A Clear History By Steve Killick
British actor Hugh Laurie once tweeted, “Yes, all right, Russian vodka is OK if you need to clean the oven. For drinking it must henceforth be Polish.” This would most certainly have delighted the Poles, who have never been close to the Russians in anything but geography, with both countries fiercely claiming the distinction of having invented that clear, strong, odorless spirit that we all know as vodka. The name comes from a Slavic word for water, “voda.” It’s the same in Russian, “woda” in Polish, and it’s appropriate given both the quantities consumed and the ease with which vodka goes down. But as to whether the first girl to lift a shot was named Natasha or Natasza, it’s likely we’ll never know. Even the Swedes occasionally lay claim to having distilled something similar (although there’s evidence that they were importing the stuff from the Russians by the 16th century). While vodka certainly originated in Northern Europe, determining an exact country of origin is further complicated by the fact that the spirit can be made from so many ingredients, including potatoes, grains, corn, sugar beet, grapes and a hybrid variety of wheat and rye known as triticale, which, for what it’s worth, was first bred in 19th century Scotland.
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