Doc

I'm tempted to say it's because it's American and therefore overstated - like the "World" series - but I won't.

Can't get an explicit statement as to why, but the site below gives a hint. "Proof spirit" in the US is said to be 100 Proof - gives one a decimal to work with. Pure alcohol (which one doesn't/shouldn't drink) is 200 Proof.

Of course the Poms have to be different - their pure alcohol is 175.25 proof.

http://www.sasky.com/saskycom/databases/spirits/index3

As regards the word Proof, it was apparently first used in the 17th century by whiskey dealers. Unscrupulous dealers used to add water to their whiskey to increase their profits, so to combat this, whiskey was tested by pouring a sample onto some gunpowder and setting it alight. If the gunpowder ignited after the alcohol had burned off, it was proof that the whiskey had not contained too much water.

One can assume from this that a 50% ethanol / 50% water mix (ie 100 Proof) is the minimum blend that will not affect gunpowder's ability to burn after a soaking.


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