Horilka is a Ukrainianalcoholic beverage. The wordhorilka may also be used in a generic sense in the Ukrainian language to mean vodka or other strong spirits and etymologically is similar to the Ukrainian word for burning - hority. Home-distilled horilka, moonshine, is called samohon. Horilka is usually distilled from grain, though it can, exceptionally, also be distilled from potatoes, honey, sugar beets etc. One type of horilka, called pertsivka, is horilka with chili peppers. Historically, outside Ukraine, pertsivka is generally referred to when people speak of horilka, although pertsivka itself is just one type of horilka. It is believed that horilka was not as strong as today with about 20 percent alcohol by volume. However, today nearly all industrially produced horilka is 40 percent.
Derivatives
Ukrainian tradition has also produced various derivatives of horilka. Some of these are available as commercial products, but most are typically home-made. This includes various kinds of fruit infusion, nalyvka and spiced spotykach: malynivka made with raspberries, tertukha, agrusivka, ternivka, kalynivka, shypshynnyk, horobynivka, zubrivka, vyshnyak or vyshnivka from cherries, slyv”yanka, morelivka, tsytrynivka, mokrukha, mochena, kontabas. Horikhivka is flavoured with nuts. Horilka is also made with honey, mint, or even milk. In some cases whole fruits of red peppers are put into the bottle, turning horilka into a sort of bitters; it is then named horilka z pertsem, or pertsivka. Medova z pertsem is the combination of horilka with chili peppers and honey. Most of these preparations are aged with fruit for several weeks or months, then strained or decanted. Some recipes call for the jars to be placed on the rooftop, for maximum bleaching by the sun. Many include the addition of home-made syrup for a strong liqueur, others yield very dry, clear spirit. Some involve the fermentation of fruit as well as addition of horilka. Preparations which are baked in an oven, in a pot sealed with bread dough, are called zapikanka, varenukha or palynka.
Traditions
Horilka plays a role in traditional weddings in Ukraine.
And bring us a lot of horilka, but not of that fancy kind with raisins, or with any other such things — bring us horilka of the purest kind, give us that demon drink that makes us merry, playful and wild! —Taras Bulba, by Nikolai Gogol
Etymology
The word horilka is attested in 1562 and 1678. Dialectic variants are harilka, horilash, horilytsya, horilets’, horilukha, z·horivka, zorivka, orilka, as well as Western Ukrainianhorivka, horychka. The word comes from the same root as the verb hority, ‘to burn’, similarly to Belarusianharelka, south Russiangorelka, Czech kořalka, and Slovak goralka, goržolka. It is considered to have come about following the Polish example gorzałka, possibly as an abbreviation of a compound word like horile vyno or horila voda. It may be an adaptation of the early Old High Germander brannte Wein → Branntwein. Also compare English brandy, short for brandywine, from Dutchbrandewijn, ‘burning wine’.
Pertsivka
A pertsivka or horilka z pertsem is the most widely associated type of horilka outside of Ukraine. It is made with whole fruits of capsicum put into the bottle, turning horilka into a sort of bitters. Sometimes perstsivka can be made also using honey, which is then called pertsivka z medom or medova z pertsem. Nemiroff is a Ukrainian brand actively promoting pepper horilka worldwide through the heavy use of product placement in cinema. The brand and company don't have long traditions but pertsivka production itself does.
Production of Horilka
Horilka that is bottled and sold by companies is usually distilled from wheat or rye. Horilka may also contain honey or be distilled from honey, or contain chili peppers, mint or birch bud. The self-distilled alcoholic beverage is called samohon and is the homemade variety of horilka, akin to moonshine.
