1. Bar Terminologies

2. ABV Stands for “alcohol by volume” and shows the total percentage within the drink that is accounted for by pure ethyl alcohol. All alcoholic products must, by law, give this information.

3. Aging The storage of the distilled alcohol in wooded casks, most often oak. Over months or years, the wood reacts with the alcohol, imparting to it a distinctive color, aroma, and flavor.

4. Alcohol content Refers to the amount of alcohol present in wine. It is usually expressed as a numerical percentage of the volume or can also be written as proof (for spirits).

5. Ale Is a malt beverage (beer) made by top fermentation at lukewarm temperatures.

6. Appelation Refers to the name or official geographic origin of wine. It is part of the system of classification of wines.

7. Appelation Contrôlée Is a phrase on French wine label which means that the wine comes from the controlled area named and meets its strict legal standards.

8. Appearance Refers to the visual properties including size, shape, color, texture, gloss, transparency, cloudiness, and so on.

9. Aperitif Drink that are served before meals. An alcoholic drink taken before a meal as an appetizer.

10. Aroma Refers to smell of fragrance of a young wine. The odor of a wine imported by grapes from which it is made.

11. Balance Is the combination and relationship of physical components (fruit, acid, tannin, alcohol, etc.) and to a lesser extent the intangible element such as breed, character and finesse.

12. Bar Back An assistant or apprentice bartender, who does the bartender’s scut work, including tapping beer kegs, running ice, replacing glassware, preparing and stocking garnishes, restocking shelves and so on.

13. Beer Is a fermented beverage made from malted grains (usually barley), water, hops and yeast.

14. Beer clean Refers to a glass free of grease, soap, and lint.

15. Blind tasting Is a system of evaluating alcoholic beverages without the knowledge of the producer, country of origin, and other pertinent information.

16. Bodega Is the farm / vineyard where Sherry is made.

17. Body Is the term used to describe the scent of more complex mature wines.

18. Bottom fermentation Is a process that refers to beers produced by the use of a type of yeast (lager yeast), which generally converts sugar to alcohol and carbon dioxide at lower temperatures at the tank’s bottom.

19. Bouquet Refers to the smell of fragrance of a mature wine. Complex and interesting odor of a mature wine.

20. Breathe Term referring to a red wine’s interaction with oxygen when it is first incurred.

21. Brewpub Bar-restaurant combination in which beer served is brewed on the premises.

22. Brown goods Spirits having dark color and hearty flavor such as whiskey and brandies.

23. Bruised beer Beer that has been warmed and cooled again.

24. Brut (brute) On champagne label, dry (little or no sugar).

25. Caffeine Is a crystalline, bitter-tasting, but odorless alkaloid present in coffee, tea, and soft drinks; a stimulant.

26. Call brand Brand of liquor specified by customer ordering drink. Brands frequently called for by name.

27. Chaser Refers to the mixer served either with the spirit or on the side of the spirit in a separate glass, bottle or carafe. A mild drink (as beer) taken after a hard liquor.

28. Cocktail Cocktail is a well-iced mixed drink made up of base liquor, a modifying ingredient as a modifier, and a special flavoring or coloring agents. It is usually an apperitiff taken at leisure before a meal to wet the appetite; it is also reputedly aids digestion.

29. Coffee Is a dark brown aromatic drink made by brewing in water the roasted and ground bean-like seeds of a tall tropical evergreen shrub (Coffea) of the Madder family.

30. Cold method Is the method used to produce liqueurs when the flavoring ingredients are sensitive to heat. Examples of this method are infusion, maceration, and percolation.

31. Color Refers to the distinct hue specific to each type of drink.

32. Congeners Acids, aldehydes, esters, ketones, phenols, and tannins that are byproducts of fermentation, distillation, and aging. These “impurities” may contribute to the character and flavor of the spirit, but they cause undesirable effects in some people, notably increasing the intensity of hangover.

33. Continuous still / Column still / Patent still Also called Coffey still, after the inventor, Aenas Coffey. A type of still for whiskey distillation that allows for continuous high-volume production, as opposed to the pot still, which must be emptied and “recharged” one batch at a time.

34. Cordial / Liqueur Drink served after meals. A stimulating drink.

35. Cork Is a spongy natural material used as a stopper for bottles.

36. Cupping Refers to the proper procedures of tasting coffee.

37. Cuveé Is a blend of wines used to make a particular house style of sparkling wine.

38. Decant (dee kant) To pour wine from a bottle to another bottle or carafe in such a way that the sediment remains in the bottle.

39. Dégorgement Refers to the removal of dead yeast from second fermentation in bottle; also disgorgement.

40. Demi-Sac On a champagne label. “half dry”; actually the sweetest type on the market.

41. Distillation Is the separation of alcohol from the liquid in the fermented mash.

42. Distinctive Means marked individuality of style.

43. Double / Single This refers to the number of jigger or shots of drinks / spirit poured and served into the serving glass.

44. Draft beer Is an un-pasteurized beer.

45. Dry wines Unsweetened tastes or absence of sugar. Almost all of the sugar has been converted into alcohol during fermentation causing the wine to lack sweetness.

46. Extra dry Extremely small amount of dry vermouth with liquor.

47. Finish Refers to the sensation left in the mouth after tasting the wine. A finish can be short or long, depending on the quality and age of wine. A very long finish or “persistence” can be an indication that a wine has aged well.

48. Flag Garnish of sliced orange or other citrus fruit on a pick, usually with cherry.

49. Flambé As a verb, flambé means to drench with liquor and ignite. The word may also be used as a noun, synonymously with flaming drink.

50. Flavor Refers to a complex group of sensations comprising olfactory, taste, and other chemical sensations such as irritation and chemical heat.

51. Food accompaniment Refers to food that usually goes with the wine when drinking.

52. Fortification Is the addition of distilled spirits to a wine either to stop fermentation and leave some residual sugars or to give some better keeping properties or to make wine stronger.

53. Free-pour To pour liquor for a drink without using a measure, estimating amounts by counting or other method.

54. Garbage A bit of fruit or vegetable added to a drink primarily for the sake of appearance. It does not significantly enhance the flavor of the drink.

55. Garnish Is a bit of fruit or vegetable added to a drink principally to enhance its flavor.

56. Generic Are liqueurs without a protected name, recipe or bottle shape. They are produced cheaply and are priced competitively.

57. Gin Is a spirit distilled from grains flavored with botanicals, mainly juniper berries.

58. Go easy Means to pour less of the mixer in the drink.

59. Grape over Liquor poured over crushed or shaved ice.

60. Happy hour Limited period of the day during which drink prices are marked down.

61. Head Refers to the thick, rich, creamy collar of gas bubbles that clings to the top of a glass of beer; also foam.

62. Hot method Is the method used to produce liqueurs by extracting flavors from ingredients such as seeds and flowers by heat. An example of this method is distillation.

63. House wine A specific wine a restaurant sells by the glass or carafe.

64. Infusion Is a process by which flavorings are steeped in water.

65. Jockey box Underbar cocktail-station unit, typically containing ice bin, speed rail, bottle wells, and cold plate for a postmix system.

66. Keg Half-barrel of beer, containing 15 ½ gallons.

67. Lacing Refers to the marks left by the head on the glass as the beer is consumed.

68. Light This refer to a drink with low alcohol content.

69. Liqueurs Are alcoholic beverages made by mixing or redistilling various spirits with certain flavoring materials.

70. Long drinks Drink that are served in tall glasses.

71. Maceration Is a process by which flavorings are steeped in alcohol.

72. Marry To blend wines or spirits. To add something to the liquor in a bottle.

73. Methode Champenoise Means a traditional method of making sparkling wine, particularly Champagne, wherein fermented wine is bottled with yeast cells and sugar to induce a secondary fermentation. When fermentation is complete, the wine is aged, and the yeast sediment is removed.

74. Mixology The art or skill of mixing drinks containing alcohol.

75. Mocktail Familiar cocktail without the liquor.

76. Muddle To mash and stir; One muddles such things as mint leaves and other solids in order to make a suspension or a paste with fluid. A special pestle-like wooden muddler can be used, but spoon will do.

77. Mull To heat and spice a drink. Traditionally, the heating was done by inserting a hot poker into the drink; today, mulled drinks are usually heated on a stove.

78. Neat Drink served directly poured from the bottle into the serving glass. Served without ice; not chilled.

79. Odor Means the characteristic smell of a substance.

80. On the side Spirit served with the mixer in separate carafe glass placed next to the spirit.

81. Palate In organoleptic evaluation, refers to the sense of taste.

82. Percolation Is a process, which involves re-circulating the beverage spirits through a percolator, which contains the raw materials.

83. Perfect Half dry and half sweet as vermouth.

84. Proof A measure of alcoholic content of spirit each degree of the proof being ½ of the alcohol by volume of standard strength on quality or alcoholic content.

85. Proprietary Are mostly imported, expensive liqueurs with a distinctive recipe, bottle shape, and brand name.

86. Pull date Date a product should be pulled off shelves, after which it begins to deteriorate.

87. Quinta Is the farm / vineyard where Port is made.

88. Rémuage Refers to the rotation of inverted bottles to get dead yeast into the bottle neck; also riddling.

89. Rim To decorate the rim of a glass with salt or sugar.

90. Sec On a champagne label, “dry” (actually the wine is slightly sweet).

91. Service bar Bar pouring drinks for table service only, often out of public view.

92. Shutting off (a drunk) Professional bartenders call refusing to serve an intoxicated patron “shutting him off.” Also called “cutting off.”

93. Soda Water containing carbon dioxide.

94. Soda out A drink topped with soda.

95. Solera System Is the Spanish system of progressively blending Sherries in tiers of small casks- to blend Sherries of the same type but varying ages (young and old).

96. Specialty Usually any featured drink of the house. Refer to the cocktail of the month.

97. Splash Pour a little on top of a drink.

98. Straight-up A spirit poured over ice, chilled or stirred, then strained into the serving glass. The drink is chilled with ice but served without ice.

99. Sweet Indicated preference for sweet vermouth.

100. Sweet soda Sprite, 7-up, or comparable.

101. Sweet-sour mix Bar substitute for sugar and lemon or lime in mixed drinks.

102. Tannin Is the astringent, mouth-puckering compound that comes from the skin, seeds and stalks of grapes. It is mostly present in red wines as these parts of the grape are largely excluded in white and rose winemaking.

103. Tap Means beer faucet.

104. Taste buds Refer to the collection of modified epithelia cells, residing in a papilla on the tongue or soft palate, responsive to taste stimuli and making synaptic contact with primary efferent taste nerves.

105. Tequila Is a spirit distilled from fermented juice of the base or heart of the blue agave plant.

106. Top fermentation Is a term that refers to the use of a type of yeast that generally will convert sugar to alcohol and carbon dioxide at temperatures between 15.4 0 C – 20.9 0 C (60 0 F – 70 0 F).

107. Touch Refers to a dash or drop of any beverage ingredient.

108. Twist Peel of lemon or orange or lime, cut thinly without the white part of the fruit and twisted in the center on top of the drink normally dropped into the drink.

109. Vintage Refers to the annual grape harvest and the wine made from it. The year frequently appears on wine label. Certain wines, such as Port and Champagne, are blends of various years and bear vintage dates only when the wine comes from a single outstanding crop.

110. Virgin A drink prepared without alcohol.

111. Vodka Is a spirit distilled from various grains and potatoes and other fermentable materials.

112. Wheel Slice of lemon, lime, or orange used as a garnish.

113. Wine steward Person who handles customer’s wine orders and service; sommelier.

114. Zest A small thin piece of citrus peel with pith as possible. The essential oil is squeezed on top of the drink, the peel is discarded. Thin outer skin of a lemon or orange containing flavorful oils.

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