How to drink vodka like a Pole

Dec 27, 2010 11:38:02 PM

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Planning a trip to Kraków and want to fit in by drinking like a true Pole? In this excerpt from Lonely Planet Magazine, you can just follow the steps below – all the way to the bottom of your glass.

Wine drinkers may have outstripped vodka drinkers in Poland for the first time, but the country still falls firmly within the vodka belt, which stretches across Eastern Europe, the Nordic and Baltic states.

Vodka has long been a part of Polish tradition, with some blends dating back centuries – Zubrówka has been produced for more than 600 years. So, ready to drink like a local? Here goes:

In Poland, drinking is a public affair; always ensure you have a group of friends with you to share your vodka.
Poles don’t drink vodka in cocktail form or diluted with a mixer. In fact, to traditionalists, these practices are considered practically criminal. Vodka is drunk neat, chilled (but without ice) and usually in measurements of 50ml.
The most common toast is na zdrowie (pronounced ‘naz-dro-v-yeh’), meaning ‘to health’.
Vodka is always drunk in one gulp or ‘do dna’ (‘to the bottom’), regardless of size.
Drinks are immediately refilled, so take some time between each toast to sip some water or have a Polish snack, such as pickles or sausage.
Be warned: if you’re a guest in someone’s house, your host will expect the bottle to be empty before you leave.
Drink responsibly! Unless you’re Russian, never try to out-drink a Pole. Miss a few turns or sip your drink in stages.

Polish vodka comes in a number of colours and flavours. So how do you know what’s what? Here’s a handy intro from Lonely Planet’s Poland guidebook:

Czysta (clear) vodka is not, as is often thought in the West, the only species of the wódka family. Though clear vodka does form the basic ‘fuel’ for seasoned drinkers – wyborowa is the finest of the wheat-based clear vodkas and żytnia the rye-based ones – there is a whole spectrum of varieties, from very sweet to extra dry.

These include myśliwska (‘hunter’s vodka’ tasting not unlike gin), wiśniówka (flavoured with cherries), jarzębiak (rowan berries), cytrynówka (lemon), pieprzówka (pepper) and the famous żubrówka (‘bison vodka’, which is flavoured with grass from the Białowieża Forest on which the bison feed).

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Comments

16 December 2010 8:26AM polish_drinker Report this comment
I'm a Pole and this guide is a bit funny. Firstly it's not that some Pole will kick your ass if you won't drink clear vodka. It all depends on kind of people. Some hardy guy may call you a girl because in Poland mostly girls drink mixed vodka :p Of course Pole won't say about those "rules" but you may feel a bit of pression in some situations :pp
18 January 2011 3:35PM bsiemaszko Report this comment
This guide makes us seem like hard ass drinkers that expect all foreigners to keep up - this is so not true! You'll find that Poles will 'let you off the hook' if you can't keep pace and due to Western influences, mixed drinks are becoming more accepted. Last time I was there my (Polish born and bred) cousin was having Zubrowka with Apple juice!!! I could not believe it! Having said that, I tend to agree with the guide... neat, chilled with pickels or herring is the only way to go!
18 January 2011 10:34PM madziabis Report this comment
No wonder people think we in Poland drink vodka like water. How can they think otherwise after reading something like that? Yes, people do drink vodka, but the huge majority does it only if there is a good reason for it, like birthday or wedding. If you go to the pub pretty much everyone will drink beer, not vodka. And drinking cocktails is perfectly ok and very common.
19 January 2011 4:28AM gabigabsbackpack Report this comment
Well,if you come to Kraków I heard there are few great ways to get to know polish style of drinking... But don't even consider joining one of the crappy pub crawls where they give you power hour in one of the shittiest pub in town that gave the pub crawl leader best deal on the worse vodka!!! One vodka & bear tasting tour I joined and loved was the VODKA & BERR TASTING TOUR giuded by the polish guy, I think worker in one of the Greg & Tom hostels, that took us to the real cracovian style bars known only by the nbatives, gave us unlimited vodka shots until 22PM and than a beer served in piepes in one of the clubs that is the real brewery!!! THAT WAS AWSOME!!! check the photos in google!!! they also have that Vodka Festival thing going on on wednesdays where they serve you all the best polish traditional spirits, all you can drink in 2 h, and than all night clbbing...maaaaan that were great days in Kraków when I was there !! highly recomended!!
6 December 2011 12:20AM niitesh Report this comment
I too enjoy vodka shots but with chasers, it just so hard taking vodka shots with no side beverages to go along. http://www.healthsanchar.com/2011/12/how-to-drink-vodka.html
12 December 2011 12:27AM pija_novski Report this comment
It's quite funny article. Yeah, vodka is still commonly drunk in Poland but it's worth noticing that beer is traditionally very popular too (nowadays, even more popular than strong alcohols). For this reason it's good to go to one of many pubs serving Polish local beers (like Omerta or Katedra in Krakow) when visiting Poland.