Everclear (alcohol)
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| Everclear | |
|---|---|
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| Type | Neutral grain spirit |
| Alcohol by volume | 95.0% or 75.5% |
| Proof | 190 or 151 |
| Manufacturer | Luxco |
| Country of origin | United States |
| Introduced | |
Everclear is a brand of grain alcohol (ethanol), available at concentrations of 95% alcohol (190 proof) and 75.5% (151 proof).[1] By contrast, hard liquors such as rum and vodka generally contain 40% alcohol (80 proof). Everclear is manufactured by Luxco (formerly the David Sherman Company).[2]
Since 95.6% ethanol and 4.4% water form an azeotrope (meaning that simple distillation cannot remove any of the remaining water), 191-proof spirits are the maximum proof that is available from the distilled beverage industry.
It is illegal to sell the 190 proof version in certain states in the U.S., including Ohio, California, Minnesota,[3] Pennsylvania, Maine, Michigan, Virginia, Washington, West Virginia, Hawaii, New York, Massachusetts and Florida. In these states, a 151 proof (75.5%) variant is sold to comply with the state laws.[citation needed] Due to Everclear's lack of sugar and impurities (congeners), it may make drinkers less vulnerable to hangovers[citation needed]. Everclear (or any high proof grain alcohol) is rarely consumed straight and is nearly always used with a mixer.
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[edit] Consumption
Everclear is commonly added to a variety of other drinks, such as soft drinks, energy drinks, fruit juice, and iced tea. It is often consumed at parties as an ingredient of punch.
[edit] Everclear in popular culture
Everclear is featured in Minnesota humorist Garrison Keillor's book Lake Wobegon Days; in one scene, a housewife throws her husband's cup of coffee on a kitchen fire to douse it, whereupon the beverage bursts into flames. She later finds a bottle of Everclear labeled "DON'T THROW OUT" under the kitchen sink, and correctly surmises that her husband had put a shot in his coffee.
The 1998 release of Texas Country musician Roger Creager’s album, 'Having Fun All Wrong', included 'The Everclear Song', which pays homage to 'the invisible intoxicant'. The song's popularity spread quickly across Texas university towns, making the song a regional standard and having a high-profile impact on the developing Texas Country sub-genre of country music.
Everclear is referenced in Hedwig and the Angry Inch in a flashback scene where the character Tommy asks Hedwig if she is drunk, to which she replies, "No, just enjoying some rainwater and everclear."
In American Pie: Band Camp, Matt Stifler spikes the camp's fruit punch with several bottles of "Cannon Rum" to seduce the band. However, "Cannon Rum" is a fictional brand, and was an obvious spoof of Everclear, as it was marked 200 proof and had the infamous corn ear on it.
