Bison grass vodka

Bison grass vodka is a flavoured vodka: grain alcohol to which an extract of bison grass has been added. In the European classification the protected Polish variant falls under the category of flavoured vodka. The Polish word is żubrówka, derived from żubr, the European bison.

According to the technical file of the geographical indication, the base is made from agricultural-origin grain alcohol with at least 96.5 percent alcohol. The finished product has at least 37.5 percent alcohol, contains at most 4.5 grams of sugar per litre (calculated as invert sugar) and has a light green colour with a golden hue. The international names bison grass vodka and bison vodka refer to the same kind of drink.

It concerns two species from the genus Hierochloë: Hierochloë odorata and Hierochloë australis. Hierochloë odorata is also known as Mary grass, holy grass or vanilla grass. The grass contains coumarin, an aroma compound that occurs naturally in the plant.

The technical file prescribes that the grass is picked on natural meadows in the Białowieża Forest and the Knyszyń Forest, or on fields in the same region where it is grown. After harvest the grass dries in shady places, out of direct sunlight. It then steeps for three days in a closed installation in an alcohol solution. The extract rests for a month in oak casks before it is blended with grain alcohol and sugar syrup, filtered and bottled.

The full protected name is 'Herbal vodka from the North Podlasie Lowland aromatised with an extract of bison grass', in Polish 'Wódka ziołowa z Niziny Północnopodlaskiej aromatyzowana ekstraktem z trawy żubrowej'. The name is in the European register of geographical indications for spirit drinks, with Poland as country of origin.

The original European registration dates from 23 September 2003, in the run-up to Poland's accession to the EU. The delimited area is the North Podlasie Lowland. The file explains the link with the region through the wisent: the Białowieża Forest is the habitat of the European bison, and bison grass is part of its diet. The name is also protected in the United Kingdom after Brexit.

The reason is coumarin. In the United States, food to which coumarin has been added, including via tonka beans or tonka extract, is considered adulterated under federal rule 21 CFR 189,130. According to the American drinks trade magazine VinePair, coumarin has not been permitted there in food and drink since 1954.

Because of this, the original bison grass vodka could not be legally sold in the US for a long time. VinePair reports that the producer Polmos Białystok has made a coumarin-free version since 2010 that may be imported into America. In Europe those American rules do not apply.

The blade of grass is a hallmark, not a requirement. The technical file of the protected designation does not list it as a mandatory element. Producer Polmos Białystok writes that every bottle is fitted by hand with a blade of grass, as a sign of authenticity and natural origin. According to VinePair, most bison grass vodka brands do the same.

According to the producer, the Polmos Białystok distillery lies about 200 kilometres from Warsaw, in the North Podlasie Lowland itself. The blade of grass does not give the drink its colour: that comes from the extract made beforehand, as the technical file describes.

In de winkel staan 12 flessen bisongraswodka en verwante varianten, allemaal uit Polen. Het grootste deel komt van Zubrowka: de klassieke Zubrowka Bison Grass, de Biala, Czarna en Zlota, de Rosé, de smaakvarianten Vanilla, Raspberry en Mango & Passionfruit, en de Fresh-varianten. Daarnaast staat Grasovka Bison Brand in het schap, een tweede Pools merk in deze categorie.

If you want to know which bottle carries the protected designation and which is a flavour variant, you can read it on the label or ask in the shop. For advice on bison grass vodka you can call or drop in at ’t Bockje at Brink 2 in Bathmen.

The shop is at Brink 2 in Bathmen. Open Tuesday to Friday from 09.00 to 18.00 and Saturday from 09.00 to 17.00. For advice, call 0570 541 278 or email info@bockje.nl.