in the beverage's raw material. Beer and wine may also be flavored before fermentation, and spirits may be flavored before, during, or after distillation. Sometimes flavor is obtained by allowing the beverage to stand for months or years in oak barrels, usually made of American or French oak. A few brands of spirits may also have fruit or herbs inserted into the bottle at the time of bottling.

Wine is important in cuisine not just for its value as an accompanying beverage, but as a flavor agent, primarily in stocks and braising, since its acidity lends balance to rich savory or sweet dishes.[36]Wine sauce is an example of a culinary sauce that uses wine as a primary ingredient.[37] Natural wines may exhibit a broad range of alcohol content, fromlate Stone Age jugs suggests that intentionally fermented drinks existed at least as early as the Neolithic period.[46]

7000–5600 BC: Examination and analysis of ancient pottery jars from the neolithic village of Jiahu in the Henan province of northern China revealed residue left behind by the alcoholic drinks they had once contained. According to a study published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, chemical analysis of the residue confirmed that a fermented drink made of grape and hawthorn fruit wine, honey mead and rice beer was being produced in 7000–5600 BC (McGovern et al., 2005; McGovern 2009).[47][48] The results of this analysis were published in December 2004.[49]

12th century: The process of distillation spread from the Middle East to Italy,[50][53] where distilled alcoholic drinks were recorded in