Alcohol Distillation and Its Cultural Symbolism

Alcohol distillation, an ancient industrial process that separates water from alcohol, has long been used to produce drinks of many different varieties. Distilling spirits has long been associated with various cultures and beliefs. Some cultures considered them magical entities capable of possessing people; this may explain why “spirits” has come to refer to alcoholic beverages more broadly.

Distillation dates back centuries; its origins can be credited to ancient Egypt or Sumerians or Celts; either way, however, distillation was initially used only to create medicines and perfumes until about 500 AD when its production became associated with producing alcoholic beverages.

Alcohol distillation requires multiple stages, each producing different concentrations of vaporized alcohol. The first vapors, known as heads, often contain high concentrations of toxic chemicals like methanol (which can lead to blindness) that don’t taste or smell great; these tend to be discarded, while tails contain much weaker concentrations but still maintain much of their original flavor from raw ingredients being distilled.