D r i n k A portal dedicated to all beverages |
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The Drink PortalDrinks, or beverages, are liquids specifically prepared for human consumption. In addition to basic needs, beverages form part of the culture of human society. Despite the fact that most beverages, including juice, soft drinks, and carbonated drinks, have some form of water in them; water itself is often not classified as a beverage, and the word beverage has been recurrently defined as not referring to water. Essential to the survival of all organisms, water has historically been an important and life-sustaining drink to humans. Excluding fat, water composes approximately 70% of the human body by mass. It is a crucial component of metabolic processes and serves as a solvent for many bodily solutes. Health authorities have historically suggested at least eight glasses, eight fluid ounces each, of water per day (64 fluid ounces, or 1.89 litres), and the British Dietetic Association recommends 1.8 litres. The United States Environmental Protection Agency has determined that the average adult actually ingests 2.0 litres per day. Distilled (pure) water is rarely found in nature. Spring water, a natural resource from which much bottled water comes, is generally imbued with minerals. Tap water, delivered by domestic water systems in developed nations, refers to water piped to homes through a tap. All of these forms of water are commonly drunk, often purified through filtration. An alcoholic beverage is a drink containing ethanol, commonly known as alcohol, although in chemistry the definition of an alcohol includes many other compounds. Alcoholic beverages, such as wine, beer, and liquor have been part of human culture and development for 8,000 years. Non-alcoholic beverages often signify drinks that would normally contain alcohol, such as beer and wine but are made with less than .5 percent alcohol by volume. The category includes drinks that have undergone an alcohol removal process such as non-alcoholic beers and de-alcoholized wines. Drink and Beverage WikiProjectsWikiProject Food & Drink is an association of Wikipedians with an interest in culinary-related subjects. They have come together to co-ordinate the development of food and drink articles here on Wikipedia as well as the many subjects related to food such as foodservice, catering and restaurants. If you wish to learn more about these subject as well as get involved, please visit the Food & Drink Wikiproject page to see how you can help! Beyond the general culinary interests, several groups of Wikipedians have banded together for beverage-specific projects covering their favorite types of drinks. If any of these subjects pique your interest, please feel free to visit their projects. These groups would love you to have you participate!
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Yeasts are eukaryotic microorganisms classified in the kingdom Fungi, with about 1,500 species currently described; they dominate fungal diversity in the oceans. Most reproduce asexually by budding, although a few do so by binary fission. Yeasts are unicellular, although some species with yeast forms may become multicellular through the formation of a string of connected budding cells known as pseudohyphae, or false hyphae as seen in most molds. Yeast size can vary greatly depending on the species, typically measuring 3–4 µm in diameter, although some yeasts can reach over 40 µm.
The yeast species Saccharomyces cerevisiae has been used in baking and fermenting alcoholic beverages for thousands of years. It is also extremely important as a model organism in modern cell biology research, and is the most thoroughly researched eukaryotic microorganism. Researchers have used it to gather information into the biology of the eukaryotic cell and ultimately human biology. Other species of yeast, such as Candida albicans, are opportunistic pathogens and can cause infection in humans. Yeasts have recently been used to generate electricity in microbial fuel cells, and produce ethanol for the biofuel industry. Yeasts do not form a specific taxonomic or phylogenetic grouping. At present it is estimated that only 1% of all yeast species have been described. The term "yeast" is often taken as a synonym for S. cerevisiae, but the phylogenetic diversity of yeasts is shown by their placement in both divisions Ascomycota and Basidiomycota. The budding yeasts ("true yeasts") are classified in the order Saccharomycetales. Drink newsDrink news from Wikinews · Help write more articles!
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Did you know...Selected pictureA picture of the Toll Gate Saloon in Black Hawk, Colorado, circa 1897 Things you can do
CategoriesDrink listsThe following are topics relating to drinks:
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- ^ Webster's Third New International Dictionary
- ^ Alan Macfarlane; Iris Macfarlane. The Empire of Tea. The Overlook Press. p. 32. ISBN 1-58567-493-1. Cite uses deprecated parameter
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(help) - ^ {{cite book |author=Penelope Ody, |title=Complete Guide to Medicinal Herbs |publisher=Dorling Kindersley Publishing |location=New York, NY |pages=48 |isbn=0-7894-6785-2 |oclc= |doi=}
- ^ Four Types of Tea
- ^ Tea types and tea varieties
- ^ Dictionary.com search Herbal tea URL accessed February 15, 2007.