Patricia Herlihy - Vodka: A Global History

There cannot be too much vodka,
there can only be not enough vodka.
Russian saying

Stripped to its essence, vodka is little more than pure alcohol distilled from grain a clear liquid without colour, odour or taste. Yet, thanks to its remarkable potency and versatility, it has become the worlds favourite libation. Vodka can be taken neat in one gulp la Russe, or sipped as a cocktail when flavoured by almost anything palatable. Vodka can even provide the base for a refreshing drink, when combined with fruit juice, soda water, tonic or ginger beer.

One distinct advantage vodka has over its rival spirits is, to paraphrase an advertisement, that it leaves one breathless which is a coy way of saying that it leaves no smell of liquor on ones breath. For this reason (and the fact that it looks like water), vodka is often said to have a clean appeal, and is reputedly the drink of choice among tippling bartenders the world over.

Vodka also has another inherent advantage over other alcoholic drinks: affordability. Its raw materials are relatively cheap and plentiful (cultivating fields is far less labour-intensivethan tending vineyards), and its distillation process is comparatively quick, simple and efficient. Moreover, vodka knows no vintages; there is no elaborate ageing process after all, why would anyone bother to age a drink that is basically without taste?

Another advantage is that vodka is extremely stable and non-perishable. A Russian joke underscores this point: a drunkard enters a liquor store and asks, Do you have any fresh vodka today?

The indignant merchant snaps, What do you mean fresh, you idiot? Its vodka.

I am no idiot, the customer retorts. I drank two of your bottles yesterday and they made me sick!

Yet for all vodkas inherent simplicity, this enticing elixir defies a simple description: vodka is many things to many people. Even when taken pure, some experience no taste atall, while others detect subtle flavours imbued by the basic ingredients. Even these connoisseurs probably do not experience exactly the same sensations on their palates.

Present-day vodka makers are keenly aware of vodkas widespread appeal and marvellous marketing possibilities. They design, package and pitch their brands to target a variety of markets including women, youths, gays, macho types, bon vivants, connoisseurs and adventurers. Consumers, for their part, proudly proclaim their identities by their choice of brand. Vodka is, in fact, the perfect postmodern drink: marketers carefully construct a brand image while consumers define themselves in no small part by the brand they choose.

Most imbibers turn to vodka for pleasure, comfort, warmth, courage, consolation or even inspiration. Some maintain that it has healthful applications. As an alcoholic drink, however, it is easily abused and can be potentially a fearful, destructive force. Paradoxically, some drink vodka to heightentheir appreciation of lifes pleasures, while others use it to suppress lifes pains, be they physical or emotional. Alas, it appears that one must use vodka either one way or the other, for no one can simultaneously enjoy life while seeking to escape from it.

Locally made vodka bottles displayed in a glass case at an airport in Kazakhstan, artfully arranged to attract the travellers attention.

Whatever ones take on vodka, one fact is as clear as the drink itself: this seemingly unremarkable liquid is in fact a highly potent force with both a rich history and a promising future. For centuries, poets have extolled vodkas wondrous powers, while peasants, nobles and nonentities alike have tasted its fruits and suffered its consequences. Meanwhile, a succession of authorities ranging from the Christian churchto the Communists have sought to control its diffusion while reaping immense revenues from popular consumption. The Russian state has always found ways to gain revenue from the production and consumption of vodka. Among the earliest producers of vodka, monks sold it for traditional purposes. Then in the 1990s President Boris Yeltsin gave the Russian Orthodox Church licence to import alcohol and sell it on the open market. Even today, vodka remains a formidable social and economic force, whether produced by artisans or by large, industrialized factories.