Aqua vitae

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Aqua vitae (Latin: "water of life"), is an archaic name for a concentrated aqueous solution of ethanol. The term originated in the Middle Ages and was originally used as a generic name for all types of distillates. It eventually came to refer more specifically to distillates of alcoholic beverages.^[1]

Aqua vitae was typically prepared by distilling wine, and was sometimes known as "Spirit of Wine" in English texts. Spirit of Wine is a specific name for brandy that has been repeatedly distilled.

A local version of this name was often applied to the leading native distilled spirits of a region. Thus, it was whisky (from Gaelic uisge-beatha) in Scotland, whiskey (from Irish uisce beatha) in Ireland, eau de vie in France, and aquavit in Scandinavia. When the term is employed in England, it usually refers to French brandy.

Aqua vitae was also known in Slavic lands, which is reflected in the Ukrainian оковита (okovita), Belarusian акавіта (akavita), and also яковита (yakovita) is Southern Russian dialects ^[2].

Aqua Vitae is also the name of a traditional health enhancing liquor distilled by Dr. Wolfgang Albrecht at the Rats Apotheke in Clausthal, Germany.

[edit] See also

• Alchemy
• Aqua fortis
• Aqua regia
• Eau de vie
• Grappa
• Vodka
• Akvavit

[edit] References

• Scully, Terence (1995) The Art of Cookery in the Middle Ages ISBN 0-85115-611-8

[edit] Notes

• This article incorporates text from the public domain 1911 edition of The Grocer's Encyclopedia.