Tatanka

Ingredients

The drink

• 50 mlŻubrówka bison grass vodka
• 150 mlcloudy unfiltered apple juice, well chilled
• hard, clear ice cubes, enough to fill the glass

Garnish

• 2thin apple slices
• 1 pinchground cinnamon, for the Szarlotka version
• 1squeeze of lemon (optional)

Directions

1. Chill the glass and keep the apple juice in the fridge. Tatanka is a fridge-cold drink and it is never shaken.
2. Fill a highball glass to the very top with ice. Too little ice melts fast and waters the drink down within minutes.
3. Pour the vodka over the ice.
4. Top with cloudy apple juice to roughly one part vodka to three parts juice. Poles pour by eye and usually lean longer on the juice.
5. Stir once with a bar spoon, lifting from the bottom, just enough to combine. Hard stirring knocks out the grassy aroma that is the whole point.
6. Slide in the apple slices and serve immediately, while the ice is still solid and the drink is sharply cold.
7. For a Szarlotka, dust the surface with cinnamon and add a squeeze of lemon. It drinks like apple pie, which is exactly what the name means.

Technique

• Żubrówka is a rye vodka macerated with a blade of Hierochloe odorata, the bison grass of the Białowieża forest, which gives it a vanilla, almond and new-mown-hay note from coumarin. A single blade of the grass sits in every bottle.
• Tatanka is Lakota for bison and is mostly a bar name; in Poland the drink is usually just ordered as Żubrówka z sokiem jabłkowym, or as Szarlotka.
• Cloudy juice is not a stylistic choice. The apple solids and pectin carry the coumarin note; clear juice tastes thin and sugary by comparison.

Substitutions

• Bottles sold outside the EU are made with a coumarin-free flavouring and taste noticeably flatter; a drop of vanilla extract closes some of the gap.
• No Żubrówka at all: a good rye vodka with a lemon twist makes a decent, plainer highball, but it is not the same drink.

Variations

• Szarlotka, with cinnamon and lemon, served in a tumbler over crushed ice.
• A 1:1.5 build for a stronger, much more aromatic version.
• A summer pour over crushed ice with a mint sprig and a wedge of apple.

History

A Polish bar standard named for the bison; the apple juice echoes the grass vodka’s herbal note.

Frequently asked questions

What is Tatanka?

Tatanka is a cocktail from Poland: żubrówka bison grass vodka lengthened with cloudy apple juice. A Polish bar standard named for the bison; the apple juice echoes the grass vodka’s herbal note.

How long does Tatanka take to make?

Tatanka takes 3 min of preparation and no cooking at all. The recipe makes 1 highball. It is rated easy to make.

What can I substitute in Tatanka?

Yes, within limits. Bottles sold outside the EU are made with a coumarin-free flavouring and taste noticeably flatter; a drop of vanilla extract closes some of the gap. No Żubrówka at all: a good rye vodka with a lemon twist makes a decent, plainer highball, but it is not the same drink.

What is the most important thing to get right in Tatanka?

Chill the glass and keep the apple juice in the fridge. Tatanka is a fridge-cold drink and it is never shaken.