A pale green vodka with a blade of bison grass standing in the bottle, drunk with cloudy apple juice as a szarlotka. The grass comes from the Białowieża forest where Europe’s last wild bison live, and the vodka has been made in Poland since at least the sixteenth century.
It is a commercial product built on a distilled spirit, and the bison grass is hand-picked in a protected forest — its coumarin content is also regulated, which is why the American bottling is a different formulation.
What goes into it
- rye vodka
- hierochloe odorata — bison grass
- water
How it is made
Rye is fermented and distilled to a clean spirit. An infusion of hand-picked bison grass is blended in, giving the pale green colour and the vanilla-and-hay aroma, and a single blade is dropped into each bottle. The grass contains coumarin, which is what it smells of and also why the version sold in the United States uses a coumarin-free flavouring instead.
How long it takes: distilled and infused; no ageing
How it is eaten
Ice cold neat, or long with cloudy apple juice as a szarlotka.
History
Flavoured with grass from the Białowieża forest where Europe’s last wild bison live; it has been distilled in Poland since at least the sixteenth century.
Frequently asked questions
What is Żubrówka?
Żubrówka is a wine & spirit from Poland: pale green vodka with a blade of bison grass, drunk with apple juice. Flavoured with grass from the Białowieża forest where Europe’s last wild bison live; it has been distilled in Poland since at least the sixteenth century.
How is Żubrówka made?
Rye is fermented and distilled to a clean spirit. An infusion of hand-picked bison grass is blended in, giving the pale green colour and the vanilla-and-hay aroma, and a single blade is dropped into each bottle. The grass contains coumarin, which is what it smells of and also why the version sold in the United States uses a coumarin-free flavouring instead. It takes distilled and infused; no ageing.
Can I make Żubrówka at home?
No, and the atlas gives no method for it. It is a commercial product built on a distilled spirit, and the bison grass is hand-picked in a protected forest — its coumarin content is also regulated, which is why the American bottling is a different formulation.
What goes into Żubrówka?
Rye vodka, hierochloe odorata — bison grass, water.
How is Żubrówka eaten?
Ice cold neat, or long with cloudy apple juice as a szarlotka.
