Global InformationHorilka information
 Nemiroff Honey Pepper horilka | |
| Type | Alcoholic beverage |
|---|---|
| Place of origin | Ukraine |
| Region or state | Eastern Europe |
| Main ingredients | Water, alcohol |
| Variations | Flavoured vodka, nastoianka |
Food energy (per serving) | 122 kcal per 50 ml kcal |
| |
Horilka (Ukrainian: горілка; Belarusian: гарэлка) is a Ukrainian alcoholic beverage.
The word horilka may also be used in a generic sense in the Ukrainian language to mean vodka or other strong spirits and etymologically is similar to the Ukrainian word for 'to burn' - hority. Home-distilled horilka, moonshine, is called samohon (Ukrainian: самогон, lit. 'self-distillated' or 'self-run' - almost identical to the Russian and Polish samogon). Horilka is usually distilled from grain (usually wheat or rye), though it can, less commonly, also be distilled from potatoes,[1] honey, sugar beets etc. One type of horilka, called pertsivka (Ukrainian: перцівка), is horilka with chili peppers. Historically, outside Ukraine, pertsivka is generally referred to when people speak of horilka, although pertsivka itself is just one type of horilka.
It is believed that horilka was not as strong as today with about 20 percent alcohol by volume (40 proof).[1][2] However, today nearly all industrially produced horilka is 40 percent (80 proof).
Horilka in Ukrainian or Vodka in Russian is a typically colourless liquor, usually distilled from fermented grain. It is commonly thought that the term is taken from the Slavic word "voda" (woda) for "water." In Ukrainian "vodka" is "horilka" (with the words root meaning being "to burn").
Except for insignificant amounts of flavourings, horilka consists of water and alcohol (ethanol). Horilka usually has an alcohol content ranging from 35 to 60 percent by volume. The classic Ukrainian or Russian horilka / vodka is 40 percent (80 degrees proof), the number being attributed to the famous Russian chemist Dmitri Mendeleev. According to the Vodka Museum in St. Petersburg, Russia, Mendeleev thought the perfect percentage to be 38, but since spirits in his time were taxed on their strength the percentage was rounded up to 40 to simplify the tax computation. Nowadays you can also find 38 percent horilka, but is usually called "Light".
Apart from the alcoholic content, horilka / vodka may be classified into two main groups: clear horilka and flavoured horilka. Flavourings often include red pepper, ginger, various fruit flavours, vanilla, chocolate (unsweetened), and cinnamon. Ukrainians produce commercial horilka also that includes St John's Wort (a plant).The Poles and Belarusians add the leaves of the local bison grass to produce ?ubrówka or Zubrovka vodka, which has a slightly sweet flavour and a light amber colour. In Ukraine and Russia, vodka flavoured with honey and pepper (Pertsovka, in Russian, Pertsivka, in Ukrainian) is also very popular.
- ^ a b Malko, Romko. "Ukrainian Horilka — more than just an alcoholic beverage". Welcome to Ukraine Magazine. Retrieved 7 July 2017.
- ^ Greenall, Robert. "Ukraine and ancient Rus". greenallrussia.com. Archived from the original on 11 November 2006. Retrieved 6 December 2006.