The traditional Russian strong favorite drink - vodka, has many recipes, but all of them are based on diluting bread (mainly rye) alcohol with water.
The original techniques that have developed in the production of Russian vodka make it an exceptional drink among similar products from other countries. The best is the vodka produced on the basis of traditional rye raw materials. Blending is carried out with water that has passed additional filtration. Boiling and distillation are excluded. Typical for traditional Russian recipes is the addition of a small amount of other grain components and aromatic additives to the base.
It is possible to prepare high-quality vodka at home, subject to a number of prerequisites. The basis of all spirits, including vodka, is an alcoholic solution, which is infused with the addition of all kinds of plant components (roots, herbs, flowers, fruits, berries, etc.). The use of various additives makes it possible to make vodka with specific properties. Depending on your wishes, you can get a product with a healing, sedative or tonic effect.
1. In order for the taste qualities of the drink with plant raw materials to remain unchanged, the alcohol solution is subjected to a distillation procedure. To simplify the procedure, the desired herbal ingredients can be added to the starter at the time of laying. A stronger aroma can be given to the drink if the ready-made sourdough is diluted with pre-infused decoctions of herbs or roots.
2. For distillation, vodka must be properly infused. Put spices in a bottle, fill them with vodka and keep them in a dark, warm place for fourteen days, shaking them every day. After two weeks, the vodka must be drained into the alembic, the spices must be squeezed out there. Remember that distilling vodka with spices draws out more flavor from it than a simple tincture.
3. Adding sugar syrup allows you to get liqueur, vodka with a milder taste and lower strength. To prepare the syrup, grind the sugar as fine as possible and add it to boiled water. Boil the syrup until the foam stops appearing. Pour the settled syrup into vodka in the amount of ¼ syrup per volume of sweetened vodka.
4. You can make vodka of different colors using different herbs and spices. The yellow color is given by the ginger or saffron added to the vodka. The following components will help to achieve a green color: mint, lemon balm and horseradish leaves, as well as black currant leaves, parsley juice, leeks. An unusual scarlet color will give the vodka sandalwood or tartar. Folk recipes also allow you to make the drink purple, blue, brown, or flesh-colored. The choice of these or those ingredients depends on your taste preferences.
