Retro flavors
Did you know that carbonated drinks have been around for almost 250 years? It’s no surprise, then, that pretty much every country has its “elder statesmen” of fizzy drinks – ones not just you, but your parents and grandparents have grown up with. In the case of Russia, these are the “big five”:
- Baikal
Named after the iconic freshwater lake and made with a variety of plants and herbs, the most prominent being fir needle oil. Tastes like a day out among nature!
- Tarkhun
Originally from Georgia and made with the tarragon plant, its neon-green coloring and strong flavor make it hard to miss.
- Buratino
Sweet, a little sour, and a tad bitter – this bubbly beverage bears the name of Pinocchio’s Russian counterpart.
- Kolokolchik
What makes this citrus-flavored soda unusual is its lack of coloring. At a glance, it looks just like any bottle of mineral water! And despite the taste, it’s actually made with the extract of the bellflower plant – hence the name (lit. “little bell”).
- Duchess
Another cultural import from the nation of Georgia, this pear-flavored drink takes its name from a French variety of the fruit.
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Fermentation nation
To the delight of health food obsessives, Russian culture has long ago embraced the appeal of fermented drinks, partly for their flavor and partly for how easy they are to make at home – like, say, while on a trip to the dacha.
The two big names to know here are kvass and grib. The former is the result of fermentation of rye, malt, and sugar, resulting in a “liquid bread” that can be surprisingly refreshing on a scorching day. The latter is better known as kombucha – in fact, these days you’ll almost always find it sold under the trendier name, with grib (lit. “mushroom”) reserved for the homemade variety.
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New kids on the block
The Russian soft drink industry, however, isn’t resting on its laurels: in recent years, countless smaller brands have popped up and made use of the growing number of upmarket grocery chains, like the frequent ITMO partner VkusVill.
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What all these new players on the market have in common is a willingness to boldly experiment with flavors. Take the St. Petersburg-based brand Bakunin, for instance. Their current product line includes flavors such as apple and dill, guava and bergamot, or forest berries and juniper.
Another hip label, Lapochka, produces drinks more akin to fruity seltzers (think La Croix or Perrier). Their current offerings include flavors like guava and kaffir lime, peach and verbena, or mango and chili – as well as a nostalgia-tinged line of drinks such as the aforementioned Tarkhun or cream soda.
Other common sights on today’s store shelves include: the Volkovskaya Brewery’s own soft-drink label Volchok, the gorgeous folklore-inspired designs of Plan B, and the daring flavor combos of Reka (feat. a palo santo incense-flavored soda!).
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