Grog

Grog is a term used for a variety of alcoholic beverages. Following England's conquest of Jamaica in 1655, rum gradually replaced beer and brandy as the drink of choice. The prior ration of eight pints of beer was replaced with a ration of one half-pint of spirits. In 1740, to minimise the subsequent illness, drunkenness, and disciplinary problems, British Vice-Admiral Edward Vernon ordered that the daily rum issue of one-half imperial pint of rum be mixed with one imperial quart (1,100 ml) of water, a water-to-rum ratio of 4:1, with half issued before noon and the remainder after the end of the working day. This both diluted its effects and accelerated its spoilage, preventing hoarding of the allowance. The mixture of rum and water became known as a "grog". This procedure became part of the official regulations of the Royal Navy in 1756 until the reduction of the ration to the "tot" in 1850. Sailors were given one-eighth of an imperial pint (1 gill; 71 millilitres) of rum daily, or 17.5 imperial oz a week. The issued ration of rum was called a "tot," and typically had a high alcohol content (54.6% ABV). continued until 1970.[citation needed]

Source: Wikipedia