If you ask in any country of the world "What Russia is associated with" the answer is sure to be "with vodka". And indeed, vodka is the most famous attribute of Russian culture. Living in severe climate of the North, the Russians always loved to drink a glass of vodka accompanied by good zakuska (hoer's d'oeuvres) "for to get warm". Vodka has always been an indispensable part of Russian life; with it people commemorate the most important events, for example, weddings, departures on a long trip, a birth of a baby, or a funeral repast. There were even periods in Russian history, when a bottle of vodka became a kind of national currency, which was used to pay for all sorts of small services, and this way of payment was preferable to cash payments. On the whole, vodka in Russia is really a unique cultural phenomenon that is worth scientific research studies.
The first vodka museum in Russia and in the whole world was opened on the Day of the City, May 27, 2001, in the very heart of St. Petersburg. Unlike other exhibitions of this kind that are usually just screens for shops, the museum in Saint Petersburg was organized according to the all museum canons. Unique exhibits, interesting facts and a tasting room - all these will help you not only to penetrate deeper in Russian history but also to understand mysterious Russian soul.
It is interesting that Russians have been drinking vodka not always, as many people think, but since the middle of the 15th century. The word "vodka" appeared in the 17th century and is most likely to be a derivative of "voda" (water). Before that other names were used for the drink: wine (bread wine), korchma or korchma wine, distilled wine, burning wine, burnt wine and bitter wine, etc.
The ancestor of vodka, a strong drink called "aqua vitae" (Latin for "water of life"), is supposed to have been first brought to Russia by Genoese merchants on their way to Lithuania. However, the new foreign drink didn't become popular - at that time the Russian preferred mead and beer.
In 1429 "aqua vitae" again appeared in Russia, for this time as a universal medicine, a sort of panacea from all the illnesses. This time vodka was estimated at its true worth. In the middle of the 15th century monks of Moscow monasteries statrted producing Russian vodka, made from grain, which was abundant in Russia. The manufacturing of Russian vodka developed so rapidly that soon the country began to export "burning wine". At the end of the 15th century wise and sagacious tsar Ivan the Third introduced a state monopoly on the production and selling of vodka. Thus the history of vodka in Russia began.
The guides will tell you about the first drinking houses, explain what the difference between kabaks and tractirs. You'll know what chekushka is, and how big the traditional Russian cup (charka, cheporuha) is. The staff of the Museum satisfy the curiosity of all those interested in the personal preferences of the Russian emperors in alcoholic drinks.
The larger part of the Museum's collection is devoted to the 20th century. The attitude of Soviet power to the most popular alcoholic drink, "Commissar's 100 Grams", Soviet folklore, Gorbachev's dry law - the guides will tell you in details about these and other interesting events.
In one of the museum halls the interior of a typical Russian Tractir (restaurant) has been carefully recreated. There you are offered to taste the best sorts of vodka and traditional zakuski like salted cucumbers and mushrooms or bliny with sturgeon or salmon caviar. The Tractir also invites all the guests to enjoy food prepared according to the Cook Book published in 1887.
Right in the museum you can buy original souvenirs to testify your visit to this extraordinary establishment and please your friends. The best sorts of Russian vodka, ornamental matrioshkas, gzel and ceramic coverings, exclusive sets of crystal and metal vodka shot glasses are just some of the gifts available for purchase.