Ukraine specializes in distilling horylka (vodka) from beets, wheat and sugar. When the latter is in short supply or just too expensive it is easily substituted with caramel, kilo for kilo, which could explain the variation in colouring.

It’s impossible to imagine life around a Ukrainian village without home-made vodka. The special devices used to make this house-hold hooch stay hidden from public view, and, of course, from the prying eyes of the law. Consisting of different materials, a still may vary in construction from house to house, nevertheless each follows a simple scheme: the base or span is made of yeast then mixed with sugar and brought to a boil in the tank, where it evaporates and is cleansed of any poisonous oils. Afterwards it is condensed in the cooling tank and the resulting product poured into individual bottles.

Viola! “samohon”. To remove the unpleasant smell from homemade vodka, “experts” use nutshells, bay leaves, pepper and an assortment of different herbs and flowers.

“Samohon” remains very much a part of everyday life in Ukraine, especially in the villages beyond the larger suburban centers. Tractor drivers working in the field all day long, take lunch with them and often a bottle of “samohon”. It’s a comforting thought, eh? Lunch is usually bread, salo and leaks chased “down the hatch” with “samohon”. An you thought extra terrestrial life was responsible for all of those fancy designs left in the grain fields!