Know your liquor: a quick guide - Part 1

Brandy

• Good to know:Brandy is a spirit distilled from red wine. Fine brandies are aged for extra flavour in wooden casks. Hangover hell? Brandy contains high amounts of impurities.
• Calories:Around 80 in every 35ml shot.
• Pros:Because brandy is a distillation of red wine, it contains a high concentration of antioxidants which mop-up 'free radicals' which, it's claimed, can damage the body organs and tissues and lead to deadly diseases. Australian scientists discovered that the antioxidants created during the distilling process mean that 30ml of good brandy would give the equivalent antioxidant hit of the daily recommended intake of vitamin C.
• Cons:It could give you the worst headache of all, according to London’s National Hospital for Neurology and Neurosurgery. Not only does brandy contain at least 40 per cent alcohol, the high quality cask-aged variety is likely to have the highest amounts of congeners, which are formed during the lengthy storage and fermentation process. Professor Jones says: 'Brandy contains literally hundreds of different volatile compounds, which gives it the distinctive pleasant smell but also contributes to the hangover.'
• Hangover severity:9/10

Whisky

• Good to know:Whisky or Scotch is distilled from fermented grains, such as barley or wheat, then aged in wooded casks. Whisky 'madness': It triggers erratic and unpredictable behaviour because most people drink whisky neat.
• Calories:About 80 calories per 35ml shot.
• Pros:Single malt whiskies have been found to contain high levels of ellagic acid, according to Dr Jim Swan of the Royal Society of Chemists. This powerful acid inhibits the growth of tumours caused by certain carcinogens and kills cancer cells without damaging healthy cells.
• Cons: “Whisky 'madness' - erratic and unpredictable behaviour - is a common problem with drinking whisky. It's caused by the way most people drink it - neat,” explains Professor Jones. His experiments show that among people drinking the same amount of ethanol, those drinking it in the form of spirits, such as whisky, had the quickest and highest peak in the blood alcohol concentration, which occurred less than an hour after drinking began. “'If you drink any alcohol on an empty stomach, it can compare with getting it intravenously” says Professor Wayne Jones. He goes on to add “To slow absorption down, you could take it very much diluted or along with a rich, calorie-dense ingredient such as cream, as in Baileys or Irish coffee.” Whisky also contains lots of congeners, which tend to form during the ageing process in oak casks.
• Hangover severity: 8/10

PS: A study comparing hangovers after drinking bourbon versus vodka showed that the hangover was worse after drinking bourbon. The main reason is believed to be the relatively larger amount of methanol in the darker alcohols like bourbon, which is metabolized into formaldehyde and formic acid which is really toxic for the body.

Rum

• Good to know: The notorious drink of choice for pirates everywhere. Rum is made by fermenting and then distilling sugarcane molasses or sugarcane juice. The distillate, a clear liquid, is often aged in barrels of oak.

• Calories:Around 76 - 86 in every 35ml shot.
• Pros: Rum contains several antioxidants, which are compunds that help protect the body againgst damage from free radicals. Free radicals are unstable molecules that can cause oxidative stress. Rum contains vitamin C, which helps prevent scurvy by promoting collagen production. Sailors in the past drank rum on long sea voyages, ensuring a vitamin C source, effectively keeping scurvy at bay due to its citrus origins. Like other colourless drinks such as gin and sake, rum is low on congeners (although not as low as vodka), and thus less likely to leave you feeling ill the next morning.
• Cons: Rum itself also contains no carbs. But you’ll often find it alongside mixers like coke and fruit juice (did somebody say Cuba Libra?) that can be pretty high on carbs and sugary - which can contribute to weight gain and increase your risk of diabetes. 
• Hangover severity:4/10

Vodka

• Good to know:Vodka is known for its purity and neutrality. It’s like the blank canvas of the spirit world.It is made by fermenting grains or crops such as potatoes with yeast and then purified and repeatedly filtered, often through charcoal, strange as it sounds, to strip away any flavours from the base ingredients, whether it’s grain, potatoes, or even grapes. The goal is to achieve a smooth, clean spirit that doesn’t shout out its origins. 
• Calories:72 calories in every 35ml shot. Vodka contains no carbohydrates or sugars, it contains only calories from ethanol, making it the least-fattening alcoholic beverage.
• Pros:Vodka is the 'cleanest' alcoholic beverage because it hardly has any 'congeners' - impurities normally formed during fermentation. These play a big part in how bad your hangover is. Despite its high alcohol content - around 40% - vodka is the least likely alcoholic drink to leave you with a hangover, as per the British Medical Association.
• Cons:Vodka is often a factor in binge drinking deaths because it is relatively tasteless when mixed with fruit juices or other drinks.
• Hangover severity: 3/10

Gin

• Good to know: Gin, unlike vodka is all about the flavour. The essence of gin lies in its juniper berries, which give it that distinctive dominant piney taste and is the classifier for a drink to be eligible for being called ‘gin’. Gin production is a 2-stage process. Firstly; much like vodka, a base ‘neutral spirit’ is made. For the second stage, gin takes a detour. It undergoes a second distillation where it meets a basket of botanicals such as juniper berries, coriander, citrus peels, angelica root, and a myriad of other herbs and spices – even basil and peppercorn. These ingredients infuse the spirit with their aromas and flavours, transforming it from a neutral spirit into the vibrant gin of choice.
• Calories:around 80 - 90 in every 35ml shot.
• Pros: When it comes to gin, the antioxidants in juniper berries can help your body fight off infections and some claim it can even make your skin look younger! They also contain flavonoids, a type of antioxidant that can improve circulation. Gin is also very low in sugar compared to other spirits. Lighter drinks, such as gin, only have very low levels of congeners. That doesn't mean gin won't give you a hangover.
• Cons: There has been an idea floating around that juniper berries give gin health-boosting benefits. And while juniper berries do indeed have antioxidant properties, those benefits are all but obliteratedby the gin production process. So, while the sought-after botanical flavors remain in the mix, the health benefits are pretty much completely lost. The sudden commercialization of the drink with new gins – flavoured from the berry-infused ‘pink gin’ to marshmallow root to cocoa and so on is edging it close to liqueur territory for the comfort of purists
• Hangover severity: 4/10

PS: Consumption of juniper-based spirits dehydrates the body because one produces urine at a higher-than-normal rate. This causes an electrolyte imbalance associated with the morning-after effects of a night of drinking, including dizziness, weakness, and lightheadedness.

There is a generally held view that the darker alcoholic drinks such as red wine, whiskey and rum, produce more severe hangovers than transparent drinks like vodka, white rum and gin. There is some truth in this because darker beverages generally have greater concentrations of congeners compared with lighter coloured drinks.

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