Tuesday, June 26, 2018

Squid Mixes: Yorsh

This concoction could hardly be simpler: pour the beer, pour the vodka over it, drink.  No need to stir.  "Sounds very Russian," my wife says.  My recipe came from The New York Bartender's Guide.  It tastes like beer and vodka. 

Not sure I really see the point unless you've simply decided your beer's alcohol content is insufficient to your needs.  According to tradition, one is supposed to drink the whole thing in one go after a toast.  We didn't.

Drink responsibly, folks.

Yorsh dates to at least the 17th century.  Is it referenced in an anonymous Russian poem of that time period: "Tale of Woe and Misfortune."  However, the earlier version involved mead rather than beer.

Na Zdorovie!

8 comments:

  1. I'm having a beer crisis at the moment, so I think I will give this a pass.
    Even if I wasn't having a beer crisis, I would probably give this a pass.

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    1. The brewery that made the beer we like went under. Not because it went under, but because there was an embezzlement thing and all sorts of stuff. I haven't been able to find a replacement that is anywhere near close to it.
      Which impacts my cooking, too, since it is the beer I used when using beer in recipes.

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    2. Lengthwise? I won’t pretend to have an encyclopedic knowledge of breweries or embezzlement scandals. I Googled it. That sucks!

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  2. Ummmmm because I can not drink, I really wouldn't even be tempted to try this much less drink it all in one go. But if I was a big frozen Russian working outside all day this might be a yes ? maybe ? sort of' ?
    I am really enjoying your cocktail adventure.

    cheers, parsnip

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    1. If I ever throw a Siberia-themed weekend getaway, yorsh is definitely on the menu.

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  3. This seems to be a true alcoholic’s drink:) I love the tv show Absolutely Fabulous and the blond gal is in a bar with a beer where she drops a shot glass full of vodka into it...it was funny

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    1. There are actually several "real" cocktails like that. The most common is the boilermaker with a shot of whiskey dropped in the beer glass. I've tried that. It's nice.

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