Flavored malt beverages, such as Mike's Lemonade, Smirnoff Ice, Zima, Sparks, etc. are malt-based drinks. Although the malt is an artificial sucrose-based malt, this gives them the ability to be sold under the beer category, mainly for tax purposes, plus the companies realized the faster growth potential for smaller serving-size fruity drinks in a beer setting, as opposed to the wine cooler craze of the 80s. Wine coolers, though, are wine-based drinks. They are essentially fortified wine with CO2 and other fruit flavors added. Because of the grape-base for these drinks, they are taxed as wine. There are also RTD (ready-to-drink) cocktails such as Jack Daniels coolers and Kahlua cocktails, etc. These are pre-mixed, liquor-based drinks that are sold under the same tax category as hard spirits. (source: more than a decade working in the alcohol industry...)
Malt liquor is a malt beverage
Zima (malt liquor)
Ale is a malt beverage
Beer is a malt beverage
Porter is a malt beverage
Stout is a malt beverage
Nonalcoholic beer is a malt beverage
Malt liquor is liquor made from malted (partially germinated to release the sugars) grains.
milk mojito maitai malt margarita martini manhattan mimosa milkshake mint julep mountain dew michelob beer malt liquor muscat
Elephant Malt Liquor is made by Anheuser-Busch
Magnum Malt Liquor is owned by the Miller Brewing Company
The value of malt beverage shipments totaled $16.5 billion in 2000
Wine Coolers are NOT made of Malt Beverage. Malt Beverage coolers are made of Malt Beverage. Wine Cooler WERE made of wine, and are simply not produced any more.