEST.
bucellas a white wine from Bucellas near Lisbon > BUCELLASES.
bullshot a drink made of vodka and BOUILLON.
bumbo a mixture of rum or gin, water, sugar and nutmeg > BUMBOS.
bummock a brewing of ale for a feast.
burgundy a French wine; its purply-red colour.
busera a Ugandan alcoholic drink made from millet > BUSERAS.
cabernet a dry red wine.
cachaca a white Brazilian rum made from sugarcane.
calabogus a Canadian drink of rum, spruce beer and molasses > CALABOGUSES.
calimocho a cocktail popular in Spanish-speaking countries, consisting of a mixture of cola and red wine.
calvados a French apple brandy > CALVADOSES.
cassis a blackcurrant liqueur > CASSISES.
catawba a light red variety of American grape; a rd wine made from it. [From the Catawba, a river in the Carolinas, USA].
cava a sparkling wine > CAVAS.
cepage a kind of wine > CAVAS.
cerveza beer > CERVEZAS.
chablis a white wine made near Chablis, a town in France.
chambre of wine, at room temperature (the e has an accent).
champagne a posh fizzy wine, with very expensive bubbles.
champers CHAMPAS champagne.
chaptalise chaptalize to add extra sugar to wine during its fermentation to increase its alcohol content.
chardonnay a type of grape, orig. from the Burgundy region of France.
charneco a kind of sweet wine > CHARNECOS.
chartreuse an aromatic, usually yellow or green liqueur. [From La Grande Chartreuse, the name of the Carthusian monastery near Chartreuse in Grenoble where this liqueur was made].
chianti a dry red Italian wine > CHIANTIS.
chicha a S. American liquor fermented from maize or cane sugar.
cider cyder an alcoholic drink made from the fermented juice of apples.
ciderkin a kind of weak cider made by steeping the refuse pomace in water.
cidery like cider > CIDERIER, CIDERIEST.
claret a red wine, esp. one from the Bordeaux district of France; (verb) to drink claret > CLARETED, CLARETING.
classico of wine, made from grapes grown in a certain part of Italy.
cocktail a beverage made of brandy, whisky, or gin, iced, flavored, and sweetened; (verb) to dock a horse's tail.
cognac a kind of brandy.
cointreau a colourless liqueur with orange flavouring > COINTREAUS.
coldie a cold can or bottle of beer > COLDIES.
collins a type of COCKTAIL, as in vodka collins > COLLINSES.
cornbrandy spirits made from grain; whisky.
cratur craythur (coll.) whiskey.
cremant of wine, moderately sparkling.
cru (the grade or quality of wine produced in) a French vineyard or wine-producing region > CRUS.
curacao curacoa a kind of liqueur. [From an island in the W. Indies where it was first made].
cuvee a vat of blended wine of uniform quality.
daiquiri daquiri a cocktail containing rum and lime-juice. [From Daiquiri, a rum-producing district in Cuba].
dop a kind of brandy; (verb, obs.) to dip > DOPPED, DOPPING.
doux of champagne, very sweet.
dram a small amount of alcoholic drink; (verb) to drink a dram.
drappie drappy a little drop, esp. of spirits.
dunder the lees or dregs of cane juice, used in the distillation of rum.
eggnog a hot or cold alcoholic drink with added egg and usu. milk.
eisel eisell esile a kind of sour wine, that resembles vinegar even more than other wines.
eiswein a sweet German wine made from grapes that have frozen on the vine.
emptings emptins the yeasty lees of beer or cider.
enzian a type of SCHNAPPS flavoured with gentian roots, drunk in the Tyrol.
espumoso a sparkling wine > ESPUMOSOS.
feni an alcoholic spirit produced in Goa from coconuts or cashew nuts > FENIS. Also FENNY.
fenny an alcoholic spirit produced in Goa from coconuts or cashew nuts. Also FENI. (Adj.) like a fen > FENNIER, FENNIEST.
fining a clarifying agent, esp. in wine-making.
fino a type of light-coloured dry sherry; a glass or drink of such sherry > FINOS.
firewater strong alcoholic spirits.
flor a yeasty growth which is allowed to form on the surface of sherry wines and which gives them a nutty taste.
framboise (Fr.) a brandy distilled from raspberries in the Alsace-Lorraine region.
frascati a type of white wine > FRASCATIS.
frizzante of wine, sparkling.
fusel a nauseous mixture of alcohols in spirits distilled from potatoes, grain etc. [Not sure whether people in fact actually drink this, but nothing would surprise me].
gallise gallisise gallisize gallize in wine-making, to bring to standard proportions by adding water and sugar to an inferior must.
gamay a variety of red grape; a dry red wine made from this. [From a French village].
geneva a spirit distilled from gin.
genevrette a wine made from wild fruits flavoured with juniper berries.
geropiga jerepigo a port substitute, consisting mainly of grape juice and brandy. [Port. jeropiga].
gewurztraminer a variety of Traminer grape grown esp. in the Rhine valley, Alsace, and Austria; the mildly spicy white wine made from this grape.
gibson a MARTINI garnished with a cocktail onion.
gin an alcoholic drink obtained by distillation and rectification of the grain of malted barley, rye, or maize, flavoured with juniper berries; (verb) to trap or snare.
ginny flavoured with gin > GINNIER, GINNIEST.
glogg a hot spiced drink > wine, brandy, and sherry, with raisins, almonds and orange peel.
gluhwein a hot sweetened spiced red wine, as prepared in Germany.
grappa a kind of grape spirit. [Ital. 'grape stalk'].
grasshopper a cocktail made with creme de menthe,creme de cacao, and light cream.
grenadine a pomegranate syrup, or similar, used in certain drinks.
grog diluted spirit, usually rum, as an alcoholic drink; (verb) to extract the spirit from the wood of casks by soaking it in hot water.
gutrot rotgut rough, cheap alcohol.
happoshu a Japanese drink similar to beer.
heeltap a small amount of liquor left in the glass after drinking.
highball whisky and soda with ice in a tall glass; (verb) to go at full speed.
hippocras a kind of medieval hot spiced wine > HIPPOCRASES.
hock a white Rhine wine; (verb) to pawn.
hogan hogen strong liquor.
hokonui illicit whisky > HOKONUIS.
homebrew home-made beer.
hoppiness the state of being hoppy, tasting of hops.
hoppy tasting of hops.
hooch hootch whisky or any strong liquor, esp. if illicitly acquired.
icewine a dessert wine made from grapes frozen before harvesting.
jerepigo see GEROPIGA.
julep a cocktail of bourbon, sugar, and mint. [Persian gulab, rosewater].
kava kavakava see AVA.
kir a wine and blackcurrant drink. [From Kir, the Frenchman said to have invented it].
kirsch kirschwasser an alcoholic spirit distilled, chiefly in Germany and Switzerland, from the fermented juice of cherries.
koumis koumiss koumys koumyss kumiss kumys kumis an intoxicating fermented or distilled liquor originally made by the Tartars from mare's or camel's milk.
kummel a cumin-flavoured liqueur.
kvas kvass quass an alcoholic drink of low strength (actually given to children) made in Russia and E. Europe from cereals and stale bread > KVASES, KVASSES, QUASSES.
lager a light beer traditionally matured for six months before use; (verb) to laager i.e. form a circle of wagons.
lambrusco an Italian sparkling wine > LAMBRUSCOS.
lees the sediment that settles at the bottom of a liquid, esp. a fermented liquid such as wine; dregs.
logjuice bad port wine, as if coloured with logwood.
madeira a white wine.
maderise maderize of white wine, to become rusty in colour and flat in taste as a result of absorbing too much oxygen during maturation.
malmsey a strong sweet wine. Also MALVESIE, MALVOISIE.
malted a malted whisky.
malvasia a type of grape from which MALMSEY is made.
malvasian relating to a type of grape used to make malmsey.
malvesie malvoisie see MALMSEY.
malwa a Ugandan drink brewed from millet > MALWAS.
mampoer home-made distilled brandy made from peaches, prickly pear etc.
manhattan a kind of cocktail.
manzanilla a very dry, light sherry.
maraschino a sweet liqueur distilled from maraschino cherries > MARASCHINOS.
marc grapeskins and other refuse from wine-making.
margarita marguerita a cocktail of tequila, lime and lemon-juice.
marsala a kind of wine exported from Marsala in Sicily.
martini a type of vermouth. Also, a cocktail consisting of gin and dry vermouth, sometimes with the addition of orange bitters.
mauby a frothy beverage made from boiled tree-bark > MAUBIES. Also MOBBY, MOBBIE.
max gin, the drink.
mead meath meathe meth alcoholic liquor produced by fermenting a mixture of honey and water.
merlot a light-bodied red wine.
mescal mezcal a distilled liquor prepared in Mexico from a species of agave.
metheglin a spiced or medicated variety of mead, originally peculiar to Wales. [Welsh meddyglyn, from meddyg, medicina + llyn, liquor].
mild mild ALE.
mirin a sweet rice wine used in Japanese cooking.
mobbie mobby a frothy beverage made from boiled tree-bark.
mocktail a cocktail without alcohol.
moonshine illegally distilled or smuggled whisky or other spirit.
mojito a traditional Cuban cocktail > CAVAS.
moscato a sweet dessert wine.
moselle a German white wine from the Moselle valley.
mousseux a sparkling wine.
mulse boiled wine with honey.
muscadel muscatel muscadelle a rich spicy wine derived from muscat grapes.
muscadet a dry white wine.
muscat a sweet white grape used for raisins and muscatel wine; muscatel wine itself.
negroni an alcoholic beverage > NEGRONIS.
negus a drink of wine, hot water and spices. [From Col. Francis Negus (d. 1732), its creator} > NEGUSES.
nerver something which gives one courage, especially a strong drink.
nog an egg and alcohol drink; also, a wooden peg; (verb) to fix with nogs.
nogg an egg and alcohol drink.
noily a dry white vermouth.
nonvintage a wine that is not vintage.
noyau a liqueur made from brandy flavoured with bitter almonds or peach-stones > NOYAUS or NOYAUX.
oaked relating to wine that is stored for a time in oak barrels before bottling.
oenomel oinomel a beverage of ancient Greece consisting of wine and honey. [Gk. oinos, wine, + meli, honey].
oloroso a golden-coloured medium-sweet sherry. [Sp. oloroso, fragrant].
ordinaire vin ordinaire, table wine.
ouzo an aniseed-flavored Greek liqueur.
overproof stronger than proof spirit; that is, containing more than 49.3 per cent by weight of alcohol.
palinka a type of apricot brandy from E. Europe.
pastis a French aniseed-flavoured aperitif > PASTISES.
pernod an aniseed-flavoured aperitif from France.
perry a cider-like drink made from pears.
persico persicot a cordial made of the kernels of apricots, nectarines, etc., with refined spirit.
petillant sparkling, used of wine.
pilsener pilsner a light-coloured flavoursome variety of lager.
piment a spiced sweetened wine.
pinot a variety of grape; a wine made from this.
pisco a Peruvian brandy > PISCOS.
plonk inferior quality wine; (verb) to put down abruptly.
plottie a spiced hot drink, such as mulled wine. Also PLOTTY.
plotty a spiced hot drink, such as mulled wine. Also PLOTTIE. 2. (adj.) full of intrigue, as a novel > PLOTTIER, PLOTTIEST.
poitin see POTEEN.
pombe an African alcoholic drink.
port a sweet fortified dessert wine; (verb) to carry, convey.
porter a strong, dark-coloured, highly hopped beer; (verb) to work as a porter.
porty tasting like port > PORTIER, PORTIEST.
poteen potheen potteen poitin illicitly distilled Irish whisky.
pregame to drink alcohol before a game.
prosecco an Italian sparkling white wine > PROSECCOS.
pulque a Mexican fermented drink made from agave. [Amer. Sp., f. Nahuatl puliúhki decomposed.]
quass see KVAS.
quetsch a spirit distilled from the fermented juice of plums. [Ger. dialect Quetsch, wild plum].
rakee raki a strong spirit distilled in Turkey, Yugoslavia, etc., from grain, usually flavoured with aniseed or other aromatics.
rakia rakija a kind of fruit brandy produced by distillation of fermented fruit, popular throughout the Balkans.
ratafee ratafia a flavouring essence made with the essential oil of almonds; a cordial or liqueur flavoured with fruit-kernels; an almond biscuit or cake.
redeye cheap whiskey; an overnight flight.
regmaker a drink taken to relieve the effects of a hangover.
resinata a Greek white wine. [L. resinata, resined].
retsina a Greek alcoholic drink.
rickey an alcoholic beverage containing lime juice, gin and soda water.
riesling a type of grape grown esp. in Germany; a dry white table wine produced from this.
rioja a Spanish red wine.
rosiner a strong alcoholic drink.
rotgut see GUTROT.
rubby rubbing alcohol, esp when mixed with cheap red wine > RUBBIES.
rum spirit made from sugar cane, either coloured brownish-red by the addition of caramel or by maturation in oak containers, or left white; (adj.) strange, queer > RUMMER, RUMMEST.
rumbo grog > RUMBOS.
rumbullion an older name for rum.
rumfustian a hot alcoholic drink made from rum and various spices.
sack dry white wine or sherry from Spain.
sake saki a Japanese alcoholic drink made from fermented rice.
samshoo samshu a spirituous liquor distilled by the Chinese from the yeasty liquor in which boiled rice has fermented under pressure.
sangaree a summer drink consisting of lemon juice, claret, sugar, ice; any sweetened wine drink.
sangria a Spanish wine punch.
sauterne a white wine made in the district of Sauterne, France.
sazerac a cocktail based on Pernod and whisky.
schiedam holland gin made at Schiedam in the Netherlands.
schnapps schnaps shnaps shnapps a kind of brandy.
screwdriver a kind of cocktail.
scrumpy a kind of rough cider.
scuppernong a native American grape from the region of the Scuppernong river; a sweet wine made from it.
seco (of wine) dry.
sekt a sparkling wine.
shandy a mixture of beer or ginger beer and lemonade.
shandygaff a mixture of strong beer and ginger beer.
sherris sherry.
sherry a fortified wine, originally from the Jerez region in S. Spain, usually drunk as an aperitif.
shicker shikker (Aust. sl.) strong liquor; a drunk.
shochu a Japanese liquor.
shypoo liquor of poor quality > SHYPOOS.
simkin simpkin an Urdu corruption of champagne.
skeechan a kind of beer made by mixing malt liquor with treacle. [Gaelic caochan, fermented liquor].
skokiaan a strong home-brewed alcoholic liquor fermented with yeast. [From Zulu via Afrikaans].
slivovic slivovica slivovitz slivowitz a dry plum brandy > SLIVOVICES, SLIVOVICAS, SLIVOVITZES, SLIVOWITZES.
snifter a small alcoholic drink; (verb) to sniff, snivel.
soave an Italian white wine.
soju a Korean spirit distilled from rice or sweet potato.
solera a system of sherry production involving the blending of wines from different casks; the casks used in this process.
spatlese a sweet white wine made from grapes harvested after the main vintage > SPATLESES or SPATLESEN.
spritzer a drink of (white) wine and soda water.
spritzig sparkling (of wine); (noun) a usu. sparkling white wine.
spumante a sparkling white wine.
stalky retaining a tannic, unripe taste from excessive contact with the grape-stalks during production > STALKIER, STALKIEST.
stemmy of wine, having a bitter taste due to being fermented in contact with grape stems.
stengah a drink of whisky and soda. [Malay sa-tengah, one half].
stingo a strong Yorkshire beer > STINGOS.
stout a strong dark beer brewed with roasted malt or barley.
stum must, unfermented grape-juice; (verb) to doctor with stum.
sundowner an alcoholic drink taken at sunset; (Aus. sl.) a loafer or tramp who arrives at a place in time for an evening meal but too late to do any work.
swally (Scots) an alcoholic drink.
swipes beer, esp. when poor or weak.
switchel a drink made of molasses and water, sometimes flavoured with vinegar, ginger, or rum.
sylvaner a German grape used in making white wine; the wine itself.
syrah a red wine grape; wine made from this. [From the ancient Persian City of Shiraz, where the grape is supposed to have originated].
taffia tafia a liquor resembling rum distilled from the lower grades of molasses, refuse brown sugar, etc.
tanglefoot whisky, intoxicating liquor.
taplash bad small beer; also, the refuse or dregs of liquor.
tartar a reddish, acid potassium bitartrate found in grape juice and deposited on the sides of wine casks.
tartarous consisting of, containing or resembling TARTAR.
tawney tawny a port of a rich orange-brown colour.
tequila tequilla a Mexican alcoholic drink made from the agave plant.
tipper a kind of ale (from Thomas Tipper, who brewed it in Sussex).
tipple an alcoholic drink; (verb) to drink alcohol.
toddy a drink made from spirits; also, the fermented sap of various palm trees, or a liquor made from this. [Hindi tari].
toothful a small esp. alcoholic drink.
trocken of wine, dry.
underproof containing less alcohol than proof spirit.
unoaked of wine, not fermented in an oak cask.
usquabae usque usquebae usquebaugh whiskey.
valpolicella a red or rosé wine made in the Val Policella district.
verdelho (a white Madeira made from) a white grape orig. growing in Madeira.
vermouth vermuth a drink with a white wine base, flavoured with wormwood and other herbs.
vin wine.
vino (Sl.) wine > VINOS.
voddy vodka an alcoholic drink originating in Russia, made from grain, potatoes etc.
vouvray a French white wine.
waragi a Ugandan alcoholic drink made from bananas > WARAGIS.
whiskey whisky a spirit made by distilling fermented cereals, which is matured and often blended.
wine an alcoholic drink produced by the fermentation of grapes with water and sugar.
winey winy like or tasting of wine > WINIER, WINIEST.
winish winy.
witblits a strong home-distilled alcoholic spirit. [Afr. wit, white + blits, lightning].
yaqona another name for KAVA.
yill ale.
zin ZINFANDEL, a red wine.
zinfandel a black wine-grape of California; the wine produced from this.
zombie a drink made of several kinds of rum, liqueur and fruit-juice.
zythum a kind of beer made by the ancient Egyptians, highly commended by Diodorus Siculus. [Gk. zythos].