Who invented vodka? A short excursion into history. What is the strength of vodka and methods for determining it. What is the strongest vodka in the world? Why is vodka made at 40 degrees?

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Is it true that Mendeleev set a 40-proof standard for vodka?

No it is not true. The great Russian scientist Dmitry Ivanovich Mendeleev had nothing to do with establishing a 40-proof vodka standard.

Didn’t Mendeleev write scientific works stating that vodka should be 40 degrees?

No, Mendeleev does not have a single scientific work in which vodka was mentioned.

What then is Mendeleev’s dissertation “On the combination of alcohol with water” about?

In it, the scientist studied the properties of water-alcohol mixtures, but not in order to drink the resulting liquids. The purpose of the experiments is to explain the physicochemical phenomena associated with dissolution processes. In particular, Mendeleev was able to establish that the greatest compression corresponds to a mixture with an alcohol concentration of about 46% (by weight).

Why then do they write on vodka bottles that it was Mendeleev who set the 40-degree standard for this drink?

This is a folk myth, which was developed by historian and culinary specialist William Pokhlebkin in his book “The History of Vodka” in 1991. The author interpreted in his own way the significance of the scientific research of the great Russian chemist. “By mid-1864, Mendeleev reached 36 degrees in his calculations of the specific gravity of alcohol solutions in water. Only 4 degrees separate him from vodka (optimal 40 degrees), he is on the verge of a new discovery, he penetrates the secrets of vodka, establishing how the qualities of aqueous-alcohol solutions change greatly, depending on the achievement of a certain degree, and by the end of November 1864 these conclusions result in a dissertation,” Pokhlebkin writes in his book.

What prompted Pokhlebkin to write the book “The History of Vodka”?

The reason for writing the monograph, according to Pokhlebkin himself, was a loud dispute in the late 1970s. Then Warsaw appealed to the International Court of Arbitration with a demand to recognize that only Polish-made alcoholic drinks have the right to be called “vodka.” Some historical documents were even presented to support this application. The Poles argued that these papers were irrefutable evidence that only Poland could be considered the birthplace of vodka. But the International Arbitration Court did not heed these arguments.

When was the 40-proof vodka standard established in Russia?

The first decrees establishing a 40-proof vodka standard date back to 1843, when Mendeleev was only 9 years old. Thus, the authorities regulated the collection of excise taxes and fought against those who diluted the alcoholic drink.

So, 40 degrees is still a Russian invention?
No. The strength of skate, whiskey, grappa, gin and other strong alcoholic drinks is approximately the same 40 degrees.

Did Mendeleev like vodka?

Mendeleev may have tried vodka at some point, but nothing more. Here is what the scientist himself wrote about this alcoholic drink: “I’m not talking about the wine monopoly, which I consider not only very appropriate in our country, but also relatively easily applicable, because the matter here concerns the consumption of such a product, without which people naturally continue to exist.” “They may well develop, because from personal example I know that, being a non-lazy worker, I have never drunk vodka in my life and I even know very little of its taste, no more than the taste of many salts and poisons.”

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To this question they usually answered me that the scientistMendeleevI experimentally found out the optimality of diluting alcohol with water. 60%waterand 40%alcohol. This is supposedly the optimal combination for drinking. me all the timetormentedThe question is, why is this the optimal combination to drink? Alcohol tastes better when it is diluted with water, then why not just mix it with jam - it will turn out even tastier.
o means optimal? What is this optimality? But the people answering me all raised their fingers up and argued that Mendeleev was right, that he, Mendeleev, knew better, he was a scientist chemist, he somehow checked something and it turned out that vodka should be 40 degrees .

I lived with this nonsense, I lived,very rarelyI drank vodka, but this question tormented meAndl, as an inquisitive person. I didn't want to calm down. And it turns out that in Russia, and all over the world, people drink vodka at 40 degrees, and not 30 or 60, just because Mendeleev said so. Did you drink the wrong vodka before Mendeleev?

ont> what was discovered before him.

I took the picture here.

Here's the thing. Grain alcohol has quite a lot of bad impurities, namely some bad oils that are dissolved in it. After distillation of alcohol, it is actively cleaned of various elements harmful to humans. ClearToand alcohol -rawwas one of the main hobbies of landowners in Russia for several centuries.
Andrt after all, they drove it home and made vodka at home too. Remember from the film “Ivan Vasilyevich Changes His Profession” Ivan the Terrible’s question: “Did the housekeeper make vodka?” Apparently, Ivan the Terrible’s housekeeper distilled alcohol from millet, and she also cleaned the alcohol from impurities and filled the impurities with various additives, or insisted on something. And the housekeeper diluted the alcohol with watertodrank easier. Remember this phrase: “clean as a tear.” This is a matter of good purification of alcohol. No matter what they did to make the alcohol pure, pure, and so that it would not smell disgusting, this also interfered with drinking, so that the taste would not be so repulsive.

but precisely in these experiments with purificationTWhen using alcohol, we managed to find out that almost complete purification of alcohol from impurities, from oils that are not even visible to the naked eye, they are so dissolved in alcohol, so complete purification is only possible if you clean not pure alcohol, but diluted with water. And precisely in the proportion of 40% alcohol and 60% water. At such proportions, alcohol begins to release the most non-transferable oils when filtered through charcoal. If there is at least 1% more alcoholwater, recoil slows down sharply and clean the alcoholit will turn out completelyimpossible. And at 40% - purification leads to almost zero content of harmful oils in diluted alcoholand the alcohol will not smell and the unpleasant aftertaste will disappear.

Mendeleev's merit is that he was able to calculate exactly how much of these oils remained in alcoholafter cleaning it in a ratio of 40 to 60 with water.

I took the picture here.

Vodka, according to Pokhlebkin, should not smell and should not have taste, it should only burn. If there is a taste and smell in the vodka, it means that not all the oils have been removed. The high cost of vodka is not related to distillation, butWithpurification of vodka.

So it turns out that if vodka smells like fusel or has an unpleasant aftertaste when drinking, it means the alcohol was poorly purified, and the proportion of 40 to 60 was maintained only to follow traditions. Vodka is 40 degrees because this is the only condition for the possibility of completely purifying vodka from fusel, this is the only condition for the purity of vodka.

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How many degrees is there in vodka? Revolutions, degrees and GOST

What ingredients does vodka consist of?

One of the most important components is alcohol, which is obtained by processing wheat grains or other cereals, as well as potatoes.
The crushed mixture of raw materials is boiled, after which yeast is added, which promotes fermentation. Then this entire mass is placed in a special apparatus for further processing. This produces purified alcohol
But it is very difficult to obtain a 100% alcohol solution, or rather impossible, since impurities will still be present (albeit in small quantities).

Next, a certain amount of water is added to the resulting substance and repeated purification is carried out using activated carbon. To make vodka aromatic and more pleasant to taste, a small amount of citric acid, glucose, honey, orange, lemon and other fruit zest, milk powder and much more are also added, depending on the recipe.

Different manufacturers have their own technology, and the choice of water will be different for each. You can use distilled or boiled, but alcohol does not dissolve well in them. Tap water may contain a large amount of salts, causing the vodka to be whitish rather than clear.

To achieve softness of water, it is pumped through sand filters and treated with cation exchange resin and other devices. It is prohibited to use cloudy water with foreign odor or taste.

How many degrees of alcohol in vodka

As you know, alcohol is one of the necessary components contained in this alcoholic drink. When buying vodka, we often pay attention to the degrees, which are indicated on the label in the form of a number and with a small circle next to it (at the top). How many degrees is there in vodka? Traditional vodka has a strength of 40°–45°. This is the best option among those that were previously proposed. A 40-degree alcoholic drink does not burn your stomach.

Some manufacturers began to indicate the strength of an alcoholic drink as a percentage. Therefore, when calculating the weight as a percentage, indicate the number of degrees (for example, 40°), and when calculating the volume, the percentage ratio (for example, “strength 16-18% vol.” or “alcohol 18% vol.”).

How to get 40-proof vodka? To do this, you need to mix 90-proof alcohol in an amount of 100 ml with 130 ml of water. The resulting ratio is: 1 part alcohol to 1.3 water. Optional ingredients, such as glucose, have almost no effect on the strength of the drink.

What alcohol is used to make vodka?

Alcohol is a liquid that has flammable properties. In 100% of the total volume, ethanol is 96.6%, which is why it is called ethyl. Rectified (which has been re-run to remove impurities from the alcohol) ethyl alcohol is mixed with water to make this product.

The quality of ethyl alcohol depends on how purified it is: first grade - 96%, highest purification - 96.2%, luxury - 96.3%, and extra reaches 96.5%. There is also medical alcohol.

Quality standards (GOST)

How many degrees is there in vodka? The standards provide for the production of vodka using five types of purified (rectified) alcohol: “Highly Purified”, “Lux”, “Extra”, “Alpha” and “Super”. The last two of the above are the highest quality alcohols.
Their production was established not so long ago, but has already found its application in the production of elite vodka drinks (“Premium” class). "Lux", "Alpha" and "Super" are made exclusively from grains.
When producing “Extra” and “Highly Purified” alcohols, it is possible to use other raw materials, for example, potatoes or beet sugar. Some medical-related businesses may use rubbing alcohol. The finished vodka product should not contain furfural.

There is no time limit for storing alcohol. But it is necessary to comply with the conditions. Vodka drinks must be produced strictly in accordance with the requirements of standards, instructions, and in accordance with sanitary standards. How many degrees is there in vodka? The strength of the drink must be at least 37.5%. The amount of toxic substances and radionuclides must not exceed the permissible level. Only purified alcohol can be used.

Application of vodka drinks

You don’t need to drink this drink if you don’t want to spoil the taste. But if this option does not suit you, then you can take a glass of plain water. Under no circumstances should you drink vodka from plastic (disposable) cups, since when making dishes for one-time use, substances are used that are harmful to health, but contribute to the strength of the item. A glass filled with an alcoholic drink releases poisons that will accumulate and negatively affect your body.

Rice vodka (sake): degrees

Rice vodka - how many degrees are there in this unusual drink? Rice vodka, or sake, is a Japanese vodka. In production, large rice containing a large amount of starch is used.
But it is still not entirely appropriate to call this drink vodka, since there is no distillation process during preparation, but it must be present when preparing such a product.
That is why it is also called rice wine, the technology of which is based on fermentation rather than fermentation. Sake is also equated to beer, rum, liqueur, and even compared to weak moonshine.

How many degrees are there in sake - rice vodka? Sake is distinguished by its lightness and low alcohol content compared to other types of vodka drinks. Its strength ranges from 14.5% to 20%, sometimes reaching 25% (depending on the type of sake and its aging). If the rice vodka is just prepared, then its strength will be no more than 15%. Aging helps increase the strength to 20% or more, but in the birthplace of sake - Japan - they often dilute it to get no more than 16 degrees. This is what the vodka/sake ratio looks like: 40° to 16°, which is why this drink cannot be called vodka .

Degrees of aqua regia

Aqua regia - how many degrees is there in this drink? And is she so “royal”? The pretentious name of this substance does not at all mean that only aristocrats can afford to use it. This liquid is intended for completely different purposes.

Aqua regia is a mixture of hydrochloric acid and nitric acid (volume ratio 3 to 1). It has a yellowish color and a pronounced odor of chlorine and nitrogen. This substance is one of the most powerful oxidizing agents and can dissolve any metals, including gold and platinum. But such properties of aqua regia disappear if the substance is left uncovered for a long time (the chlorine has evaporated).

How many degrees is there in American vodka?

The ingredients in this product will be the same as in similar products produced in different countries. When making vodka, most American producers of alcoholic beverages achieve soft water through boiling and distillation.

How many degrees of alcohol are in the vodka that Americans drink? America's strong alcoholic drinks, including vodka, are famous for their variety and high quality. The strength of American vodka is quite high. The following brands are especially popular: “44° North Latitude”, “Smirnoff” (50°), “Wolfschmidt”, “Black Eagle” and many others.

What strength does vodka have, what percentage of alcohol does it contain?

The most popular alcoholic drink, vodka, has a high strength. This product quickly entered the lives of many people and became firmly entrenched in it. Nevertheless, some to this day cannot figure out the strength of a clear alcoholic drink.

What is vodka? This is not a simple mixture of ethyl alcohol and water, as is commonly believed in everyday life. In addition to these two essential ingredients, the pleasure drink often includes other components.

How is the strength of a hop drink measured?

Vodka may contain:

lemon acid;
sugar;
extract from various plants and natural flavors such as pine cones, birch buds, etc.;
powdered milk;
vinegar.

These additives do not affect how much alcohol will be in the finished product. Honey and sugar mainly act as seasonings required to give the drink a mild taste.

The set and required proportion of additional ingredients are determined by the manufacturer. Often the type and name of vodka depends on this. Thus, on store shelves you can find vodka called “special”, “selected”, “crystal”, etc. But, no matter what additives the manufacturer experiments with, the main components of “white” are rectified food alcohol and water. Their ratio, or rather the way of visualizing this ratio, sometimes confuses some citizens: the first bottle says 40°, the second 40%, and the third 40% vol. Which is better?

Production of Russian vodka to the masses

The production of Russian vodka to the masses first began in the fifteenth century. At that time, the technology for producing food ethanol from grain raw materials was very different from the methods that are used now. The principles were the same, but the main difference lay in the imperfection of technological processes. The resulting product had a low degree of purification from foreign impurities. The most popular filtration method at that time was charcoal purification, which helped remove fusel oils, but did not affect how many percent of alcohol remained in the alcohol.

The culture of drinking strong alcoholic beverages was also radically different. Before 1885, there was no retail trade in alcohol at all. Alcohol was bottled and sold in whole glasses - containers with a volume of about a quarter of a liter. Therefore, the strength of “belenkaya” was indicated by parts of the volume. That is, of the total volume of liquid, 40% was occupied by alcohol.

Mendeleev's discovery

After 1885, new trends came to Russia from the West, and among them was the retail sale of wine and products containing ethyl alcohol. At the same time, in 1895, D.I. Mendeleev scientifically proved that in order to create a mixture of water and ethanol that is optimal in terms of properties and characteristics, one must use not a measure of volume, but a measure of mass. Therefore, out of one hundred percent of the total mass of the liquid, 40 percent should be alcohol. Since then, in the USSR it was customary to designate alcohol strength in degrees.

The different ways of indicating the strength of alcoholic beverages ultimately forces different buyers to ask the same question: “How much alcohol is in one bottle of vodka?”

Percents or degrees

What is the most correct designation for the strength of alcoholic beverages? In degrees or percentage? After a scientific study conducted by D.I. Mendeleev, a clear rule was introduced in Russia and the USSR stating that how much alcohol is in an alcoholic beverage should be determined based on the weight fraction of the substance. And to make it clearer for people, the degree of strength was expressed by a degree (a small circle placed at the top, to the right of the number), which by its very appearance made it clear that when diluting pure (96.6 °) alcohol with water, precisely units of mass were involved.

Thus, until the 70s, the following strength designations could be found on Russian-made alcohol containers:

45° - the strongest vodka, rarely found on sale;
40° – the most common “white”;
35°, 30° – low strength vodka;
20, 14 or less degrees – other alcoholic drinks, including beer, wine, gin, etc.
Homemade beer that anyone can make.

Percent sign

What's with the percent sign? How can we explain its appearance on bottles of alcohol sold in Russia now? Expressing the ethanol content in strong drinks using a percentage is a Western trend that has come to us.

It should be emphasized that this method is somewhat incorrect, since nowhere is it indicated on what this percentage is calculated - from mass or volume.
And how many ordinary people were thus misled? A lot of. After all, of all the consumers of alcoholic beverages, only a few truly understand degrees and percentages.

Recently, to clarify the situation, the index “about” is placed next to the % sign, if necessary. That is, now “forty degree water”, obtained by mixing the volume fractions of water and alcohol, is designated 40% vol. Foreign manufacturers decided to do the same and stick stickers with the inscription 40% Vol on bottles of strong alcohol. It must be admitted that this form of recording is no longer misleading, since the additional prefix “about” or “Vol” makes it clear that when making vodka, the optimal ratio of alcohol and water was achieved by measuring the required volumes.

Old way

To the question “How many degrees are there in regular vodka?” many will give the answer - 40. Is this correct or not? Correct, if you use the traditional system, where each “degree” is equal to a hundredth part of pure 100% alcohol.
And it is wrong, if we take into account the old Western European system, in which 0.005715 of the total volume of pure food ethanol is taken as a “degree” of strength.
Therefore, you can show how much alcohol is in a drink through the conventional system (40% vol.) or through the outdated one (70° Br. Proof).

Designating the strength of alcohol-containing drinks and substances using Proof degrees is a rather outdated technique that was popular in Western Europe. Nevertheless, now you can still find bottles of alcoholic liquid on sale, the main characteristic of which is calculated in the old, “inflated” way. There are also specimens with a double designation, for example, 40% by volume (70° Br. Proof). Here you can notice that the old wording is located next to the new one and is enclosed in brackets.

Why are the degrees “inflated” in the old system?

There are two explanations for this:

Foreign manufacturers simply do not take into account contraction, or otherwise the compression of alcohol.
According to foreign producers, wine and vodka products, or more precisely how much ethanol they contain, should be assessed not by the blend, but by the characteristics and components included in this blend.

Equally, the method of indicating the concentration of ethyl alcohol in a drink does not decide anything and does not affect how much alcohol the finished product will have. Achieving the optimal ratio of alcohol and water so that the molecules of both substances completely diffuse with each other is quite difficult. Even the most famous and expensive brand of vodka is far from perfect at the molecular level. Various manufacturers of “fire water” strive to bring the composition of their product closer to the ideal. But this is not easy to do, otherwise, when combining half a liter of water with the same volume of pure alcohol, you would get a liter of vodka.

Vodka is a strong alcoholic drink that has earned popular recognition. It is customary to consume it on holidays, big celebrations, and in a circle of noisy, cheerful company. Entertainment goes well and is gently accepted by the body if you have something to snack on after each drink.

Great for this purpose:

salted pickled mushrooms;
salted herring with onions;
smoked meats and other meat dishes;
boiled potatoes.

What goes with it?

In general, “belenkaya” goes well with many dishes, both first and second. There are no clear recommendations here, because each person has individual taste. How much alcohol is in the typical vodka that we are so accustomed to drinking? There are several answers to this question: 40°, 40%, 40% vol, 70° Br. Proof. It’s probably not worth worrying too much about degrees and percentages, or discussing which formulation is more accurate, since they all display approximately the same value. In addition, there is no need to think about the strength of alcohol while sitting at the festive table.

In any case, you should always remember that vodka is a good product if consumed in moderation.

Features of Russian vodka

According to statistics, about 55% of the entire population of Russia periodically drink this original Russian drink. The higher the degree of vodka, the better it is. In Russia, it is customary to drink vodka in its pure form, while in other countries cocktails with vodka, the degree of which is an order of magnitude lower, are preferred.

It's no secret that unscrupulous producers of strong alcoholic drinks use a surrogate instead of pure alcohol, so you can find a lot of counterfeits on store shelves, and how many underground counters are there? Fortunately, quite recently, requirements for the quality of the drink were established in order to prevent real poison from being released into the market.

Drink strength

Speaking about the strength of the transparent liquid, it can range from 40 to 56 degrees, it all depends on the chemical composition. The degree of the drink is determined by the percentage of ethyl alcohol content, everything else is filtered water. To improve the taste, fruits, milk, honey, etc. are added to the drink. All components must be listed in the composition.

Alcohol with an ethyl alcohol content of 40% is considered safe for humans. This is the amount that does not burn the gastric mucosa and helps to avoid intoxication of the body. But we should not forget that a person’s condition directly depends on the amount of drinking; you cannot compare one glass and one liter, the effect will be significantly different.

The quality of ethyl alcohol is the main indicator of the strength of white wine. In its pure form, alcohol has a strength of 96 degrees. After thorough cleaning, its strength becomes 96.2-96.3 degrees. It is ethyl alcohol that is considered the ideal component for the production of strong alcohol. It is possible to use rubbing alcohol, but this is extremely rare.

Vodka parameters

The standard for what the strength of vodka should be is quite difficult to determine. Much depends on what class the drink belongs to:

Extra.
Luxury
Super.
Alpha.

But one main requirement is applied to each of these classes: the strength of a given alcohol of any class should not be lower than 37.5 degrees. Otherwise, it will no longer be vodka, but a drink of dubious content.

Depending on the name, vodka has different densities. For example, Finlandia vodka with a strength of 40 degrees has a density of 951 kg/m3. The same Finland, but with a strength of 50.5 degrees will have a different density. Of course, most lovers of strong drinks do not pay attention to this indicator. But for those who care about their well-being, the density of the drink plays an important role. The degree and speed of intoxication, as well as the state of the body after the feast, depend on this.

Features of making vodka

As you know, the finished alcoholic drink contains more than half of ethyl alcohol, the rest is water and flavoring additives. Activated carbon can be added for cleaning.

Modern vodka producers use various methods of distilling ethyl alcohol. The most popular and effective methods include cleaning methods using silver ions, black silicon or laser irradiation. After this procedure, the strength of the drink remains unchanged, but the quality of the drink increases, which directly affects the level of a person’s morning hangover.

Externally, vodka is a transparent liquid without any sediment. In fact, many chemical elements can be found in vodka. The following components may affect the quality of the drink:

Percentage of ethyl alcohol.
The content of fusel vapors and aldehydes, which may be completely absent in high-quality vodka.
Presence of alkali.
Contents of broadcasts.

The containers into which the finished product is poured also have standard volumes. The most common are glass containers with a volume of 330, 500, 700, 1000 milliliters.

Good vodka – does it exist?

As you know, the cost of a transparent substance consists of its quality, strength and production technology. How many degrees should vodka have? The stronger the vodka, the better it is. The most popular is vodka with an ethyl alcohol content of 40 percent, although the strength can vary up to 56 degrees. Vodka Finlandia 101 has a strength of 50.5 degrees. This characterizes it as a high-quality elite drink.

Despite its considerable cost, Finland is in demand among gourmets who like to drink rather than get drunk. Finlandia 101 is made with the addition of the purest artesian water from a Finnish spring. This water does not require additional purification, which improves its taste. Despite its increased strength, Finlandia has a mild sweetish taste. Vodka is popular in many countries of the world and has many positive characteristics.

Finlandia 101 vodka is made from high-quality barley, which gives the drink a unique deep taste, complemented by high strength. It is Finlandia 101 brand vodka that is considered the best drink for creating cocktails or drinking neat with ice. Finland has a good reputation among lovers of strong alcohol, which it gained immediately after the appearance of the first batch in 1970.

Drink quality assessment

If the goal of your feast is to have a good and fun time, and wake up in the morning as if nothing had happened, then you must be confident in the quality of the drink you drink. There are the following criteria for evaluating strong alcohol:

Quality drink

In order to be absolutely sure of the quality of a strong alcoholic drink, it is recommended to purchase it in a specialized store, where the quality of the products is strictly monitored. As a rule, such stores work only with trusted suppliers and can fully vouch for the quality of the drinks they sell. Everyone can guess how much such a drink will cost.

Of course, the cost of a white one in special stores will differ significantly from those where you can stumble upon a surrogate. But before buying vodka, decide for yourself what result you want to get. Producing good vodka is an expensive undertaking, which is why the final cost is quite high.

Drinking alcohol of any strength and density does not have the slightest positive effect on the human body. Rather, on the contrary, the nervous system is destroyed, the liver decomposes, and brain activity noticeably deteriorates. Even the most elite alcohol, produced to all necessary standards, can cause irreparable harm to health. No matter how much you drink, your body will still receive some of the poison. Excessive alcohol consumption has a negative impact on the entire human body, be it a cheap drink or a high-quality Finland.

Do not forget that frequent drinking of alcohol is highly addictive, which is quite difficult to get rid of.

Rules for identifying counterfeits

Since it is very difficult to prepare alcoholic products that clearly comply with generally accepted standards, many “craftsmen” actively sell illegally strong alcoholic drinks of low quality. It’s one thing if the buyer consciously takes such a risk, and quite another when the swill is passed off as an elite drink at high prices. In order not to lose out, it is important to know not only the weight of the purchased liquid, but also other, no less important quality indicators.

Appearance. When buying strong alcoholic drinks, it is important to pay attention not only to its weight, but also to its appearance, which also tells the buyer a lot. The liquid must be transparent; the presence of cloudy color and sediment in a high-quality drink is impossible. Therefore, if such characteristics are present, you urgently need to return the purchase still sealed and not doubt its low grade.

Main criteria for quality assessment

Smell. If the external appearance of the liquid does not raise any additional questions, you are allowed to open the bottle. It is very important to pour the first glass and do a little experiment. You just need to sniff the liquid. The presence of the smell of denatured alcohol eloquently indicates the quality of the product, while the aroma of acetone gives rise to disturbing thoughts about purchasing questionable alcoholic products.
Weight. The amount of alcoholic liquid must fully correspond to the capacity of the glass container. The difference, as a rule, is visible to the naked eye, so if such a defect is present, you don’t even have to open the bottle, but take it back to the store and demand consumer protection. It is possible that the alcohol was bottled “underground”, and drinking it is dangerous for your health and your life. You can also weigh the liquid, but to do this you need to know what the container weight is, since it is this that needs to be subtracted from the value obtained on the scales.
Cold check. Not only experienced alcoholics know about this testing method; the average person also has access to this useful information. If an unopened bottle is placed in the refrigerator and allowed to freeze, then scorched alcohol is distinguished by the appearance of crystals in the liquid. This indicates the presence of questionable impurities and a large amount of water. A high-quality and certified product does not freeze, and the alcohol liquid only cools.
Setting fire. A high-quality alcoholic drink always burns; a low-quality one may not even ignite. This is exactly the way to test strong alcoholic drinks in bars and restaurants, so why not carry out a similar experiment in the comfort of your home. If the liquid flares up like gasoline, then this indicates that its chemical composition contains a large amount of impurities, flammable substances that are dangerous to the health of the drinker.

It is better to purchase alcoholic drinks in certified stores that have a license to trade

And in general, it is recommended to purchase alcoholic beverages only in certified stores that have the right to sell alcohol. As a rule, in such establishments there is strict quality control, testing of products from different suppliers, and a guarantee for the product sold. Such products are somewhat more expensive, but the buyer buys clear confidence in his health the next morning after the mass celebration. Otherwise, you may end up in a hospital bed or not wake up at all, dying in your sleep from alcohol intoxication. So it’s better to overpay for quality, especially since the low price should already alert you. It is important to remember what the process of making alcoholic beverages is and deliberately not underestimate its cost to soothe your soul before purchasing.

It is important to always remember that any strong alcoholic drink, even of the highest quality, is definitely harmful to health, especially if consumed systematically. A person must know when to stop, otherwise you can die from an elite alcoholic drink.

As practice shows, as you get used to ethyl alcohol, the strength level increases noticeably, and the quality of the drink itself rapidly decreases. Even medical alcohol diluted with unfiltered water is used. It is advisable to avoid such dubious experiments, especially since your own health and the health of caring people may suffer from them.
alkogolu.net

To this question I was usually told that the scientist Mendeleev experimentally found out the optimality of diluting alcohol with water. 60% water and 40% alcohol. This is supposedly the optimal combination for drinking. I was always tormented by the question, why is this the optimal combination for drinking?
Alcohol tastes better when it is diluted with water, then why not just mix it with jam - it will turn out even tastier. What does optimal mean? What is this optimality?
But the people answering me all raised their fingers up and argued that Mendeleev was right, that he, Mendeleev, knew better, he was a scientist chemist, he somehow checked something and it turned out that vodka should be 40 degrees .

I lived with this nonsense, I lived, I very rarely drank vodka, but this question tormented me, as an inquisitive person. I didn't want to calm down. And it turns out that in Russia, and all over the world, people drink vodka at 40 degrees, and not 30 or 60, just because Mendeleev said so. Did you drink the wrong vodka before Mendeleev?

History of vodka

And now, reading the next book of my favorite culinary historian William Vasilyevich Pokhlebkin, “The History of Vodka,” I find that the question of forty-proof vodka is a rather old topic, and Mendeleev’s merit lies in something else, he simply scientifically substantiated what was discovered before him.

Alcohol purification

Purification of raw alcohol was one of the main hobbies of landowners in Russia for several centuries. After all, they distilled alcohol at home and made vodka at home too. Remember from the film “Ivan Vasilyevich Changes His Profession” Ivan the Terrible’s question: “Did the housekeeper make vodka?”
Apparently, Ivan the Terrible’s housekeeper distilled alcohol from millet, and she also cleaned the alcohol from impurities and filled the impurities with various additives, or insisted on something. And the housekeeper diluted the alcohol with water to make it easier to drink. Remember this phrase: “clean as a tear.”
This is a matter of good purification of alcohol. No matter what they did to make the alcohol pure, pure, and so that it would not smell disgusting, this also interfered with drinking, so that the taste would not be so repulsive.

Ideal proportion

So the landowners even competed among themselves to see who could come up with a stronger system for purifying alcohol. And then they treated each other. And if someone found some unusual solution, then they shared it with each other.

So, it was precisely in these experiments with the purification of alcohol that it was possible to find out that almost complete purification of alcohol from impurities, from oils that are not even visible to the naked eye, they are so dissolved in alcohol, and so complete purification is only possible if you clean not pure alcohol, but diluted with water. And precisely in the proportion of 40% alcohol and 60% water.
At such proportions, alcohol begins to release the most non-transferable oils when filtered through charcoal.
If there is at least 1% more alcohol than water, the release slows down sharply and it will not be possible to completely purify the alcohol. And at 40% - purification leads to almost zero content of harmful oils in diluted alcohol and the alcohol will not smell and the unpleasant aftertaste will disappear.

samogonman.com

Vodka and only that

For the first time, the name “vodka” was officially introduced by Elizabeth I in her decree of June 8, 1751. In literature, this term was used by Pushkin in the cult novel “Eugene Onegin”.

Currently, an alcoholic drink is made from rectified alcohol, diluting it to the required concentration with clean water.

Until the beginning of the 19th century, it was obtained through distillation, like modern moonshine. Nowadays they make tequila, rum, and whiskey this way. These alcoholic drinks are not vodka.

Interestingly, in Poland, mentions of vodka can be found as early as 1400, which is why in 1977 a court case arose regarding the possibility of using the trademark. Although, colloquially, Poles more often call this drink “rozmovna water.”

A classic drink is one for which the semi-finished product – ethyl alcohol – is made from high-quality wheat grain. But there are also options for making alcohol from potatoes, various fruits, and sugar beets. By the way, those who understand the quality of alcohol believe that the beetroot version is the “heaviest”.

Mendeleev's research

For some reason, it is believed among ordinary people that vodka was “invented by Mendeleev.” The alcoholic drink appeared in the 10th century, and its author was the doctor Al-Razi from Persia, who was the first to isolate ethanol by distillation. He can be considered the first moonshiner in history.

Dmitry Ivanovich Mendeleev studied the effect of alcohol on the body, and during experiments - the essence and method of the study are still being discussed - he discovered that the minimum negative effect is obtained by combining parts by weight of ethyl alcohol and water to a strength of 43º.

His work is of more methodological interest than practical, and did not contribute anything new to the preparation of this alcoholic drink.

The strength of alcoholic beverages was traditionally measured in Rus' by annealing. High-quality vodka burns, and this was checked directly on the spot - the liquid was set on fire. It had to burn out exactly half - this was called half-burn. The strength of a quality drink was at least 38º, and later the number was rounded to 40º - for convenience and taking into account the reserve. During storage, evaporation or leakage could occur, so it was more convenient to calculate losses.

The strength of a drink is a rather arbitrary concept. Despite the fact that vodka is considered to be a drink at 40º, there are types of alcoholic products with a different strength, produced under the same trade name.

The benefits and harms of vodka

We can talk endlessly about the dangers of this alcoholic drink. Alcohol has a detrimental effect on the body as a whole, especially when abused. The main adverse effect is that when ethyl alcohol is disposed of, acetaldehyde and acetic acid are obtained, which are subsequently very difficult to remove from the body. If you drink alcohol frequently, acetaldehyde begins to destroy the liver, and acetic acid causes a hangover.

Subsequently, toxins spread throughout the body, the functioning of the cardiovascular system is disrupted, and the supply of oxygen to the brain becomes difficult - after a sharp dilation of blood vessels when drinking alcohol, their equally rapid narrowing occurs. “Swing” destroys the walls of blood vessels, brain function is disrupted, vision, coordination, mental activity deteriorate - the entire body is destroyed.

This is a brief description of the harm caused by alcohol to the body. Does vodka have any benefits?

When consumed orally in small quantities, it accelerates blood circulation, normalizes blood pressure, quickly warms in severe frosts, has a disinfectant effect, and increases the level of hemoglobin in the blood. Vodka tinctures in folk medicine are used to treat diarrhea, colds, peptic ulcers, hypotension, and cancer. When used externally, alcohol tinctures disinfect, heal wounds, accelerate subcutaneous blood supply, eliminate cellulite deposits, treat neurological diseases and diseases of the musculoskeletal system.

With the help of alcoholic drinks they recover after long periods of fasting. It is impossible to say exactly how many calories are contained in 100 grams of vodka - depending on the raw materials, this figure ranges from 220-250 kcal.

In the table of calorie content of vodka alcoholic drinks, the energy value can be found out more precisely. There are different types of such tables.

Where do the calories come from in vodka?

Calorie content is the nutritional value of a product, which is obtained when it is prepared from the original raw material - if the product itself is a derivative. Vodka belongs specifically to this group - to make it, rectified alcohol is used, the raw materials of which are products containing carbohydrates, proteins and vegetable fats, albeit in small quantities.

How many calories are in vodka depends on this raw material. 100 grams of vodka can contain from 220 to 250 kcal – that is, the drink is quite high in calories. But they get better not from alcohol, but from snacks. In order to keep a “sober” mind longer, they try to eat more densely - fats partially neutralize the harmful effects of ethyl alcohol and prevent it from being completely absorbed into the circulatory system.

True vodka alcoholics are practically never overweight - the body spends too much energy on neutralizing toxins. Also, the chemical composition of ethyl alcohol contains nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide, a substance that slows down organic metabolic processes. Alcohol abuse causes intoxication of the body, which blocks the feeling of hunger.

The calorie table for the most popular and high-quality varieties of vodka is as follows.

In the alcohol that is used to make alcoholic beverages, glucose, lactose, and sucrose remain - this is where the calories in vodka come from.

In small doses, vodka stimulates appetite - the body needs 5 times more energy than it receives with a portion of an alcoholic drink in order to neutralize the breakdown products of ethylene and remove it from the body. That is why, when describing diets, you can always come across a reminder - alcoholic drinks are completely excluded from the diet when following this diet.

Any diet is a kind of stress for the body - it painfully perceives a decrease in the supply of nutrients and a reduction in diet, metabolic and chemical processes change.

You shouldn't increase the load on your body when you're losing weight. Vodka during a diet negatively affects your health in general, and your appearance in particular.

pohudeemsami.ru

In the 19th century, vodka was the name given to alcoholic drinks in which the alcohol content was from 45° to 65°, and above 80° they were called alcohol.

Until the vodka monopoly was introduced in 1894, vodka was made by mixing 50% alcohol and 50% water.

In such a mixture the alcohol content was 41 ° -42 °. To accurately obtain 40°, it was necessary to use not the volumes of drinks, but their weight. In other countries, volumes were also mixed to obtain alcoholic beverages, rather than based on weight.

After introducing a monopoly on vodka, Russia began to control the alcohol content in vodka, which was supposed to be 40%. The price and percentage of alcohol content were indicated on the label.

The great Russian scientist Dmitry Ivanovich Mendeleev, who discovered the Periodic Table, improved the quality of vodka and brought it to a single standard, which remains to this day. He proved that the alcohol content in vodka must be exactly 40%, otherwise it has a bad effect on the body.

Mendeleev supported the policy of monopoly. He sought to concentrate the production of vodka at state enterprises, and also demanded that a uniform quality standard be established throughout the country; it should not contain artificial impurities.

Mendeleev insisted on filing a patent for vodka. In 1865 he defended his doctoral dissertation

It is considered a traditional Russian drink. This is not entirely true, since there are many varieties of vodka in the world that may differ in taste, but at the same time, according to their main characteristics, they fall into the glorious vodka family.

To make the right choice of strong alcohol, you need to know how many degrees the vodka should have. In addition to the main indicator - strength, we will talk about such characteristics as density, composition, types of alcohols for production, etc.

To make vodka in production conditions you need:

high quality vodka alcohol;
prepared softened water;
various additives to give the drink a certain taste and smell (glucose, citric acid, fruit zest, milk powder, honey, eggs, etc.).

Alcohol for the production of vodka is regulated by GOST R 51652-2000 “Rectified ethyl alcohol from food raw materials” (see:). According to the document, the following alcohols are used to make vodka:

Alpha- from grain wheat or rye. The purest quality alcohol used to make the highest quality vodka.
Lux- from grain and potatoes in any proportions with a potato starch content of no more than 35%. The alcohol, which has gone through several stages of purification, is used for the production of premium vodka.
Extra- from grains and deep-cleaned potatoes for the production of medium-quality vodka.
Basis- from grain and potatoes with a starch content of no more than 60%. For the production of vodka in the middle price segment.
Highest purification- from grain, potatoes, molasses, beets in any proportions. Filtration is minimal to remove fusel oils. Used for liqueurs, tinctures, economy class vodka.
First class- not used for alcohol production.

What percentage of alcohol?

Strength is the main characteristic of vodka. According to domestic GOST regulations, the strength of vodka is should not be less than 37.5%. As for exotic foreign varieties of vodka, the strength requirements may be completely different.

For example, the strength of Japanese rice vodka can be 14%, 20% and 25% - it all depends on the brand of vodka and its aging. Expensive varieties of sake are stronger, and budget brands of this vodka contain no more than 15% alcohol.

Why exactly 40 degrees?

In 1895, the Russian chemist D.I. Mendeleev established the most correct ratio of water and alcohol for the production of vodka, amounting to 40% of the mass of alcohol in the total mass of the drink.

Alcohol containing 40% ethyl alcohol is the safest for the human body. A mixture of alcohol and water in this ratio does not injure the gastric mucosa and is not toxic. Although, of course, a lot depends on the amount of alcohol taken.

Degrees or percentages

After the appearance of D.I. Mendeleev’s treatise, the designation of vodka strength began to mean the weight fraction of a substance (alcohol) in an aqueous solution of the drink. The degree of strength was indicated by a “degree” - a circle at the top to the right of the numerical value.

Today, following the internationally accepted methods of indicating strength, many manufacturers use “% vol.”, indicating the volume fraction of alcohol in alcohol. Previously, “%” was used for the designation, which was not entirely correct, since it was unclear whether volume or weight fractions were meant.

The additional prefix “about” (“Vol” on imported alcohol), which appeared not very long ago, indicates that the ratios are indicated in volumes.

What other kind of fortress is there?

American varieties of vodka are widely known throughout the world. Brands “Smirnoff”, “Black Eagle”, “44° North Latitude” and others have a strength, as a rule, not lower than 50°, and the taste of these drinks is distinguished by depth and excellent quality.

A few more examples of famous brands of vodka of different strengths:

Vodka 45% vol. Domestic elite varieties of vodka “Sibirskaya”, export “Stolichnaya” and “Kizlyarskaya aged”. These brands are distinguished by the use of especially soft natural water.

Vodka 50% vol. This category includes the Swedish Absolut vodka, the Ukrainian Nemirov Strong, and the Finnish Finlandia. Vodka of these brands, despite the increased strength, does not cause any unpleasant sensations.

How to measure the degree in vodka?

It is most convenient to determine the strength using alcohol meter, measuring the amount of ethyl alcohol in a solution. It will show the most accurate result when determining the strength of vodka, since foreign components present in wine, cognac or liqueur will affect the accuracy of the measurement (density reading).

The degree can also be determined by calculating the density. To do this, you need electronic scales, which are usually used to measure food in the kitchen. To determine the strength, you need to do the following procedures:

Measure the weight of an empty container, for example a 500 ml bottle.
Pour exactly 500 ml of vodka into it and weigh it again.
Having determined the mass to volume ratio, determine the density in g/ml.
Determine the density and composition of the water-alcohol mixture from a reference book or from the table below (the density will correspond to the alcohol content by volume).

There is also a way to determine the strength of vodka depending on. The method is not very reliable, since the relationship is nonlinear, and the freezing temperature is not easy to accurately determine. Using reference tables for the alcohol content in a solution depending on the freezing point, you can approximately determine the strength of vodka.

By the way, many people ask how much a liter of vodka weighs in kilograms? So, the weight of one liter of vodka at a temperature of +20ºС is 0.953 kg(953 g).

The strongest vodka

According to standards, the highest strength of classic vodka is 56% vol. Stronger drinks have a production technology similar to the production. Thus, after double or triple distillation of raw materials, you can obtain a strength of up to 70% vol. and more.

The Scots produce alcohol of record strength: the elite Pincer Shanghai Strength whiskey with thistle extract has a strength of 92% by volume, i.e. almost pure alcohol.

How are puff cocktails made?

From the school physics course we know that liquids having different densities do not mix with each other. Moreover, if they are poured into a vessel one by one, the denser ones will occupy the lower position, and the less dense ones will occupy the upper position.

This simple principle is the basis for the preparation of popular puff alcoholic cocktails. For example, less strong liqueurs with a higher sugar content are more dense, so when making a cocktail they are poured to the very bottom.

Then, very carefully (you can place the convex part of a spoon under the stream) pour the second densest alcoholic drink. For uniformity, you can use a dispenser and pre-cool the drinks, increasing their viscosity. You should pour as carefully as possible, maintaining restraint and accuracy.

Layered cocktails are very beautiful in appearance, have an original taste and are very popular.

Vodka is the most popular of strong alcoholic drinks. The principle of its preparation is reduced to diluting purified alcohol with water. There are many versions of why a 40% solution of alcohol in water has become a classic vodka recipe.

Effect on the degree of purification

Distillation of vodka is a process that determines the strength of the drink

It is believed that ideally purified vodka should have no taste or smell. The drink should only give a burning sensation when consumed.

Grain alcohol contains many impurities that:

are dangerous to human health and make the hangover syndrome severe;
make the taste repulsive;
give the solution an unpleasant and pungent odor.

Making pure alcohol was a hobby for Russian landowners. They tried various purification schemes, compared and improved the results. Experimentally, they found out that it is better to rid a drink of taste, smell and color if the alcohol is 40% and water – 60%. It was not possible to perfectly purify an alcoholic mixture without water, and changing the proportions led to a deterioration in the quality of the finished product.

In modern conditions, all manufacturers follow the classic ratio of alcohol and water in vodka, but some neglect thorough cleaning. Alcohol with a cloudy taste and odor contains oils that are harmful to health. Refining is an expensive process, so cheap alcohol is usually of poor quality.

Vodka Mendeleev

The question of why vodka has a strength of 40 degrees usually comes down to the work of Mendeleev. In his work “On the combination of alcohol with water” it is mentioned that one of the optimal ratios is 40 parts of alcohol and 60 parts of water. It's not exactly 40% and 60% by weight, since the liquids being mixed have different physical properties. In this work, the dependences of changes in the volume of alcohol solutions are calculated.

There is debate about what vodka would be like if it were made strictly according to Mendeleev’s conclusions about the characteristics of a mixture of alcohol and water. Perhaps it would have a strength of about 30 degrees. Many people note that some stronger alcohol is easier to drink than a drink with an alcohol content of about 30%.

There is a version that according to Mendeleev’s work, the drink will have exactly 46 degrees. Mendeleev understood the ideal ratio to have a deeper scientific meaning than the taste and intoxicating properties of vodka. He did not study biochemical processes in the human body, but only studied the properties of substances. In addition, documents about drinks with 40 degrees of strength appeared when Mendeleev was only 9 years old.

The main feature of the relationship that Mendeleev studied is increased density. If you combine alcohol with water in such proportions, then their total volume will be less than the volumes of these liquids when they were in separate containers.

Wine "Polugar"

When alcoholometers had not yet appeared, the amount of alcohol in a drink was checked by “annealing”. To test this, they set the wine on fire and watched how much of it would burn out. If half of the liquid was burned, then the drink was assigned a strength of “38.3%”. After the advent of alcohol meters, this value began to be rounded to 40 degrees to simplify calculations.

Now technology allows you to create alcohols with a concentration of 96%. This allows you to make alcohol of any strength. Nevertheless, it was drinks with a strength of 40 degrees that retained priority in the alcoholic beverages market.

Possible reasons

In addition to the well-known versions about Mendeleev’s invention and Polugar wine, vodka can have a strength of 40 degrees for other reasons. There are many opinions about the origin of this value:

a specific number was chosen in England to simplify the calculation of taxes on distilleries;
the values of popular drinks with strength from 35 to 45 degrees were rounded up to 40 degrees;
this ratio was invented by a Spanish alchemist in the 12th century;
vodka with a different strength leads to a more severe hangover;
at a higher degree the drink becomes a fire hazard;
we experimentally selected an average value that allows you to get very drunk, but not ruin your health from the first use;
if you add less water, the liquid will dry out the mucous membranes of the mouth, esophagus and stomach.

Vodka is a widespread drink that is surrounded by many myths. Due to the long history of alcohol consumption, it became impossible to find out why the strength of vodka is “adjusted” to exactly 40 degrees. The most popular version is that the number of degrees is related to the peculiarities of taxation and classification of alcoholic beverages.

Vodka is one of the most popular drinks in the world. Many songs, poems and stories are dedicated to her; she inspired writers, poets and musicians, poisoning their lives. She is cursed and praised; almost no feast is complete without her.

This drink is made in different countries from different raw materials, and it can have different names - sake in Japan, schnapps in Germany, peissah in Israel. One thing in common is that vodka is considered to be alcohol - a water-alcohol solution with a strength of 40º - a mixture of ethyl alcohol and water.

How does drinking vodka affect the body and how to consume it so as not to affect your health?

Vodka and only that

Mendeleev's research

Why is vodka 40 degrees?

The benefits and harms of vodka

Vodka and only that

For the first time, the name “vodka” was officially introduced by Elizabeth I in her decree of June 8, 1751. In literature, this term was used by Pushkin in the cult novel “Eugene Onegin”.

Currently, an alcoholic drink is made from rectified alcohol, diluting it to the required concentration with clean water.

Until the beginning of the 19th century, it was obtained through distillation, like modern moonshine. Nowadays they make tequila, rum, and whiskey this way. These alcoholic drinks are not vodka.

Mendeleev's research

His work is of more methodological interest than practical, and did not contribute anything new to the preparation of this alcoholic drink.

Why is vodka 40 degrees?

The benefits and harms of vodka

This is a brief description of the harm caused by alcohol to the body. Does vodka have any benefits?

In the table of calorie content of vodka alcoholic drinks, the energy value can be found out more precisely. There are different types of such tables.

Where do the calories come from in vodka?

The calorie table for the most popular and high-quality varieties of vodka is as follows.

In the alcohol that is used to make alcoholic beverages, glucose, lactose, and sucrose remain - this is where the calories in vodka come from.

Any diet is a kind of stress for the body - it painfully perceives a decrease in the supply of nutrients and a reduction in diet, metabolic and chemical processes change.

You shouldn't increase the load on your body when you're losing weight. Vodka during a diet negatively affects your health in general, and your appearance in particular.

pohudeemsami.ru

Why is such a check needed?

Wanting to determine how many degrees there are in moonshine, they set it on fire - this method is simple, it does not require special devices and modules and helps to separate the distillate into fractions. This is necessary in order to separate the “heads” from the “body” and select the “tails”, that is, remove from the drink everything that is unsuitable for internal consumption.

Dividing the distillate into fractions helps to avoid poisoning by fusel oils, which are contained in large quantities in the “tails” and “heads”.

Naturally, the surest way to test alcohol for alcohol concentration is to immerse an alcohol meter in it. The device will help you figure out the degrees and give very accurate readings. But if there is no such device, and it is extremely necessary to find out how many degrees in the drink, what then should you do?

You can taste the moonshine and determine its strength and quality by taste, smell and other indicators. But such a tasting can result not only in severe intoxication, but also intoxication. For those who do not want to risk their health, there is an alternative. But before you start checking, it is worth understanding why it is being carried out.

Why is moonshine set on fire?

This allows you to determine its strength and quality. If the drink does not burn, then the concentration of alcohol in it is so low that there is no point in drinking such alcohol. An example is mash - it does not burn, because the mash has few degrees, but there is a lot of fusel.
They evaluate not only the ability of moonshine to ignite, but also the smell that the drink emits during the combustion process - this helps determine its purity. If you set fire to moonshine and it starts to emit an unpleasant odor, then drinking it is dangerous.

Experienced distillers determine the concentration of alcohols by studying the flame. This is a fairly simple way to determine the quality of moonshine, which is used in the absence of special equipment. The flames of burning alcohol can tell a lot; if you look closely at the fire, you can learn almost everything about the drink.

Set fire to moonshine

First, you should determine the amount of drink that needs to be tested using fire. Then dip a paper napkin into it and bring it to the fire. This method is not the only one; a match and an ordinary spoon will also help to test moonshine.

So, what will the fire tell:

If the flame is even, blue in color, and burns well and continuously, then the strength of the drink is about 40 degrees or more.
If the flame burns weakly, is interrupted, goes out, and then rises again, then the alcohol strength is below 40 degrees.

Alcohol stops burning - this happens when its strength decreases significantly. If there is a selection of “tails”, then they are selected until the moonshine somehow burns. When it stops burning, the selection is completed. The “tails” are collected until the alcohol content in the alcohol drops to 20–15 degrees.

That is, a liquid in which the alcohol content is below 20–15 degrees can hardly be called moonshine, but can be characterized as alcohol. An example is home-produced wine: in the process of making this drink, distillers do not have the goal of “catching up”, but there is a desire to create a high-quality drink.

Pervach, or pervak, is a strong and toxic moonshine with a high concentration of fusel that will burn well, but it is not recommended to be consumed, it is used only for technical needs.

When distilling, you should pay attention not only to the flame, but also to other characteristics of moonshine. You can smell it: if the alcohol has an unpleasant odor, it will have to be distilled again. Recycling will remove the unpleasant aroma, and at the same time add degrees to the drink.

Repeated distillation can increase this figure to 60–70 and will improve the quality of the drink, making it softer in taste.

In addition, when recycling, there is no need to select the “heads” and “tails”. But in order not to divide the moonshine into fractions, it is worth purifying it - placing activated carbon tablets or potassium permanganate crystals into the drink.

But the highest quality product can be obtained using a rectifier. This device at home allows you to produce raw alcohol with a strength of up to 96 degrees. This alcohol burns with a blue flame, which is difficult to miss, and does not emit an unpleasant odor during the combustion process. It is used to make liqueurs and tinctures.

What affects the alcohol concentration?

There are several factors that can change the quality of alcohol and affect its characteristics. Even if moonshine has previously been tested and has high performance, it can be reduced by:

Contact with direct sunlight. If the product is stored in a glass container and has contact with the rays of the sun, its strength will gradually decrease. Ultraviolet radiation has a negative effect on alcohol; for this reason, it is recommended to store moonshine in a dark, cool place in a darkened glass container. You can use barrels to store alcohol; they will help avoid contact with light and even increase the strength of the distillate by 2-3 degrees.
Herbs. When it comes to preparing tinctures, herbs or berries can affect their strength. Some of them increase the strength of the drink, while others reduce it. For this reason, it is worth periodically checking the quality of tinctures, because this indicator may change. However, such changes can be considered minor.
Tightness is another indicator that can change the quality of the drink. If alcohol is stored in containers that are not airtight and the alcohol is constantly in contact with air, then its strength gradually decreases. This happens quite quickly. Even minor contact with oxygen will affect the quality of the product.
Water. If moonshine is diluted, its strength will decrease.

They say that if you store moonshine, cognac, whiskey or rum in a barrel made of oak, the drink will gain strength over time. And indeed it is. This will happen because the tree does not allow the rays of the sun to pass through, protects the distillate from contact with air and helps it infuse, that is, reach the required degrees during storage.

When choosing moonshine or another drink, you should rely not only on its strength, but also on its taste. You can set fire to the distillate, dilute it, or come up with something else, but this will not help turn an outright surrogate into elite alcohol.

For this reason, you should rely not only on the flame, but also on other factors that play an important role in choosing a drink.

pogarchik.com

Moonshine how many degrees - determine with an alcohol meter

In order to determine the strength of alcohol-containing drinks, there is a simple and accessible device for everyone - alcohol meter. Having it, you can always find out what kind of distillate you got. It's not difficult at all, all you need to do is:

Cool the moonshine to 20°C. This is an important indicator, since the accuracy of the readings depends on it.
Pour the liquid into a long transparent container. If you have it in an almost full jar, you don’t have to pour it anywhere.
Carefully lower the alcohol meter into the liquid and see how much it “hangs” in it, and at what point on the scale the liquid level is.

Note! A moonshine brewer doesn’t always have the patience to cool the resulting product; he wants to know the strength right away, while it’s still warm. This is possible, but an adjustment needs to be made.

The best assistant in this is the moonshiner’s calculator, which you can either download to your computer (smartphone) or use online.

An alcohol meter today is not a scarce device, and it is inexpensive, so every moonshiner can buy it. You can even have not one, but a couple, since it is easy to break, because it is made of glass. However, anyone can find themselves in a situation when you don't have an alcohol meter at hand.

DIY alcohol meter

To buy it, you either need to go to the city and search there, or order it online and wait several days for delivery. We offer a simple scheme for self-made alcohol meter.

You will need:

two flasks, and in the absence of such, two transparent tubes (for example, from used ballpoint pens). You can also use two pieces of silicone tubes;
store-bought vodka (not burnt!), the strength of which is the well-known 40°;
pure medical alcohol, the well-known strength of which is 97°. As a last resort, you can take an alcohol preparation (for example, camphor or salicylic alcohol). Its strength is 70°, as written on the bottle label. That is, in this case you will not be able to accurately determine the degree above 70°, but you will know that it is higher. Moonshine rarely has more than 55°;
adhesive tape (duct tape) or rubber band;
marker or nail polish;
a small piece of lead or a metal ball (weight);
plugs for sealing the lower ends of the tubes.

First, two tubes (flasks) are connected to each other using tape, and the bottoms are insulated. A weight is placed in one of them. The device is ready, all that remains is to make the scale.

First, it is lowered into vodka and a mark is made at the place to which the tubes have dropped. Clearly, this is 40°.

Then they are dipped in alcohol, and the second mark is made in the same way (70 or 97°). And between the two marks other readings are calculated. You can, however, not draw lines; the definition will still be “strictly by eye,” that is, approximate.

Attention! This device cannot claim to be a real alcohol meter, since it can produce serious errors.

But if you don’t need precise indicators, this will do. At least you won’t lower the degree of distilled moonshine below 40°! However, if possible, buy a real device.

See also: Equipment and accessories for home brewing

At what degrees does moonshine burn?

Let's talk about a method that is well known to everyone who distilled moonshine back in the days of Gorbachev's Prohibition Law. It is based on the fact that all alcohol, whose strength is above 20° - lights up. And in different ways. The check is done in several ways:

1. Pipette the moonshine and drop it into a spoon, counting. For example - 10 drops. Then they set it on fire, and when it goes out, count the drops again. If 5 drops remain - strength about 50°, 6 – 40°, etc.

2. A more reliable method than the previous one, since it has been tested by many generations. Scoop moonshine into a spoon and set it on fire, taking into account the following factors:

the contents of the spoon burn out almost completely, and the color of the flame is blue. In liquid 80° or more;
In the flame, reddish notes appear against the blue background (as sometimes in the burners of our gas stoves), and a certain amount of water remains in the spoon. The fortress is still above 60°;
the flame is red, does not burn for long, the water remains half of the original volume or more. Supposedly it's degrees 40 ;
burns as long as you hold a match over a spoon - about 30°.
flashes, but immediately goes out - at 20°. This is already a fortress tails, they need to be collected separately or not collected at all. The maximum that moonshine tails are capable of is to be added to the mash to increase its alcohol content.

More on the topic: Why do you need to separate the heads, body and tails in moonshine?

We determine the strength depending on the temperature in the cube

Most commercially made cubes are equipped with a thermometer that monitors mash heating temperature. If you know something about temperature indicators, you can determine when the first drops will begin to drip, when you can finish selecting the “heads” and to what level the “body” should be driven.

At 88 – 89°С the alcohol begins to evaporate, that is, a trickle of alcohol is about to flow. As soon as you notice the first drops in the tube attached to the coil (transparent silicone tubes are most often used now), turn down the heat or switch the stove to a lower mode; you should not sharply heat the mash any further, otherwise foam may erupt.
Select the tails (this is approximately 10% of the expected amount of moonshine) and begin to distill the main part (the body). When you see that the thermometer needle has reached the number 95, it means that the strength of the outgoing liquid is now in the region 40°.
The arrow moves further, and somewhere on 97°С you need to remove the jar with the main distillate and or take the tails until the temperature rises to 98°C, or stop distillation.

Important. Do not forget about the possible errors of thermometers.

Having analyzed the coincidence of the temperature in the cube and the strength of the distillate several times, you will know exactly how many degrees the liquid has that is currently flowing into the jar you placed.

To taste - to what degree should I push it?

Even if you have an ordinary homemade device that does not have a thermometer, you can roughly determine the strength without alcohol meter also possible. However, here you cannot do without some experience in drinking strong alcohol. You just need to know what the degree “sounds” like in our body.

Moonshine brewing, in most cases, involves tasting the resulting product. That is, they taste it. Everyone knows approximately how much raw alcohol should be produced from a specific amount of mash.

Usually they start tasting the moonshine at the exit (“in thimble-sized” doses) when the expected amount exceeds half. And by their own feelings they determine how strong the distillate is at this stage and how much more can be distilled for consumption (that is, before the “tails” begin to flow).

Usually tasting method supplemented with a combustion test.

How to find out strength - visual method

Simply put, they look at what the liquid looks like. Transparency at the “like a tear” level it is considered an indicator of good quality and strength.

Turbidity(read: why moonshine is cloudy) supposedly indicates a low degree. By the way, not a fact.

Use only this method, without using others Not recommended. The water is clear too!

How to measure strength by weighing?

This check can only be carried out if you have electronic balance. First you need to weigh the container (or put it on the scale plate, turn it on, and it will show 0). Pour exactly 1 liter of moonshine into this container. A measuring cup will help you measure this amount, most of which cannot claim absolute accuracy. And look at the scale readings.

Liter of vodka strength 40° weighs 953 grams smooth! If it is less, the strength is higher (alcohol is lighter than water), the weight is greater - accordingly, the strength is lower. Yes, you’ve probably noticed yourself: when you pick up a three-liter jar of high-proof moonshine, you feel its unusual lightness.

It will be useful: Correct containers and storage conditions for homemade alcohol

Useful videos

Look at the video below on how to make an alcohol meter with your own hands, for this you only need two syringes, glue, a dropper, plaster and a lid, look:

How to measure the strength of moonshine - a review of household alcohol meters and professional hydrometers ASP 1 and ASP 3, look:

Please note in the comments how useful this article was for you. Perhaps you know some other ways to determine the strength of moonshine. We'd love to hear about them!

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Should vodka burn?

If the vodka is cold (taken out of the refrigerator), it may not ignite, but when heated it should, since alcohol is flammable. It’s the same with moonshine, but moonshine should ignite faster, since normal moonshine is made stronger than vodka. The strength of vodka is 40%, and moonshine is 60%.

Vodka, which is sold in many stores, will not burn, since they are usually on the shelves (at a temperature of no more than 23 degrees).

Vodka should only burn when it is heated to 40 degrees or higher.

You can try it as an experiment, but be careful and only take a small amount.

I’m not sure exactly how much, but we determined it this way, at room temperature: Less than 30 degrees, it is impossible to set fire to vodka in a spoon; more than 30 degrees, burns uncertainly, flares up, goes out; 40 degrees or more, burns normally; more than 50 degrees, burns well and if you slowly pour it from a spoon onto the floor, it reaches the floor without going out and continues to burn on the floor.

Vodka itself does not burn and should not burn. Alcohol vapors burn over vodka. If vodka has a normal alcohol concentration of 40%, then the vapor above it MUST burn! This is due to the fact that the concentration of alcohol vapor above the vodka is directly related to the concentration of alcohol in the vodka itself.

If vodka is diluted, the concentration of alcohol vapor above it is lower and it will not burn

In theory it should, since vodka contains alcohol, and alcohol, as you know, burns. Only the amount of alcohol in vodka does not always correspond to GOST. If we take Soviet times, alcohol was 40%, now it is about 38%.

It is believed that if vodka is set on fire and it catches fire, then it is high-quality vodka, not a fake. If the vodka is chilled, it will not burn, but if it is at room temperature, then when ignited, the alcohol vapors in it will ignite. If the alcohol concentration is low, then the light will be dim, weak and will quickly fade away.

Vodka starts to burn if you warm it up a little (30-40 degrees). Alcohol vapor evaporates and it can easily be set on fire. But cold vodka does not burn or burns very barely. This is understandable, because most of it is water, and alcohol burns.

Alcohol is a hot and flammable substance. Vodka, as you know, consists of alcohol and water, in a ratio of 40 to 60. At a 40 percent concentration, the alcohol vapor burns uncertainly, but still burns. But vodka doesn’t owe anyone anything.

If you take vodka out of the refrigerator, it will not burn, but if the vodka is preheated and set on fire, then in this case, due to the fact that the vapors evaporate, the vodka will begin to ignite. As for moonshine, if it is more than 50 degrees, then it burns quite brightly.

Vodka contains ethyl alcohol. It is not the vodka that burns, but the evaporation of ethyl alcohol on the surface of the solution. If vodka meets quality standards, then it will also contain the required amount of alcohol. If vodka contains less alcohol, it will not burn or will burn very, very weakly.

Vodka burns at forty degrees (40% ethyl alcohol concentration).

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Vodka: the official version of the invention of the drink

According to the official version, this year vodka may celebrate its one hundred and fifty-seventh birthday. Its invention is credited to Dmitry Mendeleev, who devoted an entire scientific work to this drink. It was Mendeleev who determined that vodka should consist of water and ethyl alcohol, and answered the question of how many degrees in vodka is considered the ideal combination of strength and safety for the human body. After much experimentation, Mendeleev came to the conclusion that a forty-degree drink is optimal and does not burn the delicate mucous membrane.

When did vodka appear in Rus'?

In fact, vodka appeared in Rus' much earlier than Dmitry Mendeleev’s treatise on this alcohol-containing liquid was written. Historians have found mention of a strong strong drink brought from Genoa at the beginning of the fifteenth century. Then no one thought about how many degrees there were in vodka, but the result of its use was simply stunning for Rus'. The number of robberies, fights and various cases of riots on the streets after drinking a foreign strong drink has increased significantly. Therefore, vodka was banned from being imported into the country for a hundred years, and subsequently it was used only as a medicine. Doctors advised using it very carefully and no more than one spoon per day.

Only by the nineteenth century did vodka become widespread in Russia, and the name known to everyone was finally assigned to it.

High-quality vodka: components and proportions

In the mass production of vodka, ethyl alcohol and water are used; the concentration and purification of these components determine the strength and quality of the product. To improve the taste, honey, herbs or berries are added to the alcoholic drink. But this does not affect the quality of alcohol at all. In this case, information about how many degrees in alcohol plays a huge role. For vodka, which experts recognize as the best, it is important that the alcohol has at least ninety-six degrees.

Most often, ethyl alcohol in its pure form has the required strength; after purification, the strength of the alcohol increases slightly. In production, it is purified with silver ions or carbon; this is considered the safest and most effective way to separate dangerous impurities.

If all manipulations are carried out correctly, then vodka with a strength of forty to fifty-six degrees will come out of the conveyor. This small run-up is considered absolutely normal and complies with Russian GOSTs.

Low-quality goods appear on store shelves quite often. It may not correspond to the declared strength or density, and in the worst case, it may be made from deadly methyl alcohol. Therefore, almost every Russian knows several ways to determine the quality of purchased vodka.

At what degrees does vodka freeze?

Many experts claim that good vodka does not freeze. Actually this is not true. High-quality vodka may well freeze if the temperature drops below twenty-five degrees Celsius. In some cases, a strong alcoholic drink can even withstand frost of thirty-two degrees. This depends on the strength of the drink itself and the additives it contains.

To check the quality of alcohol purchased in a store, you need to set the temperature in the refrigerator freezer to within twenty-four degrees Celsius. If the vodka freezes after a few hours, this will indicate that the strength of the drink is lower than stated. In addition, there is a high probability that such a surrogate was made from low-quality alcohol.

At what degrees does vodka burn?

The flammability of the favorite Russian drink is considered one of the indicators of its quality. Indeed, this method allows you to accurately determine the strength of the drink, namely, it will allow you to answer the question of how many degrees. Vodka burns only at a strength of forty degrees. The higher the alcohol concentration in the drink, the more noticeable the combustion will be. Moreover, the flame must have a blue tint; the green color of the flame means that methyl alcohol was used in the production of vodka. Under no circumstances should you drink this drink.

Rating of the strongest national drinks

Almost all of our compatriots believe that vodka is the strongest alcohol in the world. But in fact, one can argue with this statement. The list of the strongest drinks in the world includes Scotch whiskey, absinthe, vodka, and sake. How many degrees each of these drinks contains will determine its place in the ranking:

Absinthe. This alcoholic drink made from wormwood can reach eighty-five degrees. Most often, absinthe is found on sale with a strength of seventy degrees. Of all alcoholic drinks, it is the most controversial and dangerous. Even in small quantities, drinking absinthe causes hallucinations and attacks of unmotivated aggression.
Scotch whiskey. Whiskey, or scotch, as it is also called, in its traditional version has a strength of seventy degrees. But such alcohol rarely hits store shelves; usually the strength of whiskey does not exceed fifty degrees. Whiskey is made from barley, and its name is enshrined as a brand at the legislative level. The history of the appearance of the drink is very complicated, but historians note that even the ancient Celts knew how to make a strong alcoholic drink, which they drank on major holidays.
Vodka. Classic vodka with a strength of forty degrees takes only third place in the ranking.
Sake. Japanese rice vodka is often mistakenly considered a strong alcoholic drink. But in fact, its strength rarely approaches twenty degrees. When serving, the Japanese dilute sake with water to fifteen degrees. There are hundreds of recipes for making sake in Japan. It usually has a pronounced fruity taste with a slight bitterness. Particularly expensive varieties of sake are distinguished by the aroma and taste of mushrooms. Such alcohol is considered elite and is not exported.

The list of popular and strong drinks can also include Mexican tequila, which has a strength of fifty degrees.

Homemade alcoholic drinks

In our country, the population consumes not only drinks that are sold in stores. After all, in order not to worry about how many degrees there are in vodka, you can produce it yourself. This is exactly what many of our craftsmen do, delighting their guests with delicious tinctures and liqueurs.

Homemade alcoholic drinks come in different strengths. To understand how many degrees there are in the liqueur, vodka, or rather information about its strength, will not be enough. Some specialists are able to make a liqueur from ordinary forty-proof vodka in combination with berries and herbs that will have fifty degrees of strength. It all depends on the age of the drink, additives and, of course, the recipe. And quite often it is kept secret by several generations of one family.

A few words in conclusion

Of course, vodka cannot be considered a healthy drink; even in minimal quantities it is poisonous to all human organs. Therefore, when going to the store for another bottle of “white”, try not to harm yourself too much with this originally Russian strong drink.

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General concept of vodka product

Vodka is a high-alcohol drink that consists of a mixture of pure ethyl alcohol and water. The product belongs to strong alcoholic drinks, the strength of which is regulated by established state standards and ranges from 38 to 60%. The most common is vodka with a strength of 40%.

The product is produced from food alcohol, according to GOST “Rectified ethyl alcohol from food raw materials”. It is divided into categories based on the ingredients used to make it and the level of purification.

The product can be used as a base for cocktails or other weaker drinks.
But, most often it is used as an independent drink.
It can rightfully be called a unique product, since it is used not only for consumption, but also as a means for rubbing and compresses, preparing tinctures and some medicines.

Scientific determination of the degree of crystallization of vodka

The scientist F. Raoul at the end of the 18th century studied changes in the freezing point and boiling point of various liquids, depending on changes in the saturation of these solutions with additional additives. As a result of his activities, he derived several laws that relate to the ideal state of these liquids and their behavior.

According to the laws accepted by scientists, the crystallization and boiling temperatures depend on the molar saturation of the liquid. This statement is ideal for solutions and liquids subject to infinite dilution.

Can this law be applied to a mixture of alcohol and water?

According to Raoult's law, is it possible to find out at what degrees vodka freezes?

Experiments were carried out with components that were not volatile.
Alcohol is not one of these.
Based on the results of the work, appropriate formulas were developed.
They determine both the boiling point or the rise in vapor pressure, and the freezing degree of the water-alcohol mixture.

A mathematical calculation carried out 300 years ago shows that the freezing point of 40% vodka, with a slight error, is minus 28 °C. But it would be more correct to speak in this case not about complete freezing, but about the beginning of the crystallization process.

Freezing temperatures

Alcoholic drinks of varying concentrations can be frozen. Even pure ethyl alcohol. Its hardening temperature is - 115°C. The natural environment does not have such a temperature. Crystallization of alcohol into ice is permissible in artificial specialized laboratories. But low-alcohol liquids such as beer and tonics can crystallize at minus 4-5 degrees.

The rate of freezing of various alcoholic beverages depends on the level of ethyl alcohol. For example, wine can be low in alcohol or fortified.

Same with any alcohol-containing drink. In addition, the presence of various additives in the drink is an important factor.

The tabular data shows when crystallization of various alcoholic beverages begins.

	Name	Amount of alcohol (%)	Crystallization temperature (t°C)
1	Beer, champagne and regular light wines	to 10	— 5
2	Wines, liqueurs, medicinal tinctures and balms	20	— 10
3	Fortified wines, liqueurs	25	— 14-15
4	Rum, whiskey, brandy	30	— 18-20
5	Vodka, tequila, rum, cognac	40	-30
6	Strong vodka, whiskey, absinthe, gin	50	— 40
7	Drinks with an alcoholic strength of 55% or higher	55	— 45

Depending on its strength or alcohol content, you can give an exact answer at what temperature vodka freezes. Therefore, disputes regarding whether vodka freezes or not are not significant. When the temperature drops, vodka with any alcohol content will become ice. The only question is what temperature it will be. The difference is the process in which vodka begins to crystallize and the moment it completely freezes.

Many sources indicate that the average crystallization temperature of vodka begins at minus 26-28 °C, and complete freezing occurs at temperatures up to minus 32-35 °C.
This depends on the presence of alcohol and various aromatic fillers, sugar and other additives in vodka.
The greater their concentration, the faster the vodka will freeze.

Crystallization of vodka

A product with 40% alcohol content almost never freezes to ice at home. This is due to the fact that the freezers of home refrigerators are not designed for low temperatures down to minus 35 °C. The minimum temperature in the freezer compartment of the refrigerator can reach minus 28 °C. If, after all, the vodka is frozen, then you should not wonder why this happened. The answer is simple - you bought a fake or low-quality product.

At temperatures down to minus 26 °C, the vodka cools down and prepares it for crystallization.
During cooling, the container is enveloped in a weak ice crust obtained from the water included in the vodka.
As the product crystallizes and hardens, the alcohol that remains increases in strength.
This leads to the icing temperature of the drink becoming even lower.

Having reached the level of crystallization, alcohol does not freeze, but takes on a viscous and viscous form. The result of maximum cooling is a bottle covered with frost, containing a thick liquid. When you take this bottle out of the freezer, you get the impression that you are pouring liquid jelly. This drink lacks the smell and taste of vodka, making it much easier to drink. There is no unpleasant aftertaste after drinking, which encourages you to try the drink again. Such consumption of vodka harms the feast. In addition, it entails some unpleasant consequences:

An excessively cold drink can cause colds or inflammatory processes in the body.
A heavily chilled vodka product does not cause an intoxicating effect for a long time. This entails an increase in the volume of alcohol-containing liquid consumption. After a short period of time, it heats up and becomes more active, resulting in sudden intoxication.
Excess alcohol can lead to intoxication and cause a gag reflex.

To avoid unpleasant consequences, it is advisable to eat tightly.

Having taken the product out of the freezer, you need to let the drink reach a temperature of +5+10°C.
This temperature is not harmful to human health.
Professionals who are involved in the production and release of vodka claim that at the specified temperature the real taste of the product is felt.
High-quality and well-purified vodka has a sweetish taste, which is one of the parameters of ethyl alcohol.

Vodka, defrosted after severe freezing, does not lose its taste and alcohol characteristics. If you are a fan of a very cold product, then you can find a way out of the situation. It is advisable to bring the drink to the recommended drinking temperature, and try pouring it into a frozen glass.

Checking vodka for quality

Knowing at what temperature alcohol crystallizes in different alcoholic drinks, you can check the compliance of the alcohol-containing container with the standards. The alcoholic drink must be placed in the freezer compartment of the refrigerator. A chilled drink will make it easier to drink. But an unpleasant situation may arise. Alcohol turned to ice at a temperature higher than permissible. It is recommended to avoid this drink, as it can cause poisoning. Premature crystallization of a liquid can be due to the following reasons:

Low alcohol content.
The presence of additives, flavorings, salts or preservatives.
A low level of alcohol purification, as a result of which it contains various impurities or oils.

The temperature in the freezer compartment of any refrigerator does not fall below minus 25-28 degrees. If a drink placed in the freezer is frozen, it is better not to drink it. It may not be safe for your health.

There are several other ways to check quality at home. They are as follows:

Sulfuric acid. You can ask any motorist for a few drops of it. You can take it with a pipette from the battery and mix it with vodka. This is how the concentration of fusel oils is determined. If the mixture turns black, it is better not to drink the drink.
Arson. An alcoholic drink of 40% burns with a small flame of a bluish tint. If the vodka does not light, then it is of poor quality.
Smell. To enhance the alcoholic effect of the drink, the manufacturer can add industrial alcohol or acetone to the drink. This alcohol produces a pungent odor and is not recommended for consumption.

General advice is to avoid consuming a product if there is any doubt about its contents.

Everyone needs to know

Vodka belongs to strong alcoholic drinks and is one of the most popular drinks. Around the world, about a billion liters of the drink are consumed every year. High-quality, good products undergo a distillation process, which inexpensive vodka does not undergo.

If there are repulsive odors coming from the drink, this is evidence that the ethyl alcohol has not been sufficiently processed.

To enhance the taste characteristics, unscrupulous manufacturers add flavoring aromatic additives and various impurities to the prepared product.

Contrary to the general opinion, vodka was not invented by D.F. Mendeleev. The writing of the dissertation and subsequent works were associated with alcohol solutions, which did not exceed thirty degrees in strength. The concept of “vodka” appeared in the mid-18th century and replaced the concepts of “bread wine” and “moonshine”.

Alcohol is very often the cause of death.
Drinking 1 liter of vodka at a time will definitely lead to death.
A half-liter dose drunk in a short period of time can cause a stroke, heart attack or death.
The dosage may be less.
It all depends on what feats the person who drank the alcoholic drink will be capable of.
He may go swimming, jump from a considerable height, or receive a serious injury at home.

Previously, in the absence of normal medical care, vodka was used as anesthesia during various operations. And in case of a bee sting and the absence of antihistamines, traditional healers recommend drinking a glass of vodka. No one can explain how this is connected, but the recipe works effectively.

Vodka is a drink without which not a single holiday can pass. Whatever the feast, you should always remember the possible consequences that may arise after consuming it. Knowledge of consumption norms and rules of behavior will help prevent undesirable consequences from occurring.

Why should good vodka be at 40 degrees?

D.I. Mendeleev in his doctoral dissertation in 1864, discussing the combination of alcohol with water, showed that when alcohol is combined with water, alcohol hydrates with one, three and 12 water molecules are formed. When the strength of vodka is less than 40 degrees, the solution is dominated by hydrates with 12 water molecules. That is, subjectively we have low viscosity and a feeling of dilution. At a strength above 40 degrees, hydrates with one molecule predominate. And the vodka seems dry and strong. And only a strength of 40 degrees gives a balanced amount of hydrates with three molecules.

Good vodka should be made from natural ingredients, pure water, and high-quality alcohol. In general, this product at 40 degrees was not originally intended for oral administration. 40 degrees was intended for treatment outside.

This is a standard strength of vodka, just as, say, for champagne the normal strength is from 6 to 15 degrees. The main thing is that this vodka is made from ethyl alcohol, from natural raw materials, without adding unnecessary dyes and preservatives, so that it does not give you a headache.

It would be more correct to say that good vodka should be made from high-quality alcohol, which is obtained from food raw materials, preferably from wheat grain. Then vodka must undergo purification from methanol, impurities and other technological processes to improve quality. There are good quality vodkas and spirits both above 40 degrees and below. And vodka became vodka in 1936, before that this drink had no name, so decided by USSR officials, who also decided that it should be 40 degrees. All this is based on the research of D.I. Mendeleev, who calculated the compression of water and ethyl alcohol in approximately these proportions, when ethyl alcohol molecules interact ideally with water molecules. In simple terms, if there is more water, then the alcohol solution will contain free water molecules that do not fully interact with the alcohol molecules, but if on the contrary, then there will be free alcohol molecules, which, by the way, interact with the mucous membrane in the mouth when consumed , thereby supplementing the water molecules missing in the solution, resulting in burning, dryness...

There is vodka with a strength of less than 40 degrees, in Europe they produce vodka with a strength of 37, in Russia they set a standard that is no less than 40, and they adhere to this upper maximum bar, with such a strength it is easier to drink and is considered to be better absorbed.

The fact is that 40 degrees is the norm for vodka, so to speak, the standard, but the presence of a degree does not indicate the quality of this drink, here you need to look at the raw materials from which the vodka was prepared, if the right oils are mixed in it, then the taste and quality will be excellent.