Spirits Knowledge

Proof

A historical measure of ethanol content — in the U.S., twice the ABV.

A 100-proof American whiskey is 50% ABV. The term dates to a British navy test where sailors mixed spirit with gunpowder: if the mixture would still ignite, the spirit was 'proved.' The threshold turned out to be about 57% ABV, which is why UK proof and US proof are different systems.