A fermented honey drink, lightly alcoholic and often spiced. It is an old East Slavic drink that Suzdal revived commercially and now sells to visitors all along the Golden Ring.
Producing alcohol at home is licensed or restricted in most of the atlas’s readership, and the commercial versions are branded products from Suzdal’s own producers.
What goes into it
- honey
- water
- hops
- spices such as clove and cinnamon
- yeast
How it is made
Honey is diluted with water and boiled with hops and spices, cooled, and fermented for weeks. The modern boiled version is a shortcut: the medieval drink was made by leaving honey and water to ferment slowly on their own for years, and boiling was adopted precisely because nobody wanted to wait.
How long it takes: weeks for the boiled version; the old cold-fermented style took years
How it is eaten
Cool in a mug or a small glass, sometimes warmed and spiced in winter.
History
An old East Slavic honey drink; Suzdal revived commercial production and sells it to visitors along the Golden Ring.
Frequently asked questions
What is Medovukha?
Medovukha is a wine & spirit from Russia: fermented honey drink, lightly alcoholic and often spiced. An old East Slavic honey drink; Suzdal revived commercial production and sells it to visitors along the Golden Ring.
How is Medovukha made?
Honey is diluted with water and boiled with hops and spices, cooled, and fermented for weeks. The modern boiled version is a shortcut: the medieval drink was made by leaving honey and water to ferment slowly on their own for years, and boiling was adopted precisely because nobody wanted to wait. It takes weeks for the boiled version; the old cold-fermented style took years.
Can I make Medovukha at home?
No, and the atlas gives no method for it. Producing alcohol at home is licensed or restricted in most of the atlas’s readership, and the commercial versions are branded products from Suzdal’s own producers.
What goes into Medovukha?
Honey, water, hops, spices such as clove and cinnamon, yeast.
How is Medovukha eaten?
Cool in a mug or a small glass, sometimes warmed and spiced in winter.
