vodka
Vodka is typically a colourless liquor, usually distilled from fermented grain. The word is a diminutive form for "water" in various Slavic languages (voda, woda, вода). Except for various types of flavorings, vodka consists of water and alcohol (ethanol). It usually has an alcohol content ranging from 35% to 50% by volume. The classic Russian vodka is 40% (80 proof). This can be attributed to the Russian standards for vodka production introduced in 1894 by Alexander III from research undertaken by the Russian chemist Dmitri Mendeleev. According to the Vodka Museum in Moscow, Mendeleev found the perfect percentage to be 38, but since spirits in his time were taxed on their strength the percentage was rounded up to 40 to simplify the tax computation. At strengths less than this vodka drunk neat (not mixed with other liquids) can taste 'watery' and above this strength the taste of vodka can have more 'burn'. Under US Federal law, the minimum alcohol st...