Starka

Starka

Polish Starka 10 years old
Type	Aged Vodka
Manufacturer	Polmos Szczecin
Country of origin	Poland and Lithuania
Introduced	15th century
Alcohol by volume	50%
Variants	Starka 10 years old Starka Jubileuszowa 15 years old Starka Patria 20 years old Starka Piastowska 25 years old Starka Banquet 30 years old Starka 50 - 50 years old

Starka is a traditional dry vodka distilled from rye grain, currently produced only in Poland and Lithuania. Traditionally Starka is made from natural (up to 2 distillations, no rectification) rye spirit and aged in oak barrels with small additions of linden-tree and apple-tree leaves. The methods of production are similar to those used in making whisky. Sold in various grades, the most notable difference between them is the length of the aging period, varying from 5 to over 50 years, and the natural colour which is obtained from the reaction between the alcohol and the oak barrel, not from the additives.

History

Starka was known in Poland, Belarus and Lithuania at least since the 15th century, later in the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth, and by the 17th century became one of the favourite drinks of the nobility of the Commonwealth and Sarmatist culture. Tradition had it that at a child's birth, the father of the house poured large amounts of home-made spirits (approximately 75 proof) into an empty oak barrel, previously used to store wine (usually imported from Hungary at that time and hence called Węgrzyn, or Hungarian). The barrel was then sealed with beeswax and buried, only to be dug out at the child's wedding. The name itself stems from this process of aging and in 15th century Polish meant both the vodka type and an old woman. Alternatively the name is derived from the Lithuanian word "Starkus", as production of Starka is associated with birth.

In late 19th century various companies (mostly in Imperial Russia and Austria-Hungary) slightly simplified the production process and adopted it to the needs of mass production by the Lwów-based Baczewski company. After the end of World War I, which put an end to foreign rule over former parts of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth, starka remained one of the most popular spirits in both countries. After World War II when Lithuania was inside the Soviet Union, starka production there was not stopped and was produced in "Vilniaus degtinė" and "Stumbras" (Kaunas) factories. In Poland, all of the spirit producers were nationalized, but the production of starka continued, mostly as a high-priced export good.

Currently, Polmos Szczecin is the only company in Poland to produce Starka, and they offer it in all age classes, from 10 to 50 years old. All Starkas produced by Polmos Szczecin contain 50% alcohol by volume. There is also a 10-year-old Starka that is 80 proof (40%). The oldest Starkas offered by Polmos date back to 1947. There is also a number of other companies (most notably in Lithuania, Bulgaria, Kazakhstan, Russia and Latvia) that produce vodkas styled after the starka (produced mostly from a mixture of rectified spirit and herbal tinctures).

External links

• Polmos Szczecin, one of the most respected manufacturers of Starka
• Stumbras, producer of Starka-styled alcohol in Lithuania