Cheap, poor-quality alcohol or liquor; also, an archaic or dialectal term for a rough, coarse person.
From Middle English and Old French borel, meaning coarse or rough. The application to cheap alcohol comes from the rough, unrefined nature of low-quality spirits.
In medieval taverns, 'borrel' was the bottom-shelf stuff—the distinction between fine wine and borrel reflected medieval class divisions, since common people drank rough ale while nobility enjoyed better beverages.
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