The art of distillation was established in the 8th century by Arab alchemists, who embracedthe primordial understanding that all created things consist of three principles – soul, spirit and body.
They recognised alcohol (from the Arab al-kohl) as the spirit latent in all plants and called it the water of life. It took another three and a half centuries for the secrets of distillation to arrive in the Christian West. Regarded as a medicinal elixir and revered for its apparently magical properties, it was not until its widespread application as a remedy against the plague that alcoholic spirit became widely distilled and imbibed. Before long there were stills in every city in Europe.
Vodka quickly established itself as the spirit of choice in Poland and Russia, both countries claiming to have discovered it first. Its name comes from the same word -voda/woda - meaning ‘water’ in both Russian and Polish.
The best vodka is made from finest rye and grain; singly or in combination. It is the noble grains that give the vodka its essential character, its soul. The soul in vodka speaks to the soul in man. No wonder the Poles and Russians, with their tremendous sense of soul, should choose vodka as their national drink.
