Alco Life

this quote from the history section of a page that showed up as an adsense-ad on the shifz blog points out aspects of american alcohol prohibition, we euros never knew of:
"1920 marked the beginning of Prohibition, during which Fee Brothers continued the business by making altar wine. This was sold throughout the Eastern United States. Also, it was legal for homeowners to make a limited amount of wine for their own consumption. The Fees would send a representative to a client’s home. There he would set up a barrel with concentrated grape juice, sugar, water, and yeast to make a good batch of wine. He would return several months later to monitor its progress. The homeowner would pay for this service. There was also a non-alcoholic malt extract beer put out by Fee Brothers. It was labeled with the picture of a bear and called “Bruno.” The label also said, “It’s a bear” (meaning beer) and said, “Do not add yeast to this product as it is likely to ferment.” We read this today with a smile. John Jr., it seems, was very creative. During Prohibition, saloons survived by obtaining and serving illicit alcohol. This type of liquid refreshment (having been made by amateurs) was not very tasty. Fee Brothers producted flavorings such as Benedictine, Chartreuse, Brandy, Rum and dozens more including cordial syrups during Prohibition. These could be added to homemade alcohol to flavor it."
link to Fee Brothers