Tag: Alcohol history

The salt-and-lime ritual with tequila dates back to the late 19th century when distillers often produced a crude, harsh spirit. This tradition is a primary reason why people lick salt with alcohol, a practice rooted in both historical necessity and sensory science.

While the term 'fifth' is a vestige of the past, a 5th of vodka today refers to a standard 750-milliliter bottle. This is the most common size for distilled spirits in the United States, a measurement that was cemented into law in the late 1970s. The name originated from a time when liquor was measured in gallons, with one-fifth of a gallon being the standard commercial size.