Papcun - Shaken, Not Stirred. A Vodka Lovers Guide to Martinis and Bloody Marys: Featuring 101 of the Best Vodka Cocktail Recipes

It is comprised mostly of water and ethanol with traces of impurities. It is made with the distillation of grains, potatoes or sometime fruits and sugar (Ciroc was one of the first popular fruit-based vodkas). Traditional vodka had an alcoholic content of 38% or 76 proof. Today, standard vodkas from Russia and Poland have 40% alcohol by volume (ABV) or 80 proof. The big-wigs at the European Union have established that any European Vodka must be 35.7% ABV in order to be called such. American vodkas are traditionally 40% with the exception of some that are 50% ABV or 100 proof.

Eastern European countries and those around the Baltic Sea are known as the Vodka Belt. There, they drink their vodka neat, meaning there is nothing in the glass except the sweet nectar of water and ethanol. We lightweight Americans usually mix it with juices, soda water, tonic or anything else we can get our hands on because we are babies. I like to add just a splash of cranberry juice to mine. II Whats in a name? Well when it comes to Vodka, a whole hell of a lot. The word vodka comes from the Slavic word voda which means water and literally translates to little water .

The word Vodka first came up in the early 1400s in Poland. Back then, it referred to chemicals such as household cleaners and medicines (yummy). The word used for the actual drink we know and love was gorzalka which comes from gorzec meaning, to burn. That seems appropriate to me. Vodka was first used to describe an actual beverage in the mid 1500s when referring to a medicinal drink brought from Poland to Russia. I could write an entire book on all of the different theories about where the word vodka came from but I dont want to excite you too much.

So, for now, lets just stick with the Slavic translation. It means water and it burns. Deal with it. III There isnt much historical material around that documents the origins of Vodka. Its because of this lack of information that there is so much debate on the subject. The biggest argument is that some say it was first distilled in the area of todays Russia in the 9 th century and others claim it was Poland that started making it in the 8 th century.

As far as the US, vodka became popular in the 1950s and surpassed whiskey as the most consumed spirit in the country by 1975. Which means everyone finally came to their senses. Dont get me wrong, whiskey is great but vodka just makes me feel all warm and fuzzy inside.