People often drink dark liquors because they’re good for their health, but this might not be the case. Dark liquor contains more congeners than light liquor, which can cause worse hangovers.
This article provides tips on making your dark spirits taste better without making them worse for you! Dark liquor and light liquor are two different types of alcoholic beverages. However, both produce an adverse reaction the next day when you consume them. Dark liquors make for worse hangovers, while light liquors make for better ones.
How do dark liquors make for worse hangovers?
Dark liquor is alcohol that has been aged in wooden barrels. Typically, these barrels are made of oak or another hardwood. When stored in these barrels, the alcohol absorbs certain chemicals called congeners. Congeners are byproducts of the natural aging process when the wood comes into contact with the alcohol over time. And while dark liquors do not necessarily have more congeners than light liquors, they have higher amounts that manufacturers cannot filter out.
How do Congeners affect the processing of the liquor?
Hangovers are a phenomenon that most of us experience at some point in our drinking careers. And unfortunately, we have no natural way of knowing what causes hangovers to happen until we start experiencing them. It’s often said that dark liquors, such as whiskey and brandy, are more likely to cause hangovers than other types of alcohol, but why is this the case?
The answer lies in the congeners in dark alcohol. Congeners are essentially chemicals created during the distilling process. They’re primarily responsible for giving liquor its flavor and character, but most of them will be burned out by purifying processes before it reaches a consumer.
However, this process is not 100% effective, and some congeners make their way into the final product. Dark liquors (whiskey, brandy, rum) tend to have the highest amounts of these chemicals. Most of them aren’t harmful to you in small quantities. Some studies show they can be good for heart health when taken in moderation. But others (particularly methanol) can cause damage to your liver if consumed in large amounts.
That’s why darker liquors taste so good since they’re loaded with delicious congeners that make it hard to resist drinking them. When a person drinks dark liquors the next day, harmful chemicals slowly accumulate in the body’s tissues and organs. However, as a result of the congeners, they remain undetected by the brain. These congeners also damage the body because they interfere with how the liver processes alcohol.
Other reasons why dark liquor causes hangovers
The problem comes when you drink too much of it over a while. Dark liquors are more potent than lighter alcohols and can give you a giant hangover if you drink too much of them at once.
Another problem when drinking dark liquors is that they do not mix well with other foods and drinks.
How to avoid hangovers when drinking hard liquor
In the first place, try not to drink straight from the bottle. To enjoy fewer hangovers when consuming dark intoxicants, take small sips from a glass of alcohol and wait at least twenty minutes before you make your next drink. That way, the liver has time to process the alcohol and break it down.
Also, if you drink dark liquors, consume food along with it. Otherwise, you’ll end up having a terrible hangover. Furthermore, avoid taking aspirin or ibuprofen the next day since they will only slow the body’s ability to metabolize alcohol, thereby creating a bad hangover.
You can also reduce your hangover by exercising as soon as possible after drinking dark liquors. Physical activity is the best way to get your blood flowing and eliminate the day’s alcohol. Doing this will also increase your energy levels the next day, thus preventing you from having a bad hangover.
Bottomline
Yes, dark liquors can lead to a bad hangover. On the other hand, when consumed in moderation, they are beneficial rather than harmful. Thus, try following some tips to prevent hangovers when drinking dark liquors.
