VOA标准英语2008年-What Do You Get When You Combine Spirits and Su

By Ted¹ Landphair
Washington, DC
09 June 2008

In the United States, the regulation of alcoholic² beverages⁴ is the job of state governments. And each of them often delegates responsibility to its smaller divisions called counties. For instance, some counties allow grocery stores to sell hard liquor, and others restrict the sale of spirits to carefully controlled state outlets⁵. A few counties are dry, meaning you can't even buy a beer except, perhaps, in a private club.
　

Taxing pre-mixed alcoholic drinks heavily, as places like Australia have done, is one way to cut alcopop sales. But many young people then switch to even harder drinks

But just as everyone had sorted out how to handle beer, wine, and liquor sales, along came a new kind of alcoholic beverage³ that defies definition. Generically⁶, it's called, cleverly and seductively, an alcopop.
　

Alcopop ads depict7 party scenes, usually involving young people, with the clear message that these zippy new drinks add to the fun

These are sweet drinks that are brewed⁸ like beer or distilled⁹ like hard liquor, from which any color or bitter taste has been removed. The manufacturers then add sugar, fruit juice, or other flavorings. Hence the pop part of the name. The drinks taste like soda¹⁰ pop or a lollipop¹¹ with a kick.

Not surprisingly, these drinks have become a hit with young people, including teenagers too young to legally buy or consume alcohol. A hit with the makers¹² of alcopops, too, because they are brisk sellers.
　

As those who seek to restrict sales of trendy sweet drinks point out, adding an alcoholic haze13 to the inexperience of young drivers can produce deadly results

Many of these drinks carry zippy names like Zima, Vodka Kick, Mike's Hard Lemonade, and Hooper's Hootch. Their advertisements depict trendy young adults laughing and joking and clinking glasses. That's precisely¹⁴ why many parents' groups want to restrict the sale of alcopops to state-run liquor stores where those under the legal drinking age are prohibited from buying them.

The makers of alcopops have other ideas, of course. If there were time, we'd tell you how the 3,141 U.S. counties have decided¹⁵ to handle the problem. But some of them haven't completely figured it out.

 

1 ted   

vt.翻晒，撒，撒开

参考例句：

• The invaders gut ted the village.侵略者把村中财物洗劫一空。
• She often teds the corn when it's sunny.天好的时候她就翻晒玉米。

2 alcoholic   

adj.（含）酒精的，由酒精引起的；n.酗酒者

参考例句：

• The alcoholic strength of brandy far exceeds that of wine.白兰地的酒精浓度远远超过葡萄酒。
• Alcoholic drinks act as a poison to a child.酒精饮料对小孩犹如毒药。

3 beverage   

n.(水，酒等之外的)饮料

参考例句：

• The beverage is often colored with caramel.这种饮料常用焦糖染色。
• Beer is a beverage of the remotest time.啤酒是一种最古老的饮料。

4 beverages   

n.饮料( beverage的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• laws governing the sale of alcoholic beverages 控制酒类销售的法规
• regulations governing the sale of alcoholic beverages 含酒精饮料的销售管理条例

5 outlets   

n.出口( outlet的名词复数 )；经销店；插座；廉价经销店

参考例句：

• The dumping of foreign cotton blocked outlets for locally grown cotton. 外国棉花的倾销阻滞了当地生产的棉花的销路。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• They must find outlets for their products. 他们必须为自己的产品寻找出路。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

6 generically   

adv.一般地

参考例句：

• The so-called critics are generically mentioned, but not individually mentioned. 当所谓的批评提及时总是一笔带过，从不指名道姓。 来自互联网
• We market these drugs generically. 我们推广的这些药是未经注册的。 来自互联网

7 depict   

vt.描画，描绘；描写，描述

参考例句：

• I don't care to see plays or films that depict murders or violence.我不喜欢看描写谋杀或暴力的戏剧或电影。
• Children's books often depict farmyard animals as gentle,lovable creatures.儿童图书常常把农场的动物描写得温和而可爱。

8 brewed   

调制( brew的过去式和过去分词 )； 酝酿； 沏（茶）； 煮（咖啡）

参考例句：

• The beer is brewed in the Czech Republic. 这种啤酒是在捷克共和国酿造的。
• The boy brewed a cup of coffee for his mother. 这男孩给他妈妈冲了一杯咖啡。 来自《简明英汉词典》

9 distilled   

adj.由蒸馏得来的v.蒸馏( distil的过去式和过去分词 )；从…提取精华

参考例句：

• The televised interview was distilled from 16 hours of film. 那次电视采访是从16个小时的影片中选出的精华。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Gasoline is distilled from crude oil. 汽油是从原油中提炼出来的。 来自《简明英汉词典》

10 soda   

n.苏打水；汽水

参考例句：

• She doesn't enjoy drinking chocolate soda.她不喜欢喝巧克力汽水。
• I will freshen your drink with more soda and ice cubes.我给你的饮料重加一些苏打水和冰块。

11 lollipop   

n.棒棒糖

参考例句：

• The child put out his tongue and licked his lollipop.那孩子伸出舌头舔着棒棒糖。
• I ate popcorn,banana and lollipop.我吃了爆米花、香蕉和棒棒糖。

12 makers   

n.制造者，制造商（maker的复数形式）

参考例句：

• The makers of the product assured us that there had been no sacrifice of quality. 这一产品的制造商向我们保证说他们没有牺牲质量。
• The makers are about to launch out a new product. 制造商们马上要生产一种新产品。 来自《简明英汉词典》

13 haze   

n.霾，烟雾；懵懂，迷糊；vi.(over)变模糊

参考例句：

• I couldn't see her through the haze of smoke.在烟雾弥漫中，我看不见她。
• He often lives in a haze of whisky.他常常是在威士忌的懵懂醉意中度过的。

14 precisely   

adv.恰好，正好，精确地，细致地

参考例句：

• It's precisely that sort of slick sales-talk that I mistrust.我不相信的正是那种油腔滑调的推销宣传。
• The man adjusted very precisely.那个人调得很准。

15 decided   

adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的

参考例句：

• This gave them a decided advantage over their opponents.这使他们比对手具有明显的优势。
• There is a decided difference between British and Chinese way of greeting.英国人和中国人打招呼的方式有很明显的区别。