Alcohol is made out of yeast, sugar and water. What do the fruits, cereals and spices do?

Question

Best answer gets 10.

Answer 1

The fruits supply the water and sugar, and in the case of grapes also the yeast.

Grapes needs no additions to make wine; the skin has yeast, the flesh contains liquid and sugar - and flavor.

In beer they add water and yeast, but the sugar comes from the sprouting grains which also gives the flavor. For cider the apple supplies sugar and some liquid - and flavor.

No one drinks pure alcohol. Alcohol is always a minor part of the drink - around 5% of beer, around 12.5% in wine.

Alcohol sterilizes water -- which is why in the middle ages even schools had breweries attached to make beer because water and milk would kill you.

Alcohol also preserves, thus the energy in grapes, fruit, grains etc which would go bad could be preserved by fermenting them and drunk through the dead days of winter supplying vital sustenance and calories.

Not to mention good cheer.

Answer 2

Ridiculous adjuncts like fruits and spices just ruin a beer. Real Ale has only these four things: water, hops, malted barley (that's where the sugar is supposed to come from) and yeast.
Beers that use anything else including potatoes, rice and beechwood chips are just swill made as quickly and as cheaply as possible for the undiscriminating prolitarian beer market.
Sorry if I sound like a snob about this.

Answer 3

Adds flavor to what would otherwise be a nasty tasting glass of alcohol. In beer for example hops adds bitterness since beer without hops is extremely sweet.

Answer 4

Gives it flavour, d'uh

Answer 5

just flavor and body