"I taste a liquor never brewed" ~by Emily Dickinson

(#11)
When first reading this poem, I thought it was simply describing alcoholic intoxication. However, a closer look led me to believe this poem was an extended metaphor. I may be wrong...but I think this poem could be describing a rain cloud. The liquor never brewed could be the rain that never fell and still remains in the cloud. "Not all vats upon the Rhine yield such an alcohol." A vat is a large container used for holding liquids; the Rhine is a river in Germany that connects many different European countries. Clouds hold rain and travel over many different places as they make their way through the sky. Clouds are "inebriate of air and debauchee of dew." They are intoxicated with air, and cause dew to form on the grass every morning. The "inns of molten blue" could be referring to the blue sky. Bees, foxgloves (plants), and butterflies all live because rain water causes the plants to grow and therefore supplying flowers for the bees and butterflies. The phrase "I shall but drink the more" could be describing the way clouds continue absorbing more and more water until it finally rains. The reference to seraphs (angels) and saints reminds the reader of heaven - an image often associated with clouds. "The little tippler leaning against the - sun" could describe the way clouds mix and mingle with one another, and they lean against the sun as they pass over it and block sunlight.