January 31 is often considered Russian vodka's unofficial birthday. It was the day when Russian scientist Dmitry Mendeleev defended his doctoral dissertation "On Combining Water and Alcohol" in 1865 in St Petersburg. After more than a year of research, Mendeleev concluded that the best quality of vodka has an alcohol-to-water ratio of 40%, and he published his dissertation on the subject.
Since 1894 the 40% mark has been the standard for vodka production in Russia. Before 1894, vodka could have 38%, 45%, or even 70% alcohol by volume. Now Russian vodka is required by law to have 40% - 56% alcohol by volume, according to GOST (the Russian government's technical standard).
Vodka first appeared in Russia in the 14th century, when aqua vitae was brought to Moscow from Genoa, according to Moscow's Vodka Museum. The strong alcoholic drink was originally made from grapes. However, the recipe was easily adapted to the local conditions, where wheat was more readily accessible than grapes. Isidore, a monk at the Chudov monastery in Moscow's Kremlin was the first to make vodka from wheat, around 1430. The drink became known as bread wine (khlebnoe vino).
The name vodka has existed since the 17th century. It is a diminutive of the Russian word voda (water). In 1977 the vodka manufacturing monopoly of the Polish People's Republic sued the U.S.S.R. for unfair use of the word "vodka." The Polish government maintained that vodka was originally created in Poland and the Polish people should retain the exclusive right to use and market the name "vodka," just as the region Champagne in France has the exclusive right to name its wines "Champagne." Contrary to Poland's claims, extensive research has shown that vodka was distilled in Moscow years before it first appeared in Poland.
By the mid-18th century, vodka in Russia had gained widespread popularity and numerous distilleries opened across the country. The government began regulating the vodka industry, and a new tax on vodka became a substantial source of revenue for the government.
Throughout the 20th century, vodka was an important export product for the Soviet Union. In 1972, the Soviet government granted PepsiCo permission to open a cola factory in the Soviet Union, in exchange for marketing and promoting Stolichnaya vodka in the West.
Vodka is a popular alcohol beverage in the World, with sales upwards of 461 million decaliters in 2008. Stolichnaya vodka previously accounted for 10% of the world market, but has fallen behind U.S.-produced Smirnoff, which now accounts for 5% of the market, according to research by alcohol market expert Victor Khmelnitskiy. In 2006 the top three global vodka brands were Smirnoff (USA), Absolut (Sweden) and Nemiroff (Ukraine), according to the American magazine Impact.
Modern vodka is made from wheat, rye, potatoes, or sugar. Wheat and rye vodka are usually considered to be superior to sugar and potato based vodkas. To make vodka, the alcohol and water are mixed and then usually distilled with milk or egg yolks.
Many Russians distill their own vodka (called samogon). Home-distilled vodka was particularly popular during Gorbachev's anti-alcohol campaign 1985-1987, when alcohol prices were raised. Selling home-distilled vodka remains illegal in Russia.
Russia's unofficial national drink continues to be reinvented and modernized. In 2002, for example, Igor Soliarskiy, Vice President of Transneft - the Russian state oil transportation monopoly - patented a vitamin-rich vodka. His modified vodka is advertised as an alcoholic beverage with a "slight trace of freshness," containing vitamins B1, B6, C, and Niacin.
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