Out in the Białowieża forest on the border between Poland and Belarus, the last wild bison in Europe graze in woodland that has never been felled. Beneath them grows a sweetly scented grass that Poles have been steeping in spirit for centuries. One blade of it sits in every single bottle.
Expert description
Zubrowka Bison Grass is a Polish Vodka made from rye, flavoured with a tincture of bison grass and bottled at 37.5%.
The grass is called Hierochloe odorata and smells of freshly cut hay, vanilla and a hint of almond. That aroma comes from coumarin, the same compound that makes tonka beans and woodruff recognisable, and it is why Zubrowka tastes of something no other vodka tastes of. The faint green colour comes from the grass alone.
The method is simple and old. The rye vodka has a tincture of dried bison grass added, harvested in and around the Białowieża forest, and finally a single blade is dropped into each bottle. The blade is not merely decoration. It signals that this is the original recipe rather than an industrial imitation built on added flavouring.
Poles nearly always drink it with cloudy apple juice. The mix is called Szarlotka after the Polish word for apple pie, and the name is accurate: the vanilla of the grass meets the acidity of the apple, and the result tastes strikingly like baked apple with cinnamon. It is one of the few vodka drinks where the spirit is genuinely meant to be noticed.
Tasting notes
Nose
Freshly cut hay and vanilla on top, with thyme and a floral streak of lavender behind. Nothing sharp anywhere in the aroma.
Palate
Silky and round with a clear herbal character. Lavender and jasmine tea lead, and a fine citrus edge sits underneath it all.
Finish
Medium and lightly sweet. The hay returns at the end, and there is no burning alcohol edge.
Specifications
Name: Zubrowka Bison Grass
Producer: Zubrowka
Region/Country: Poland
Type: Polish Vodka
ABV: 37.5%
Size: 70 CL
Distillation method: Rye vodka flavoured with a tincture of bison grass
EAN no.: 5900343005296
Serving suggestion: Ice cold with fresh cloudy apple juice, one part vodka to three parts juice. The mix is called Szarlotka.
Flavour profile
Herbal · Floral · Silky · Lightly sweet
Did you know?
The coumarin in bison grass was for decades the reason Zubrowka could not be sold in the United States. American authorities banned the compound as a food additive in 1954, and only in 2011 did a special version reach the American market with the coumarin removed. That bottle does not taste quite like this one.
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