Vodka "Russian. Why only vodka from Russia is real Russian

The history of vodka has been going on since the 15th century, but there is still no clear answer in what year vodka appeared, and who was the first to prepare this strong alcoholic drink. Despite numerous studies, disputes about the place of origin, as well as the right to the name "vodka", are still ongoing. One can imagine that in the old days the ties between peoples were close, the borders were open, and goods moved freely from country to country, regulated only by supply and demand. The forerunner of the appearance of vodka can be considered the aquavit (Latin aqua vitae), that is, alcohol in its modern representation, brought in the 14th century by Genoese merchants. The liquid was obtained using a distillation cube invented by the Arabs and was unsuitable for drinking, as it had a high fortress. Aquavita was used mainly for medical purposes.

According to one version, the recipe for vodka was invented by Isidore, a monk of the Chudov Monastery. Having at his disposal the necessary distilling equipment as well as experience in making less strong drinks, the monk made a strong drink, which after a while became known as vodka. It is 1430 that can be considered the beginning of the production of vodka. This fact was confirmed by the International Arbitration, which secured the right to use the name "vodka" for Russia.

It is necessary to clearly and unambiguously define the prescription limits under which vodka falls. The fact is that in past times, and even more so in the present, a fair amount of confusion has accumulated from names, interpretations and all kinds of recipes. All this wealth is called vodka, and only a small part of it is. Vodka was also called moonshine, and alcohol tinctures, and diluted alcohol.

The word "vodka" is quite ancient, and is an ancient diminutive form of the word "water". One of the few analogues in the modern language that have the same ancient form can be considered the words "folder" and "mother". From this we can conclude that the word is as ancient as the little-changed basic words of the Russian language. This may speak of the ancient roots of the word and, probably, the drink it denotes. Water for the ancient Slavs was not just a liquid, as it is now. Not all water was suitable for drinking, but only living water, that is, flowing, spring, water of fast rivers and streams. Such a respectful attitude towards water was subsequently reflected in the designation of a pure and strong drink "vodka". According to the Greek tradition, Byzantine wine (9th century) was diluted with water, water was one of the main components of honey drinks. Water in a broad sense was one of the elements worshiped by the ancient Slavs.

In the 10th-13th centuries, our ancestors stopped diluting wine with water, and made meads strong (up to 16% alcohol). This love of strong drinks and the gradual depletion of honey pushed to find new ways to make intoxicating drinks. In the 15th century, the set honey almost completely disappeared as one of the ancient, but difficult and long-lasting drinks. Honey drinks became popular in Europe and were exported there. At the same time, a certain surplus of grain appeared in central Russia. It was these factors that became decisive for the emergence of the first drinks that we could now call vodka.

The word "vodka" was not common until the middle or even the second half of the 19th century. And only by the end of the 19th century this word was strongly enough fixed in the lexicon; it is found in literary classics, the production of the drink is deployed on an industrial scale, and the state takes control of sales, being a monopoly. Until the 19th century, vodka was distributed mainly in the "grain" provinces - Kursk, Oryol, Tambov, Moscow, as well as in the Kharkiv and Sumy regions, in which the surplus of grain production was distilled into alcohol.

The appearance of distillation and vodka itself was preceded by the appearance of various types of brews, fermented kvass and birch. Traditionally, kvass in Rus' was made from bakery waste: crumbs, coarse flour, bran, sour dough. There was a practice of keeping kvass wort or grounds in old containers, which made it possible to achieve a stable taste. Fungal culture has been formed for centuries, and carefully preserved in households. The strength and saturation of kvass was formed with the help of different types of cereals and flour. The proportion of three or four types of cereals gave a greater strength and saturation of kvass, and in our case - raw materials. Sometimes kvass was fermented and became intoxicated, later they began to make specially fermented kvass, the strength of which was no less than grape wine. The ancient term “created kvass” is known, which means “made”, “strong”, “intoxicating”. Birch - fermented birch sap - one of the ancient alcoholic beverages of ancient Europeans and grain intoxicating drink - beer - were also known in our area, which undoubtedly paved the way for stronger drinks, namely vodka. Created drinks, in other words, obtained by distillation, appear already in the 13th century. However, it is still far from vodka.

Another feature was the use of hops and various herbs, especially wormwood. Intoxicated drinks based on herbs with wormwood were called "green wine", "potion". Compared to European counterparts, Russian drinks contained a larger amount of plant components, and they were added in the middle or at the beginning of the process.

So gradually, in different ways, they approached the process of distillation of fermented low-alcohol raw materials into a stronger drink. The sources of that time are silent about the properties, taste and recipe of the then vodka, but one can definitely answer that at the end of the 15th century there was already vodka in Russia. Various varieties appeared, differing in the purity of cleaning and the technology for removing fusel oils. So "Russian vodka" was called purified bread vodka, which was served on the tables of the nobility and sold abroad. "Cherkasy vodka" was of lower quality, its origin was Polish-Ukrainian, and was closer to Ukrainian vodka, with an abundance of harmful impurities.

Since 1505, Russian vodka began to be exported to Sweden, Estonia, the Chudsky land, and the lands of the Livonian Order. Since 1533, a state monopoly has been introduced on vodka, taxes from the sold vodka begin to go to the state treasury. And the "king's taverns" bring significant profits. After such an important decision, vodka standards appear. Firstly, vodka began to be divided into varieties and quality levels with corresponding prices. This suggests that vodka is becoming popular, and the demand for non-strong drinks is growing. At the same time, the inevitable side problems with drunkenness appear. Hence the tight state control, especially in cases where low-grade cheap vodka is widely consumed. Since the end of the 16th century, any trade in vodka has been prohibited, except for state (royal) establishments. In the middle of the 17th century, due to a sharp decrease in the quality of vodka, as well as frequent cases of counterfeiting of royal vodkas, the so-called "tavern riots" arose, after which the then tsar, Alexei Mikhailovich, convened a council, at which drastic reforms of the drinking industry were carried out. For a very long period from the 16th to the 18th century, the preparation of vodka was in the hands of the state. The quality of the drink improved, new varieties appeared, ways were found to purify vodka from fusel oils. Various raw materials were tried for the preparation of the initial mash. At the beginning of the 18th century, Peter I allowed distilling to anyone, taxing cubes, that is, pieces of equipment. Distillery is becoming an additional money-making opportunity for everyone who grows grain. The main raw material is rye. It is not surprising that the quality of vodka drops at this time.

The term "vodka" appeared in documents only occasionally and as a kind of parallel term. The main name was "bread wine". The name "vodka" appears in writing in the decree of Empress Elizabeth Petrovna of June 8, 1751. This decree clearly defined who could have an alembic and who could not. In 1765, Catherine II gives the nobility privileges for the production of vodka, freeing those nobles who are engaged in distillation from any taxes. However, restrictions were introduced in a different plane: each nobleman had the right to a certain amount of vodka production, according to his rank, rank or position. Other estates (merchants, clergy and philistinism) were deprived of the right to engage in distillation, and hence to have income associated with this. In addition, these estates had to buy vodka produced by state distilleries for their needs. The wise decision of the empress led to the fact that competition in this area disappeared for a long time in the country, while at the same time the internal needs of the nobility were satisfied. However, by the end of the 18th century, confusion with new decrees created grounds for abuse, and the "vodka wars" continued. Paul I, who came to power, who wanted to restore order, was killed, according to one version, precisely because of the strictness in relation to the privileges of the nobility for the production of vodka.

A real revolution in the quality of produced vodka occurred at the end of the 18th century, when the St. Petersburg chemist Toviy Lovitz began to use charcoal as a material for purifying alcohol from fusel oils. However, according to other sources, long before that, wood, mainly birch, coal was already used in Russia for cleaning. In January 1865, Dmitry Ivanovich Mendeleev defended his doctoral thesis "On the combination of alcohol with water", in which he proposed using a 40% alcohol share in vodkas. This landmark study forever defined 40% alcohol solution as the standard for vodka. And to this day, this ratio is used as ideal. In 1894, the Russian government patents vodka with 40% alcohol content, passed through a charcoal filter, as a national Russian vodka with the name "Moscow Special".

Russian history knows several prohibitions on the use of strong alcoholic beverages and especially vodka. In the 20th century, there were 2 such bans: during the First World War, when the Russian government issued a decree to suspend the sale of vodka (1914-1918), this decree was extended into the initial Soviet period (1918-1924). The second large-scale ban on the sale of alcohol was already in the perestroika era (1986-1990).

Vodka has always been a strategic product. Sales of vodka have always supported the country's economy. The drink was exported, and in the domestic market, the constant popularity of vodka made its production not only profitable, but very profitable. By 1937, the main recipes and types of Soviet vodkas appeared, alcohol was produced only from grain and refined with charcoal. A large amount of export vodka brought the country the necessary money. Accordingly, the quality of the products was the highest. After the Great Patriotic War, the production of vodka resumed, and at the same time the production technology improved. There were sand-quartz filters for alcohol purification and cationic filters for water softening. By 1967, the export of vodka had grown even more, and more and more stringent requirements were imposed on quality. The proportion of impurities in rectified alcohol was thousandths of a percent or 1-2 ppm. Since 1971, 2 new varieties have appeared in the USSR - "Posolskaya" and "Sibirskaya", which, in addition to the existing and proven varieties "Stolichnaya", "Extra" and "Moscow Special", began to be produced both for the domestic market and for export. The quality of Russian vodkas has always been highly valued abroad, and it was during this period that fierce competition appeared with Western producers Absolut and Smirnoff.

Like any strong drink with an ancient history, vodka requires a culture of drinking. Traditionally, it is believed that drinking vodka should be in one gulp, "without breathing." However, this method comes from drinking low-grade vodka, the taste of which is really unenviable. But drinking good Russian vodka in one gulp means disrespecting the drink. If this is a worthy representative of high-quality Russian vodkas, then, having cooled to the desired temperature and pouring vodka into a glass, it is good to drink in small portions, passing the drink through the oral cavity, releasing further and leading to the esophagus.

Any alcoholic drink is worthy of evaluation of taste. Vodka is no exception. First, the vodka must be cold. Not too much, so as not to "burn with the cold", but not warm either. The optimum temperature is 8 - 10 °C. It is not customary to dilute vodka, unless it is part of a cocktail. You can drink vodka or have a snack. You can drink, for example, Borjomi mineral water. It is this type of mineral water that is better than others for these purposes, because the ph of Borjomi is similar to the ph of blood. This combination allows you to slightly lower the concentration of alcohol in the blood. Two types of snacks are recommended as snacks for vodka - cold and hot. The latter are rare, but preferable, since with good hot snacks a person gets drunk slowly and can control the situation quite clearly. Cold appetizers are better than if there were none at all.

Centuries-old traditions of drinking vodka in Russia have the same old "snack traditions". Vegetable, mushroom, meat and fish dishes are worthy of neighborhood with Russian vodka. Pickled vegetables: cucumbers, tomatoes, zucchini, as well as a whole battery of mushroom pickles are great with vodka as a snack. What are the famous cucumbers of Novgorod salting, traditionally prepared in large oak barrels. Mushrooms were always salted in the same barrels. In Russia, with its abundance of rivers, fish was much more affordable than meat, and it is the abundance of fish snacks that suggests that this combination of “fish and vodka” has been tested for centuries and can be successfully used today. The whole variety of river fish is now complemented by marine fish species. The famous herring has long been firmly in the lead among fish snacks. Of the classic dishes of Russian cuisine, one can name unsweetened pancakes with various fillings, such as caviar, Siberian dumplings, sauerkraut.

It is not customary to mix vodka with other types of alcohol. Vodka does not like mixing very much. Any experiments of drinking vodka along with beer, wine and other alcoholic beverages end in a headache at best. There are some tips on how to avoid excessive intoxication or the most severe morning hangover, but simply - poisoning.

Tip one: drink in moderation and little by little. No matter how trite it sounds, vodka is a very strong and insidious drink. Usually, with a small number of snacks or in the absence of them, vodka is drunk easily, and intoxication is not felt. However, when a person gets up from the table, vodka immediately reminds of itself with a strong effect, but the moment is lost, the sloppy vodka lover is drunk and unable to control himself. Physiologically, this is easily explained - while sitting, the stomach is compressed and vodka, getting inside, may not touch the walls of the stomach, and therefore not be absorbed. It is recommended to drink with long pauses and periodically get up from the table. In this way, you can assess your condition much more accurately.

Tip two: drink only proven, high-quality vodka. It is known that the miser pays twice. With regard to vodka, this can be “three times”. Poor-quality vodka can be poison for both the body and the mind.

Tip three: eat BEFORE the feast a little of what you planned to eat with your favorite drink. And it would be even better to eat some greasy or oily foods.

Tip #4: tea and only tea. This drink has always helped before and after heavy drinking. Before the feast, a cup of strong tea will save your stomach from the first portions of vodka that irritate the walls. At the same time, it will create a kind of buffer, a gradual, not a sharp intoxication. After a feast, a few cups of green tea will relieve heaviness in the stomach and refresh. Of course, tea does not remove hops, but quite noticeably helps to remove alcohol from the body. First of all, this is to help your kidneys, as tea has diuretic properties.

And finally, some information:
- remember that mixing vodka with any soda, and therefore with carbon dioxide, enhances the absorption of alcohol.
- Smoking makes you more drunk.
- mixing with sweet liqueurs, liqueurs, etc. leads to severe hangovers.
- do not go out, being drunk, in the cold and "fresh air", instead of the necessary freshness, intoxication may increase! It is enough to open the window and just ventilate the room.
- remember that strong alcohol gradually gains its strength (concentration in the blood) and the peak of intoxication comes only after an hour of use!
- if you feel that you are losing consciousness from drinking alcohol - do not hesitate to ask for help or try to empty your stomach in any way you know. It is possible that this is a substandard product and there is no reason to take risks.

With all the insidiousness, you should not blame vodka for anything. We will adhere to one simple rule: vodka is a festive drink that gives people fun and a sense of satisfaction, and you should drink it only on a holiday and only of the best quality. Be moderate and stay healthy!

Test date: January 2012

Conclusion on the results of the test.

To begin with, we recall that the resumption of the release of "Russian" vodka was covered by us back in May 2010, and only at the end of 2011 it caught our eye. By the way, not alone: ​​next to her on the shelf was "Dining Room" vodka, also bottled at the factories of "Rosspirtprom".

So, vodka "Russian" bottled in a round white glass bottle. On the “shoulders” of the bottle of “Russian” vodka, between the label and the cap, there is a circular relief pattern on the glass, echoing the one on the label. The label itself is paper, glossy, in red, white and gold tones. On it, between the Russian and English spellings of the name of the vodka, four medals perched, which should probably tell about the awards won by the drink at exhibitions and competitions. But no, they simply indicate that the raw materials are Russian, that the vodka is produced under state control, that the product is made under license ... The cap on the bottle "Russian" vodka metal, screw, dispenser on the neck is not available.

The smell with which we were hospitably greeted by Russian vodka, in our opinion, is quite noticeable, but even, not repulsive. The taste of this drink is classic vodka, without any sweetness there, however, as it seemed to us, the product is slightly sour. Note that Russkaya vodka is made from Extra alcohol, its second ingredient is water, there are no additional additives. As for the softness of drinking, we believe that this vodka is quite vigorous, noticeably burns the oral cavity, but at the same time, there is an impression that it should be so. She drinks normally; what is called, vodka for an amateur.

The final rating of Russian vodka is “good”.

January 31 marks 154 years since the "birthday" of vodka. On this day in 1865, Dmitry Mendeleev defended his doctoral dissertation on the topic "On the combination of alcohol with water."

Vodka is a strong alcoholic drink, a mixture of rectified (food) ethyl alcohol with water. To prepare vodka, a mixture of alcohol and water (sorting) is passed through activated carbon, then filtered.

By adding infusions of herbs, seeds, roots and spices to vodka, various tinctures are prepared.

Other types of vodka are obtained by distillation of fermented sweet liquids.

Types of vodka

Ordinary vodka in Russia is a 40% solution of alcohol purified from fusel oil in water. Purification is carried out in a hot way at distillation plants or cold - in vodka. Alcohol is diluted with water (to a strength of 40-45%) and filtered through a series of vats filled with charcoal (preferably birch), which absorbs fusel oil (traces remain). The best vodka is made from rectified alcohol.

Special vodka is prepared by dissolving various essential oils and aromatic substances in ordinary vodka or alcohol.

To obtain fruit vodka, ripe berries are crushed, the juice is squeezed out, sweetened and forced to ferment (adding yeast). The fermented wort is distilled.

History of vodka

The prototype of vodka was made in the 11th century by the Persian doctor Ar-Razi, who was the first to isolate ethanol (ethyl alcohol) by distillation. The Koran forbids Muslims from drinking any alcoholic beverages, so the Arabs used this liquid (vodka) exclusively for medical purposes, as well as for making perfumes.

In Europe, the first distillation of an alcoholic liquid was made by the Italian alchemist monk Valentius. The alchemists of Provence (France) adapted the distillation cube invented by the Arabs to convert grape must into alcohol.

Vodka appeared in Russia at the end of the 14th century. In 1386, the Genoese embassy brought the first vodka (aqua vitae - "living water") to Moscow and presented it to Prince Dmitry Donskoy. In Europe, all modern strong drinks were born from "Aqua Vita": brandy, cognac, whiskey, schnapps and Russian vodka. The volatile liquid obtained as a result of the distillation of the fermented must was perceived as a concentrate, the "spirit" of wine (in Latin spiritus vini), whence the modern name of this substance in many languages, including Russian - "alcohol" comes from.

In 1429, Aqua Vita was again brought to Moscow by foreigners, this time as a universal medicine. At the court of Prince Vasily II Vasilyevich, the liquid, apparently, was appreciated, but due to its strength, they preferred to dilute it with water. It is likely that the idea of ​​diluting alcohol, which in essence was "aqua vita", served as an impetus for the production of Russian vodka, but, of course, from grain.

The method of producing vodka became presumably known in Russia in the second half of the 15th century and was probably due to the appearance of grain surpluses that required rapid processing.

Already at the beginning of the 16th century, "burning wine" was taken not to Russia, but from it. This was the first experience of Russian vodka export, which was later destined to conquer the world.

The very word "vodka" appeared in Russia in the XVII-XVIII centuries and, most likely, is derived from "water". At the same time, in the old days, the terms wine, tavern were also used to refer to vodka (this was the name for vodka made illegally, under the conditions of the state monopoly introduced in the 18th century), tavern wine, smoked wine, burning wine, burnt wine, bitter wine, etc.

With the development and improvement of vodka production in Russia, remarkable results have been achieved in terms of purification and taste characteristics of the drink.

In the Petrine era, the beginning of the dynasties of Russian "vodka kings", breeders was laid. In 1716, the first Emperor of All Russia offered the nobility and merchant classes the exclusive right to engage in distillation on their lands.

In the middle of the 18th century, the production of vodka in Russia, along with state-owned factories, was carried out by noble landowners, owners of estates scattered throughout the country. Empress Catherine II, who patronized the nobility, granted them many different benefits, made distilling an exclusive privilege of the nobles. A significant part of the vodka was produced in the estates of the landlords, and the quality of the drink was raised to an unimaginable height. Manufacturers sought to achieve a high degree of purification of vodka, they used natural animal proteins for this - milk and egg white. In the 18th century, Russian "home-made" vodkas, produced in the households of the princes Kurakins, Counts Sheremetevs, Counts Rumyantsevs, and others, enjoyed an excellent reputation.

At the end of the 19th century, for the first time in Russian history, a state standard for vodka was introduced. This was largely facilitated by the research of well-known chemists Nikolai Zelinsky and Dmitry Mendeleev - members of the commission for the introduction of a vodka monopoly. The merit of the latter is that he developed the composition of vodka, which was supposed to correspond to 40 ° in strength. "Mendeleevsky" version of vodka was patented in Russia in 1894 as "Moscow Special" (later - "Special").

In Russian history, the state (tsarist) monopoly on the production and sale of vodka was repeatedly introduced. For example, in 1533, the first "Tsar's tavern" was opened in Moscow, and the entire trade in vodka became the prerogative of the tsarist administration; in 1819, Alexander I reintroduced the state monopoly, which lasted until 1828; observed in 1906-1913.

The state monopoly on vodka existed throughout the entire period of Soviet power (formally - since 1923), while the production technology of the drink was improved, and its quality was at a consistently high level. In 1992, by decree of Russian President Boris Yeltsin, the monopoly was abolished, which entailed a number of negative consequences (financial, medical, moral, and others). Already in 1993, a new decree was signed, which returned the monopoly, but the state was unable to tightly control its implementation.

The history of prohibitive measures against vodka is noteworthy. So, during the Russo-Japanese War, there was a ban on the sale of vodka in some provinces of the empire. "Dry law" was introduced in Russia at the very beginning of the First World War, continuing to operate even after the establishment of Soviet power (only in 1923 they allowed the sale of liquors with a strength of no more than 20 °, in 1924 the permissible fortress was increased to 30 °, in 1928 restrictions were lifted , in 1986, under Mikhail Gorbachev, an unprecedented campaign was launched to combat drunkenness, in fact, alcohol consumption, which was unsuccessful and led to the massive destruction of vineyards, the production of low-quality "underground" alcoholic products, the growth of drug addiction, etc.) .

As an element of everyday culture, vodka has taken a specific place in the history of Russian life, marked by such verbal symbols - "signs" such as "mentikov dime", "katenka", "kerenki", "monopolka", "rykovka", "andropovka", "smirnovka". "(by the name of one of the largest domestic producers of vodka), etc., and also became an invariable solid payment unit ("a bottle of vodka"), especially in rural areas. Vodka is often perceived as a national symbol of Russia, on a par with the samovar, balalaika, matryoshka, caviar. Remaining one of the most common Russian national drinks until the end of the 20th century, vodka was the basis for a huge number of tinctures, the preparation of which became a special branch of home production in Russia.

On January 1, 2010, in order to combat illegal alcohol trafficking in the country, Russia introduced a minimum price for a 0.5-liter bottle of vodka in the amount of 89 rubles. The corresponding order was signed by the Federal Service for Alcohol Market Regulation (Rosalkogolregulirovanie). If the bottle is of a different volume, the minimum price will be calculated in proportion to the capacity.

Thus, now the consumer will be able to make an informed choice between legal and illegal producers. According to experts, taking into account the excise tax on alcohol planned for 2010, the cost of a bottle, VAT and minimum retail and wholesale markups, the price of a bottle of vodka really does not exceed 89 rubles.

The material was prepared on the basis of information from RIA Novosti and open sources

Why is only vodka from Russia real Russian vodka?
(Only vodka from Russia is genuine Russian vodka!)
When creating this page, materials from the book by V.V. Pokhlebkin "History of vodka", Moscow, Tsentrpoligraf, 1997.

The following factors are decisive for creating real Russian vodka:

Raw material.
Recipe. Composition.
Special methods of purification of alcohol and water-alcohol mixture from harmful impurities.
Technology system.
Equipment.

At each historical stage, these main components in the production of vodka have played far from the same role. For example, the 18th century was the most fruitful period of research in the field of composition and formulation of vodkas, in the field of introducing various flavoring components into congestion and intermediate water-alcohol blends. At this time, home-grown landlord distilling was rapidly developing, vodka was made not for sale, but for oneself. Therefore, they did not stop at any costs. And in the second half of the 19th century and in the 20th century, the main attention was focused on updating equipment, introducing technological innovations, attaching importance to time, temperature and the speed of passing through various production cycles.

For centuries, rye served as the main raw material for Russian vodka. Rye grain is the most characteristic raw material feature of vodka until the 70s of the XIX century. Over the past 100 years, especially after the 30s of the XX century, wheat began to play a much larger role in the production of mass varieties of vodka, and in certain periods of economic devastation and war, potato vodka was also produced. However, the best, highest grades of vodka continue to this day to be based on traditional rye raw materials (grain, bran). As additives to rye, which is mandatory for Russian vodka, other grain raw materials are also used - oats, wheat, barley and buckwheat, in different, but always small proportions.

Grain raw materials, and especially rye grain, provide Russian vodka with huge advantages over potato vodka, which F. Engels once drew attention to. Russian rye vodka does not cause such consequences as a severe hangover, does not lead to an aggressive mood in the consumer, which is usually characteristic of the effects of potato and especially beet vodka (as a result, moonshine from "pure" beet sugar is extremely harmful).

The second most important raw material component of vodka is water, more precisely, soft water, which has a softness of no more than 4 mg / eq. Until the 20s of the 20th century, such water was Moscow (2 mg/eq.) and Neva water (4 mg/eq.), that is, the water of the upper reaches of the Moskva River, Klyazma and Neva. The water of the Mytishchi springs (springs) was and remains excellent in quality, from where a water supply system (more than 20 km) was brought to Moscow already in the 18th century. At present, water for vodka (Moscow) is taken partly from Mytishchi springs, as well as from the Ruza, a tributary of the Moscow River, and Vazuza, a tributary of the Volga in its upper reaches (west of Moscow), which flow in a densely forested area and have a soft ( 2-3 mg / eq.), clean, tasty water.

Before creating a blend with grain alcohol, water undergoes a variety of additional purifications: sedimentation, filtration through river and quartz sand, special additional aeration (i.e., saturated with pure liquid oxygen), but in no case is boiled and distilled, as is usually done pseudo-vodka producers in other countries (USA, Finland, Italy, Germany, etc.). This is an important traditional difference and advantage of Russian vodka, which has survived to this day. It has a special softness, drinkability, because the water in it is not soulless, but alive and, despite the absence of any smell or taste, at the same time it is not tasteless, like distilled water. At the same time, the degree of purification of Russian raw water is such that it retains crystal transparency and exceeds in terms of illumination any distilled water, devoid of natural luster and crystal "play of overflows" lost or faded after the distillation process.

An important raw component in the preparation of mash (wort) in Russian distillation was malt. Russian malt has always been and remains exclusively rye. Even at the beginning of the 20th century, when wheat began to be used as the main grain raw material, and even in the 30-50s of the 20th century, when, for a number of economic reasons, the percentage of manufactured simple, cheap potato vodka increased, all the same as the malt component of Russian vodka remained exclusively rye malt. Not only its use, but also its production, its special germination conditions are essential and even decisive for the quality of traditional Russian vodka. Therefore, back in the 18th century, academician Tobias Lovitz and landowner-practitioner V. Prokopovich drew attention to the rules for obtaining rye malt for distillation, who gave strict recommendations on this matter.

Initially, rye sourdough was used in Russian distilling, the same as for baking black rye bread. In the 18th century, a transition was made everywhere to brewer's yeast, which had more activity and accelerated the overall process of fermentation of the entire mash. Since the end of the 19th - beginning of the 20th century, special natural-pure yeast cultures have been grown at distilleries, intended exclusively for distillery production. They are filled with wort in fermentation vats. The correct maturation of the mash also strongly depends on their quality, and hence the overall quality of the final products obtained - ordinary grain alcohol and vodka.

Recipe. Composition.

The composition of the mash, the ratio of grain, water, malt, yeast and other additional aromatic herbs (St. ) and ending with overseas spices (star anise, ginger, galangal, cloves, nutmeg, etc.), has always been the subject of search and continuous improvement by Russian distillers and received a special expansion of the range in the 17th - first half of the 19th century.

However, the most characteristic Russian prescription method in the composition of the mash should be considered additives to the main rye grain of small, but emphasizing amounts of other grain components: barley, buckwheat flour, buckwheat flour, oatmeal, wheat bran, crushed millet, that is, certain remnants of grain farming , which usually accumulated in mills and groats, in large landowners' diversified farms as residues from the processing of various grains for flour and cereals. Such additives were not made on purpose and not systematically, but it was nevertheless noticed that, making up no more than 2-3% of the total weight of the grain part of the mash, they are able to give vodka some kind of subtle, but organoleptically perceptible taste, to give each release of vodka its own individual face, without changing at the same time its general traditional appearance. At the end of the 18th century, Russian academicians working in the field of chemistry and botany became interested in empirical observations of home-grown distillers. They conducted laboratory experiments and gave recommendations on the use of various mini-additives to the main rye grain raw materials in distillation.

As for the composition of the ratio of water and alcohol, it should be said that the path to the modern ratio of the weight parts of water and alcohol in vodka was long, went through a number of stages. First, alcohol was diluted with water by two-thirds according to the Greek (Byzantine) tradition. And in the end they came to a close ancient, scientifically based D.I. Mendeleev's result - the content of pure alcohol in water - 40o.

That is why the quality of water for vodka is still extremely important, and the water of Russian clean (so far) small forest rivers, abundant in springs and having a clean sandy-stony bottom, is unique in its softness and taste. By the way, since the 1930s, the region of Vazuza, Ruza and the upper reaches of the Moskva River has always been closed, reserved and remained extremely sparsely populated and strictly controlled, although it was located near Moscow.

Cleaning methods.

Among the technological methods of making vodka from the very beginning of its production, purification methods have occupied a large place in Russian distillation. Their development has no analogues in the distillery of Western Europe. The fact is that the habit of the Russian consumer from ancient times to fragrant traditional honey and beer Russian alcoholic beverages forced the first distillers of the 15th century, who, due to the primitiveness of distillation processes and the imperfection of the then distillery equipment, tasteless, repulsive-smelling alcohol, to develop methods to get rid of it in every possible way. smell, and therefore look, first of all, for effective ways of cleaning grain alcohol from impurities - fusel oils, esters, aldehydes. It was impossible to improve the distillation process, since there was no closed copper-glass apparatus. Therefore, all hope was placed on the methods of quality improvement tested in honey brewing and honey delivery, which were also applied to vodka. These cleaning methods included:
A. Mechanical ways:
1. Settling of raw alcohol (raki, simple bread wine) with its rapid, strong cooling. (Removal of crayfish in the cold immediately after distillation).
2. Overflows into another container after settling and freezing.
3. Filtration of raw alcohol, water-alcohol mixtures and vodka.

Filtration processes in Russian distillation have been developed for a long time and extremely carefully, knowledge in this area has been accumulated and passed on from one generation of distillers to another. By the beginning of the 19th century, filtering was greatly improved through long-term empirical observations, but nevertheless continued to improve throughout the 19th and 20th centuries. It was conducted through the following materials:
a) felt used for felt boots;
b) cloth;
c) felt (in the 19th century);
d) river, sea and quartz sand;
e) crushed stone;
e) ceramic chips;
g) cotton fabric;
h) linen cloth;
i) cotton wool;
j) blotting paper of different thickness and density;
l) charcoal (in the 17th-19th centuries - ordinary, in the 20th century - activated).

Issues related to filtration through coal occupy a special place in the history of Russian distillation. Russian distillers empirically proved one of the fundamental rules that ensure the special qualities of Russian vodka, namely, that it is impossible to directly filter raw alcohol or any other type of pure alcohol through coal, that it must be diluted with water at least up to 45-50o, and even better up to 40o, because coal cannot take away the impurities of fusel oils from high-grade alcohol. In addition, starting from the end of the 18th century, special attention was paid to increasing the absorption capacity of charcoal by preliminary preparation of wood intended for charcoal. For this purpose, such methods have been developed to improve the initial quality of wood raw materials, such as:
a) mandatory release from the bark before charring;
b) cleaning the chocks from knots (they were cut out);
c) the release of the chocks from the core, especially if it differed in color (was darker) from the rest of the tree, from its outer layer;
d) old trees, more than 40-50 years old, were generally excluded from coal production.

Finally, it was empirically found that coal of different types of wood has different absorption abilities, and therefore it is absolutely not the same thing which coal to use when filtering - the highest grades of vodka or the lowest. If you arrange all types of coal in order of absorption capacity from highest to lowest, then this list will look like this:
a) beech;
b) lime;
c) oak;
d) alder;
e) birch;
e) pine;
g) spruce;
h) aspen;
i) poplar.

The first four types are expensive and were used mainly in the 18th century for home distilling of the nobility and partly in the 19th century for the manufacture of higher grades of vodka. In addition, their application is limited to certain geographic regions. Alder coal was used by private distillers until 1861. Linden was used even in Soviet times until 1940. Very early, from the 15th century, birch charcoal became practically the main type of coal in Russian distillation, the cheapest, widespread, mass-produced in Tsarist Russia throughout the 19th century as an indispensable component of household use (for samovars) and having a relatively high absorption capacity. How effective were simple birch filters of Russian distilling already in the 19th century, before the invention of active and activated carbon, shows the experience carried out in the 80s of the 19th century. In grain alcohol, in which even traces of aldehyde could not be detected by laboratory chemical methods, after diluting this alcohol with water to 45 o and filtering through crushed birch charcoal, up to 0.011% aldehyde was retained in four columns, that is, almost alcohol was purified "cleanly", completely , since after that it was impossible to detect any signs of the presence of aldehyde even with a solution of rosaniline acid, which can cause changes in color and even shade of the color of an aqueous sample containing even thousandths of a percent of aldehyde.

It is no coincidence that the miraculous absorbing abilities of charcoal prompted one of the students of D.I. Mendeleev, the future academician N.D. Zelinsky, who took an active part in the creation of filters for Russian vodka, to the idea of ​​using carbon filters in gas masks in 1915 as an ideal means of combating poisons.

Along with mechanical cleaning methods, already at a fairly early stage in the production of vodka in the 17th century and, especially, in the 18th century, biological cleaning and absorption methods began to be actively used, which gave an exceptionally favorable effect, especially when freeing vodka from foreign odors.

B. Biological methods.

1. The use of coagulants in the process of distillation, that is, the introduction of such natural biologically active coagulating materials into raw alcohol (raku) and other cuts of grain alcohol that interact with alcohol impurities and take away these impurities in the process of alcohol refining. These included milk, whole eggs and egg white.

2. Freshly baked brown bread was sometimes used as a coagulant, usually as the final stage of refining the pre-war bread alcohol, after milk had been used as the initial coagulant.

Of course, these natural methods of purifying vodka greatly increased its cost, especially since with their use it was possible to drive only 45% of the volume of the prepared mash, so the remaining 55%, including coagulants, simply went to waste. But in the landlord economy, the remnants of bards (although expensive, consisting of eggs, bread and milk) nevertheless went to feed livestock and were almost irretrievably lost. But biological purification gave an alcohol product that was ideal in terms of purity and taste.

3. As a cleaner, ash, potash (burnt ash of wormwood-chernobyl), later - soda, mixed with double or triple alcohol, were also used, in a mixture with which the highest purification was carried out - obtaining quadruple rectified alcohol.

4. However, since high-class distillation was not available everywhere and since the process of distilling the product from side odors and fusel oils is complicated in itself, they were often applied not to a semi-finished product, but to an already finished product, to vodka (i.e. to bread alcohol after diluting it with water), such purely wine-making cleaning methods as freezing and gluing, which were a combination of mechanical and biological means of cleaning the product.

Freezing was a purely Russian and very cheap device. But she had a great effect. Thanks to the severe Russian frosts, as well as the preservation of huge glaciers in summer, which practically held ice until autumn, freezing large batches of vodka was not difficult. Vodka was frozen in special small barrels, which had an exposed bottom or a special plug, through which alcohol that had not frozen in the cold was drained. All the water contained in vodka with fusel oils frozen to it in the form of a thin layer turned into an ice piece, which was easily thrown away.

Another operation - gluing, on the contrary, was quite expensive, but it did not require much time and gave a more subtle biological and organoleptic effect, allowing absolutely ideal cleaning of grain alcohol or already new vodka from all kinds of impurities and odors. Pasting consisted in adding fish glue (karluk) to the vodka aged in sediment, which, as a result of the diffusion process, seemed to “comb” all vodka from fusel oils and other chemical (non-ethyl) impurities, which then lingered along with karluk during simple filtration through cotton fabric.

5. Along with the methods of purification of grain alcohol and vodka in Russian distillation, methods were used to improve the organoleptic properties of the vodka drink, which also had an ancient tradition back in mead making. So, at first, hops and other forest herbs (the so-called potion) were used to enhance the strength and aroma of vodka, then in the 18th century, herbal supplements of the juice of some forest berries (mountain ash, raspberries, strawberries), which eventually led to the development of a separate industry in alcohol- vodka industry and to the creation of the so-called Russian flavored vodkas, liqueurs and tinctures.

Technology system

The technological scheme of Russian distillation, taking into account all the additional processes for the purification of raw materials, semi-finished products and finished products, of course, was not similar to the Western European distillation process, while the distillation process itself did not differ in principle from the generally accepted one. The only, but extremely remarkable feature of Russian distilling before the era of imperialism was that the main recommendation for distillers was to drive as quietly as possible, slower and not bring the mash race to more than half of its volume, or even to drive only 45% of the volume, moreover, the same rule applied not only to the first rut, when crayfish and plain wine were obtained, but also to the subsequent stages of distillation - doubling and tripling. Of course, this practice led to significant losses of raw materials and semi-finished products and was possible only in the conditions of the Russian serf non-commodity, non-market economy, when there was no question of the profitability of any production, but only the quality of the product or product was taken care of, which was the decisive condition for the entire technology. , cost and production time. In other words, the nobleman - the producer of vodka did not take into account any costs and losses, just to get a high-quality product.

To illustrate this historical fact, let's give just one example: out of 1200 liters of mash containing 340 liters of grain and rye malt and 12 liters of brewer's yeast, only 3.5 buckets of simple but "good" bread wine came out. That is, 42 liters, which, with the then obligatory admixture to them, near a bucket of milk, and after re-drinking, could give only 15 liters of good, pure grain alcohol, from which the landowner-manufacturer could get only 20-25 liters of first-class vodka when traditionally mixed with three parts of water - penny. For the owner, who received grain free of charge from his peasants, who had gratuitous firewood from his own forest and the same almost gratuitous distillers, the output of vodka, which was hardly two hundredths of the total mass of the mash, that is, the primary raw material, was not terrible and was not considered as loss or extreme disadvantage, since the whole process of production was aimed at satisfying the whim of the owner and his potential guests, and not at making a profit, not at selling vodka and not at turning it into a marketable commodity. The governments of Peter I, Elizabeth I and Catherine II, giving and all the time expanding the privileges of the nobility for home distilling, freeing it from any control and taxation, at the same time consistently emphasized that all finished vodka products should certainly go only to personal, home, family needs of the nobility and in no case be the subject of trade. And the nobility gave its honest promise to the monarchs to keep vodka as a purely estate privilege and not try to turn it into a source of profit. It was in such special social conditions of feudal Russia that vodka as a product reached the highest quality, acquired an extremely diverse assortment. (There were over a hundred different brands of vodka, each of which had its own special, often subtle, but nevertheless undeniable difference.)

In terms of its purity, vodka produced in individual aristocratic households of Russian magnates - the princes Sheremetevs, Kurakins, counts Rumyantsevs and Razumovskys, had such a high quality standard that it was not inferior to the famous French cognacs. That is why Catherine II did not hesitate to present such vodka as a gift to crowned persons - Frederick II the Great and Gustav III of Sweden. She also sent it as an exquisite and exotic drink to Voltaire, who knew a lot about French wines, not at all fearing to become a victim of his murderous sarcasm.

That is, the high quality of Russian homemade vodka produced in the noble households won it prestige already in the 18th century, made it the drink of the "cream of society", a product with the highest reputation for food purity and medical usefulness.

The development of capitalism in Russia in this respect was disastrous for the people. The thirst for profit contributed to the appearance on the Russian market of cheap varieties of potato and beet vodka, which became "folk" and was sold only in whole buckets to take away. This contributed to the most unbridled drunkenness. The production of good, clean, high-quality vodka became unprofitable for private capitalists, who were entirely oriented towards the commodity production of vodka. Moreover, Russian rye vodka began to be systematically exported to Germany in the second half of the 19th century, while cheap potato vodka began to dominate the Russian domestic market as a mass product. That is why even the tsarist government, realizing that the market and market relations in Russia are not capable of regulating the quality of goods, but can only decide on one or another saturation of the country with a certain mass of goods, came to the conclusion that it is necessary to introduce centralized production and trade in vodka in the country with constant strict government control against all possible abusers in this matter. This motive explained the introduction of the vodka monopoly in 1894-1902. After the October Revolution of 1917, this policy of strict state control was continued and continued consistently until 1986. All these 70 years, Soviet state distilleries, the Soviet distillery and vodka industry used the technological developments of such members of the Commission for the introduction of a vodka monopoly in 1894 - 1902 as D.I. Mendeleev, N. Tavildarov, N.D. Zelinsky and others.

Monopoly state vodka was in Soviet Russia a product of the same high quality as the best samples of vodka at state-owned enterprises in pre-revolutionary Russia. At the same time, those vodka companies that were founded in Europe and in the USA by Russian emigrants did not possess either Mendeleev's technological developments or original equipment designed specifically for the production of vodka. They based their activities on typical Western European and American distillation equipment and, consequently, they produced well-distilled, conveniently and beautifully packaged, but devoid of the typical signs, qualities and properties of Russian vodka. In other words, these were not vodkas, but pseudo-vodkas, because they differed sharply from Russian vodka in terms of raw materials, technology, and even such a cheap component as water. As you know, even Finnish vodka "Finlyandiya", which is excellent in quality, entirely using rye grain and rye malt, nevertheless differs sharply in taste from Russian Moscow vodka. This is explained by the fact that Finnish vodka uses the so-called vaza pozh, the grain of which does not have the characteristic "rye" taste of Russian zhite.

Add to the vase rye the distillation process and the absence of Russian river water and you will understand why Finnish vodka, with all its high data, is still different from Russian Moscow. Thus, purely biological and purely geographical reasons make it impossible to reproduce Russian vodka somewhere outside of Russia, because it is possible to reproduce both the equipment and the technological scheme, but it is impossible to artificially create the soft water of Russian forest rivers or the unpredictable climate of Russia, on the fields of which real Russian life. That's why "only vodka from Russia is real Russian vodka

Russian vodka is presented today in any more or less decent store anywhere in Russia with at least 20-30 types. The drink is a mixture of alcohol obtained on a distillation column and purified prepared water. But a drink called “vodka” has been known since 1386 (six years after the memorable Battle of Kulikovo), and the distillation column was invented by the French already in the 19th century.

So when did vodka appear in Rus', what was it like and what do we buy in the store now?

What did our ancestors drink from ancient times?

The process of sublimation was not always. But they have been known since the dawn of writing. The tribes living in the expanses of South America and Africa, in order to cheer themselves up, ate the sweet fruits of some plants that had begun to ferment.

It's all about microscopic fungi - yeast. To put it simply, these microorganisms feed on sugar, and produce ethyl alcohol C 2 H 5 (OH). Wild yeast lives on the skins of many types of berries and fruits. And when vodka appeared in Rus', the fermentation process was well known.

The Slavs used fermentation products without distillation, in their pure form. There was also no sugar in those days, so honey or sweet fruits were food for yeast. Today, however, not everyone knows the recipe for how to cook real drinking honey, how to ferment kvass.

Also in Rus', mainly in agricultural areas, many drinks were made on the basis of grain malts - barley, rye. These are the same kvass. In addition, beer was brewed from germinated grain. Millet malt was also used, on its basis they prepared a drink adopted from the Tatars - buzu.

Who invented to distill

The one who invented vodka in Rus' did not revolutionize the history of alcoholic beverages. The earliest references to the distillation process found by historians date back to the first century AD. e. It was used, according to the hieroglyphs, not for drinking. Ancient Greek alchemists tried to use it to boil gold, to create philosopher's stones.

Distillation developed in the Ancient East in the 11th-12th centuries. The East was famous for the achievements of medicine, the distillation product was used by the Aesculapius for the preparation of potions and medicines (alcohol dissolves various active substances in itself much more efficiently than water, it can be used to prepare much more effective extracts from plants). That is, alcohol has already begun to be consumed, however, so far only for medicinal purposes.

Europe, cognac and perfumery

Around the middle of the 12th century, distillation became widespread in Europe. At first, distillation was used, like the Arabs, for the preparation of medicines and in chemical experiments. But the French would not be themselves if they did not give the distillate another use - the production of cosmetics. When vodka appeared in Rus', in Europe they already used alcohol with might and main, including for ingestion.

The history of the emergence of cognac, one of the most elite drinks of our time, is interesting. Historians argue that, oddly enough, the crisis was to blame.

Overproduction of wine in one of the French cities has led to the fact that huge stocks of this drink have accumulated in warehouses. The wine was sour, spoiled and promised the owner big losses. And then it was decided to distill it all into grape alcohol.

Then another crisis, thanks to which grape spirit, which had not been in demand for a long time, lay forgotten in oak barrels for several years.

The liquid subsequently extracted from the barrels was striking in its properties. In addition to the unusual taste and aroma, unlike wines, it could be stored for an arbitrarily long time and transported over any distance.

Who taught to "drive" the Russians

It is not known exactly in what year vodka appeared in Rus', but chronicle data have been preserved that for the first time a distillation product, namely grape alcohol, was brought to Dmitry Donskoy as a gift by Genoese merchants. The further fate of the gift is unknown, in any case, the drink did not receive distribution this time.

Merchants again brought to Rus' already a large batch of alcohol, this was during the reign of Vasily II the Dark in 1429. It is curious that the second time when vodka appeared in Rus', it did not arouse the enthusiasm of the ruling class. Moreover, the drink was recognized as harmful and banned from being imported into the Moscow principality.

When did vodka become a Russian drink?

The development of the production and consumption of vodka in the Moscow lands is usually associated with the name of Ivan Vasilyevich the Terrible. In what century did vodka of its own production appear in Rus'? The most probable period is the end of the 15th - the beginning of the 16th centuries. She, despite the ban, was slowly persecuted on the estates by noble nobles, as well as monks in monasteries.

It is known for certain that John IV ordered the establishment of sovereign distilleries, where vodka was produced and sold. Initially, establishments made a drink exclusively for the royal oprichnina and archers. However, soon, realizing the benefits from the sale of alcohol, Ivan the Terrible ordered the establishment of taverns for every class.

Home production of alcoholic beverages, including low-alcohol fermentation products, was strictly prohibited. And there were not many daredevils to disobey Ivan the Terrible.

What was the real "Russian vodka"

As is already clear from the story, the history of the emergence of vodka in Rus', real vodka, is the history of the emergence of purified grain moonshine, the very one that is still being driven somewhere in the villages. It was this drink that was the original Russian vodka.

Sugar was unknown in those days, so either sweet fruits could serve as “food” for yeast (the middle lane is not so rich in them) or malt - sprouted and dried grain, everything was in order with it in Muscovy in harvest years.

The grain was scattered in an even layer and covered with a damp cloth. After a while, sprouts appeared, the grain acquired a sweet taste. After that, the material was dried in an oven, rubbed by hand and sieved. Thus, the grains were cleared of sprouts and roots. This was followed by grinding in a mill.

Fermented berries were used instead of bread yeast. In general, in large productions, a part of the already working mash was simply taken and added to the fresh one.

They drove vodka, or "bread wine", blind. This method of production can still be found. This is what they do when there is no moonshine still, but you really want to drink.

Russian vodka in estates

Some Russian vodka is undeservedly considered a primitive, coarse drink with low taste properties. But the history of the appearance of vodka in Rus' is akin to the history of cognac. At first, when the distillation of grape raw materials was done in one run, the entire product was used for drinking without temperature control. The quality of the drink was hardly better than the nastiest moonshine.

In the 18th-19th centuries, Russian landowners made a completely different drink than the one that was produced by the distilleries of the formidable tsar. We celebrate the appearance of vodka in Rus' purified on charcoal, obtained on an apparatus with a coil.

The distillation began to be done twice, and in the process itself, only the middle was selected for use, clean both from methyl impurities (“heads”) and from heavy fusel oils (“tails”).

From generation to generation, recipes for tinctures on various herbs were passed down. And if we take into account the fact that in those days the properties of plants were known much better than now (people knew when to collect herbs, how to store), then we can assume that the result was appropriate.

Ladies prepared a special "women's" vodka. This drink has many names: spotykach, liqueur, ratafia. They made ratafia from all kinds of fruits and berries. The highest chic was to have liqueurs in the house:

• apricot;
• lingonberry,
• cherry;
• blueberry.

Russian vodka - one of the victims of the First World War

The production of vodka from grain is not cheap. At the beginning of the 19th century, the distillation column was invented in France. From any fermented raw material (sugar beet, frozen potatoes) it was possible to obtain ethyl alcohol of the highest purity. No one was going to use this alcohol for ingestion, they used it as a technical one.

In Russia, this equipment began to appear in the 1860s. And almost immediately they began to use alcohol for the preparation of strong alcoholic beverages, while in small batches and as an experiment.

Then the First World War broke out. Russia sent an army of many thousands to the battlefields. It was too wasteful to produce vodka for the front-line one hundred grams from then scarce bread, and here the distillation column served as a real salvation for the royal budget. The Bolsheviks, having taken power, did not change anything. And why, such help to the budget!

Vodka and Mendeleev

One often hears a lot of fables about where vodka came from in Rus'. Many of these ridiculous stories are associated with the name of the great Russian scientist Dmitri Mendeleev. For example, on many resources you can find "historical" data that Mendeleev:

• was a drunkard;
• by order of the government, he determined that vodka should have a strength of 40%;
• once he got drunk to such an extent that in a dream his famous periodic table of elements appeared to him.

Dmitry Ivanovich really is related to 40%, but this figure has nothing to do with an alcoholic drink. At this concentration of a solution of alcohol and water, the maximum mutual penetration of molecules is achieved.

As for everything else - nothing more than fairy tales, often invented outside the territory of Russia, like the "Potemkin villages" or dances of drunken Russians to the harmonica with wild bears.