eli5 : What is alcohol proof and the difference between alcohol with high and low proof
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Proof is dictated by an old system the sailors used because they were often paid in run and the strength mattered a lot in terms of payment (no one wants to be paid with a hugely watered down rum). So the system they developed was to wet gun powder with the alcohol and see how many seconds it took to burn off (if it burnt at all). I believe it needed to be at least 80proof or something to even burn and then the time taken dictated more or less proof. The conversion is basically 2proof = 1% but I’m not sure they even understood % at the time… They mostly just understood they could get drunk off less if it was stronger.
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