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angel's share

noun

Definition of angel's share

the angel's share
: the amount of an alcoholic drink (such as cognac, brandy, or whiskey) that is lost to evaporation when the liquid is being aged in porous oak barrels Up to 1 percent of the volume of the cask can be lost each year through evaporation, sometimes called the angel's share.— James Suckling, Wine Spectator, 30 Apr. 1992

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First Known Use of angel's share

1970, in the meaning defined above

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