Table of contents:
- 127 years have passed since the official appearance of vodka in Russia
- Under Catherine II, vodka was sold only in buckets
- The heaviest medal in the history of Russia - the medal "For drunkenness"
- In the middle of the 18th century, distilling was a privilege of the nobles
- Mendeleev was not the "father" of Russian vodka
- Prohibition in Russia was introduced several times
- The largest vodka museum is located in Moscow
- The Red Army gave out vodka "Voroshilov ration"
- Tsar's vodka is not drunk
- The vodka dispute between the USSR and Poland was resolved by international arbitration
- And further…
Video: 10 interesting facts about Russian vodka
2024 Author: Richard Flannagan | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-15 23:55
On December 31, 1863, a very significant event took place in Russia - drinking rentals were abolished, which meant the introduction of a state monopoly on the alcohol trade. This reform, according to historians, had several goals. First, fiscal, since the state wanted to increase treasury revenues, secondly, it was necessary to improve the quality of spirits, and thirdly, to increase the culture of their consumption. However, all this is relevant today, and the vodka itself during its Russian history, without losing its popularity, has acquired a mass of interesting facts.
127 years have passed since the official appearance of vodka in Russia
In the 40-degree state familiar to a modern person, vodka officially appeared on December 6, 1886. It was then that the norm of the fortress was fixed in the Charter on drinking fees. It should be noted that the word "vodka" did not exist then. In the state acts of that time and in the trade books in the Russian Empire, vodka was called “simple intoxicating table wine”, “half-bar” “pennik” and “moonshine”. Finally, vodka became vodka only under the Soviets, when the trade name was registered in GOST.
Under Catherine II, vodka was sold only in buckets
The first drinking establishment in Moscow was opened after the capture of Kazan by Ivan the Terrible. And they flourished in the 18th century.
It is worth noting that it was from that time that the popular expression "drink vodka in buckets" remained in Russia. The thing is that until 1885 the people had not heard of the "half-liter". Vodka was sold only in buckets - 12, 3 liters each. The bottle, habitual for a modern person, began to be used as a container for vodka only since 1894.
The heaviest medal in the history of Russia - the medal "For drunkenness"
The Medal "For Drunkenness" was established Peter I in 1714. He decided that she would be a panacea for drunkenness. Probably, the first Russian emperor relied on an incriminating inscription that gave out a drink in a person, and on the weight of a medal. Together with the collar and chains, the medal weighed 8 kg. They were "awarded" with a medal at the police station and fastened in such a way that it was impossible to remove it. It took a week to wear the medal.
In the middle of the 18th century, distilling was a privilege of the nobles
In the second half of the 18th century in Russia, all vodka was only "home" made. And all thanks to the decree of March 31, 1755, which ordered the confiscation of all distilleries that were kept by merchants under the guise of nobles or on shares with nobles. However, this guaranteed the high quality of the product, since it was assumed that vodka was a drink intended for the privileged strata of society. Vodka was purified from fusel oils only with natural animal coagulant proteins, although it was extremely expensive: half a bucket of egg whites or a bucket of milk were put on 6 buckets of vodka from the first race.
Mendeleev was not the "father" of Russian vodka
The great Russian scientist Dmitry Ivanovich Mendeleev at one time presented to his colleagues his doctoral dissertation "On the combination of alcohol with water", which has nothing to do with vodka and the establishment of the standard for the fortress at the level of 40%. The fact is that until 1886 the base standard for the strength of this intoxicating drink was 38.3%. And just for the convenience of calculations, taking into account the "shrinkage" margin and so that 38 degrees are guaranteed to reach the consumer in any case, the strength standard was rounded up to 40.
Prohibition in Russia was introduced several times
In 1914, a tsarist decree was issued in Russia prohibiting the production of all types of alcohol throughout Russia. At first, the sale of alcohol was banned for a month - at the beginning of the First World War during the mobilization. Then it was extended for the entire duration of the war. At that time, alcohol could only be bought in a restaurant. And even taking into account the fact that there are numerous ways to circumvent the law, the average alcohol consumption in Russia per person has decreased 10 times. The country returned to the level of 1914 only in the 1960s. According to the statistics of 1914, the number of drunk arrested persons in St. Petersburg decreased by 70%, the number of those who sober up by 29 times, the number of suicides due to alcoholism by 50%, and deposits in savings banks increased by 1.3 billion rubles. True, the consumption of surrogates and secret moonshine began to flourish in the country.
With the advent of the Soviets, the fight against alcoholism continued, extending in 1917 the ban on the sale of vodka. In 1919, a decree signed by Lenin prohibited the manufacture and sale of alcohol, hard liquor and non-alcoholic substances, and for violation of the norms provided for the confiscation of property and a prison term of up to 5 years. The production and trade of alcohol resumed only in 1923.
It should be noted that today the regional law banning the sale of alcohol on Saturdays and Sundays, as well as after 20:00 every day, is in force in the Ulyanovsk region. In April 2013, Dagestan approved a bill banning the sale of alcohol on certain days, in particular on Children's Day, Knowledge Day and during the month of Ramadan. The most stringent anti-alcohol measures have been taken in the Republic of Yakutia. There, the sale of vodka is prohibited from 8 pm to 2 pm the next day.
The largest vodka museum is located in Moscow
The Museum of the History of Vodka is located in Moscow on the Izmailovskoye Highway. The collection of the museum allows you to get acquainted with the 500-year history of vodka. The museum exhibits more than 600 varieties of this drink, as well as photographs, posters, royal and presidential decrees, old vodka recipes from the 18th century, historical types of bottles and labels. The museum has several sectors: the Old Russian era, the Russian Empire, the Great Patriotic War, the USSR, modern Russia. The most valuable collections are considered to be the collection of vodka bottles by N. L. Shustov and the damask of the Supplier of the Court of His Imperial Majesty P. A. Smirnov (1900).
The Red Army gave out vodka "Voroshilov ration"
In January 1940, during the Soviet-Finnish war, the soldiers of the Red Army began to receive vodka rations, which they called "Voroshilov rations" or "People's Commissars 100 grams." Since May 1942, vodka has been distributed daily to soldiers on the front lines. Moreover, later the rate was increased to 200 grams. On the Transcaucasian front, they gave out not vodka, but 300 grams of dry wine or 200 grams of port.
Tsar's vodka is not drunk
Tsarskaya vodka is a mixture of concentrated hydrochloric and nitric acids and can dissolve gold. Freshly prepared aqua regia has no color, but quickly becomes orange. Another distinctive feature is the strong smell of chlorine and nitrogen dioxide.
The vodka dispute between the USSR and Poland was resolved by international arbitration
From 1977 to 1982, Poland and the USSR argued in court over the priority of vodka production as a Russian national drink. This case was won by the Soviet Union by the decision of international arbitration.
And further…
Vodka is an expensive drink that requires expensive accompaniment: smoked and salted red fish, caviar, sturgeon, salmon, pickled mushrooms, dumplings or pancakes. It is impossible to reveal the taste of this drink without a hearty and salty snack. By the way, fresh green onions, pickles and herring with boiled potatoes give a good effect.
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