Is a distinction between "food" and "drink" ever specified as per Gamp's Law?

Question

Quoting from Wonderbook: Book of Spells:

Water-Making Spell

The Water-Making Spell conjures clean, drinkable water from the end of the wand. Thus, with the Water-Making Spell the trained wizard is never without a source of water, whether they’re refilling their goblet at dinner, or managing a minor eyebrow fire after a carelessly-cast Fire-Making Spell.

However, we know that food is the first of the five Principal Exceptions to Gamp’s Law of Elemental Transfiguration.

"Your mother can’t produce food out of thin air," said Hermione. "No one can. Food is the first of the five Principal Exceptions to Gamp’s Law of Elemental Transfigur—"
"Oh, speak English, can’t you?" Ron said, prising a fishbone out from between his teeth.
"It’s impossible to make good food out of nothing! You can Summon it if you know where it is, you can transform it, you can increase the quantity if you’ve already got some —"
_{(Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, chapter 15)}

This would be easily answerable if there was a distinction between "food and "drink". Is such a distinction ever specified elsewhere?

Answer 1

I don't know what the Wonderbook Wonder of Spells is -- is it a canon reference?

Anyhow, yes, Auguamenti produces water. So, there's that.

The way Gamp's law works is thus: Gamp's Law of Elemental Transfiguration allows for food items that already exist -- such as a plate of rolls in the kitchen -- to be moved from Point A to Point B via transfiguration. So, by using transfiguration, the House-elves at Hogwarts can snap their fingers and make dinner disappear from the kitchen and reappear on the tables in the great hall. Pumpkin juice can be summoned via transfiguration:

Professor McGonagall raised her wand again and pointed it at Snape’s desk. A large plate of sandwiches, two silver goblets and a jug of iced pumpkin juice appeared with a pop.

_{Chamber of Secrets - Chapter five, The Whomping Willow - Page 65 - Bloomsbery}

J.K. Rowling has said -- and I'm looking for the exact quote -- that food moved by transfiguration eventually disappears -- I believe after five hours.

Pumpkin juice is not water; it would seem it would disappear after the allotted hours.

There is no canon indication I know of that indicates water from Auguamenti disappears after any period of time.

I would say this demonstrates a distinct difference between transfigured food and magically produced water. They are not the same.

Answer 2

As far as I understand, you can use spells not only to get water, but to get food (alive animals) quite easily:

From book 1:

"Swish and flick, remember, swish and flick. And saying the magic words properly is very important, too -- never forget Wizard Baruffio, who said 's' instead of 'f' and found himself on the floor with a buffalo on his chest."

From boook 2:

Malfoy raised his wand quickly and bellowed, "Serpensortia!" The end of his wand exploded. Harry watched, aghast, as a long black snake shot out of it, fell heavily onto the floor between them.

Answer 3

It is very possible that water isn't created, but gathered, from the natural humidity in the air, or from nearby lakes and rivers. Even in low humidity, there is usually a certain amount of precipitation somewhere on Earth.

Also, most of everything in the books is from the collective knowledge of those present. At first, Sirius is referred to as a murderer. Not all information can be took at face value as true fact.