Smoky harmony

G a s t r o n o m y

Polugar Classic Rye

Polugar is a historical Russian grain distillate, called “bread wine” since the 16th century. In fact, Polugar is the grandfather of all Russian vodkas. Today Polugar is the most gastronomic Russian strong drink of all.

Rye Polugar is the flagship drink of the Rodionov & Sons Private Distillery. For its preparation, malted and unmalted rye is distilled three times in copper stills, and then cleaned according to the noble recipe of the 18th century with fresh egg white and birch charcoal. The process is laborious, but this is the only way to get a real "Polugar" — soft, easy to drink, with a bright bouquet, in which notes of rye bread, dill, cumin, malt, buckwheat honey and wild flowers intertwine

Chicken in hay with smoke
Chicken in hay with smoke, prepared by the chef of the Shinok restaurant Elena Nikiforova, also resurrects Russian gastronomic traditions: the chicken itself is from the Prioskolie farm from Belgorod, and the cooking method evokes associations with very old Russian cuisine, when, in the absence of parchment, meat protected from direct heat including hay. Unlike paper and foil, hay also adds its own flavor — a slightly smoky aroma of dry grass.

Artem Samoilov, chief sommelier of the Shinok restaurant: “Someone may find it unobvious to combine hot chicken meat with a strong drink in principle. But this is only at first glance... The secret is in the chicken recipe and the special softness of Polugar. Tender white meat is served on fragrant hay. and the layer between them is thin chips from Borodino (Caraway) bread. These shades make the drink related to the dish. Polugar is dominated by aromas of warm rye bread from the oven framed by malt nuances and notes of dry grass. The meat is very tender, but Polugar is also unusually easy to drink.”