A whiskey by any other name…probably isn’t a whiskey. At least, it isn’t just whiskey. Scotch, for example, can only earn the name if the spirit has been distilled in Scotland and aged in oak casks for three years. Distillers must use malted barley, wheat, corn, or rye—sometimes mixed with grain whiskey—which makes the drink smoother than the average whiskey. Rest assured, when you drink Scotch, you are not simply drinking whiskey; you’re drinking an authentic Scottish experience. It deserves a separate name, a toast to its heritage with every utterance, and what would be more appropriate than Scotch? Distilled spirits and how they got their iconic names is the center of this conversation.

The word whiskey (or whisky) has Gaelic origins, derived from the word or phrase for “water of life.” Bourbon is known for being a more American-style whiskey, but the name has French origins. Louisiana was once a French colony ruled by the House of Bourbon. While you may have guessed how Scotch earned its name, the etymology of other spirits isn’t always so obvious. If you’re curious to learn more about how some of our favorite distilled spirits (and brands) got their name, keep reading!

How Popular Distilled Spirits Got Their Names

There are great stories and histories behind how some of your other favorite distilled spirits got heir names. Add these to your trivia knowledge.

Vodka

Vodka is known as a Russian drink, but the clear liquid may be of Polish origin. Voda means water in Russian, while the Polish use vodka to refer to any clear, distilled drink.

The Russians made vodka by distilling the liquid from fermented grains and potatoes with water, and they built the first distillery in Khylnovsk in 1174. It’s quite possible that Poland was the first to discover the recipe, but if so, their version was a bit different. Instead of water, they used wine during the distillation process, so it wasn’t the clear liquid we’re familiar with today.

Distilled Spirits Facts: Vodka Brands

Now we know how vodka got its name, but how about some of the most famous vodka brands? What exactly does a grey goose have to do with vodka? Find out below!

Stoli: Stolichnaya Vodka has had the nickname Stoli for as long as any millennial can remember. The recipe was first created sometime between 1938 and 1953, and the name is very loosely derived from Stolitsa, meaning “capital city.” Now, it’s been rebranded to be called by this shortened version.

Grey Goose: Grey Goose Vodka is actually a French vodka. Created in the 1990s, it’s a young player in the vodka circuit. Legend has it the name comes from the geese who drank at the Hôtel de Ville fountain. However, it was more likely inspired by a German white wine, also called Grey Goose.

Rum

If you’ve watched Pirates of the Caribbean, you’ve probably guessed this popular spirit originated in the Caribbean. Barbados was the first to mention the beverage in written record sometime around 1650. It’s typically made using molasses, and the name may derive from the term rumbullion, meaning “a great tumult.” Of course, there are other theories. For instance, since it relies so heavily on sugar, some believe rum is derived from the word saccharum.

Distilled Spirit Facts: Rum Brands

From pirates to surnames, here are a few reasons rum brands have their names.

Captain Morgan: Henry Morgan was Lieutenant Governor of Jamaica in 1660. He owned a sugar plantation and was technically a privateer—or a pirate who had permission from the British government to pillage and plunder. The company was formed in the 1940s and decided to use this legendary figure as its name and mascot.

Bacardi: Bacardi Rum was founded in 1862 in Cuba by a Spanish wine merchant named Facundo Bacardí Masso, and it remains in the Bacardi family today. Are you curious about the bat logo? Apparently, there was a family of fruit bats in the rafters of the distillery, and the family viewed the gathering as a lucky sign.

Tequila

Like Scotch, Tequila is a specific type of a larger spirit family: Mezcal. Mezcal is any spirit distilled from 30+ species of the agave plant, while Tequila is brewed from the blue agave plant in a specific region of Mexico. Perhaps unsurprisingly, the name comes from the city where it was first made: Tequila.

For a Mexican distillery to call its product Tequila, it must be brewed in Tequila’s home state of Jalisco, Tamaulipas, Nayarit, Guanajuanto, or Michoacan.

Distilled Spirit Facts: Tequila Brands

These Tequila brands have been featured in several hit songs.

Patron: Patron follows the requirements for “real” Tequila, as it’s made in Jalisco, Mexico. Patron translates to “boss” in English. Although it’s challenging to find a straight-from-the-horse’s-mouth explanation as to why they chose this name, I think it’s safe to say the creators wanted everyone to know this is the boss of all tequilas.

Jose Cuervo: Of course, Patron has a contender for the top slot in the Tequila world. Jose Cuervo has been around since 1795, known then as Vino Mezcal de Tequila de Jose Cuervo, named after Don Jose Antonio de Cuervo. After a brief stint where the distillery belonged to Don Vicente and then managed by Don Jesus, it returned to the family and was given the name Jose Cuervo Tequila.

Schnapps

American schnapps is like brandy in that they are often fruity and come in a variety of flavors. However, while brandy is made from wine, schnapps is made by mixing sweet syrup with a neutral grain spirit. These are the kinds of schnapps most are familiar with and what we typically use in mixed drinks.

However, the original schnapps were of German origin (spelled shnaps), and while they can be fruit-based, they often have a higher alcohol content and less sugar and can include an herbal infusion. They are typically meant to be enjoyed as an after-dinner “digestif.”

Schnaps is pretty self-explanatory—if you speak German. It literally translates to “dram of liquor.”

Distilled Spirit Facts: Schnapps Brands

Schnapps are rarely recognized as schnapps here in the U.S. Instead, they’re asked for by name—sometimes in the form of “Jager bombs!”

Goldschlager: Goldschlager is a Swiss peppermint schnapps with minute flakes of actual gold in the bottle. While it’s related to the centuries-old drink, Goldwasser, this version gained popularity in the 1990s. The name translates to “gold beater.”

Jagermeister: This digestif is a German herbal liqueur developed in 1934. It contains a whopping 56 different natural flavor profiles, giving it the unique taste it’s known for. The name translates to “master of the hunt” in English.

Gin

Gin is made by distilling the juniper berry with grain alcohol. The juniper berry has been used as a diuretic for centuries; in the 1600s, Dutch professor of medicine Franciscus Sylvias decided to create a new medicine that contained all the properties of juniper berry oil.

The French word for juniper berry is genièvre, which the Dutch changed to genever. Shortly after its invention, the English discovered the new “medicine” and shortened the name to gin.

In fact, gin became so popular in England during the 1700s that the government was obliged to pass eight bills regarding gin consumption (known as “the Gin Acts”).

Distilled Spirit Facts: Gin Brands

It took a while for the gin martini, gin & tonic, and gin & juice to take off. Now that they have, there is no turning back.

Beefeater: You may have come across the name while choosing tomatoes, and here it is again in the gin aisle. The term is British, and since this gin was first distilled in London in 1863, it certainly fits. “Beefeater” was the nickname of King Henry VIII’s yeomen, so named because they were allowed to eat as much beef as they liked. The term stuck, and even today the Tower of London guards are called beefeaters (and receive a bottle of gin on their birthdays).

By the Dutch: Regions are always in friendly competition for who has the best recipe. This brand name wants to remind everyone that the Dutch did it first. Does that mean they did it the best? That’s a topic for another article.

Brandy

Brandy is a French invention, originally known as l’eau de vie, or “water of life.” Since the Dutch and French share a maritime border, it didn’t take long for the Dutch to put their spin on the name and dub it brandewijn, meaning “burnt wine.” At the time of its first distillation in 1313, it was only used for medicinal purposes. As with other alcohol-based medicines, that only remained the case for a short time.

By the 16th century, the commercial distillation of brandy from wine was commonplace.

Though it can be made from many different fruits and fruit mashes, grapes are the most common; therefore, brandy makers and winemakers are often one and the same. To make brandy, distillers must concentrate wine using low heat, let it age, and mix it with water and other ingredients to create signature flavors.

Depending on how it’s made, you may find yourself drinking cognac rather than brandy. Cognac is made in a specific French region, barrel-aged, and fruit-flavored. Calvados, Pisco, and Applejack are also types of brandy with particular criteria.

Distilled Spirit Facts: Brandy Brands

Brandy is often thought of as an aristocratic drink, but these brands are crowd-pleasers.

Hennessy: You may already have guessed that Hennessy is not a French surname, but somehow it’s a cognac. How does that work? Richard Hennessy left Ireland for France in the 1700s and even fought for Louis XV during the War of the Austrian Succession. After retiring from the military, he remained in France and founded Hennessy Cognac.

Laird & Company: Laird & Company is the apple brandy that George Washington used to drink, and that’s probably the only information you need to guess this is America’s oldest distillery. Located in New Jersey and founded by William Laird, the company is still known for its quality applejack (apple brandy).

Bonus: Why are they called spirits?

You might have noticed that this article didn’t cover any wine or beer. That’s because, while their origin stories might be interesting, they aren’t distilled spirits. Most sources agree that the big six are brandy, gin, rum, tequila, vodka, and whiskey (though many cite schnapps as well).

To qualify as a spirit, a beverage must be at least 20% alcohol by volume with no added sugar.

As for the origin of the name spirits, the widely-recognized tale is simply that the distillation process allows the distiller to capture the essence—or spirit—of the alcohol.

The moment you’ve all been waiting for!

Now that you know about the different distilled spirits, it’s time to go taste-testing.

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