Zubrowka Bison Grass Vodka

Jenny’s brother Ben recently brought over a rare find, a bottle of Zubrowka Bison Grass Vodka. Zubrowka has enjoyed a recent surge in popularity, mainly due to the urban legend dynamo that is the internet. Bison Grass has been proclaimed to cause hallucinations, a narcotic buzz, blood thinning, aphrodisiac effects, increased stamina and virility, and even a slow death by poisoning. Much like Absinthe, whose effects are purported to be similar, the Web has been abuzz with rumors, conspiracies, and downright fabrications of what Bison Grass actually does and why it was banned in the early 1970’s. The answer is simple, Bison Grass can be used as a blood thinner, an effect the FDA decided could be terribly dangerous, as dangerous as Asprin. Luckily, The Man has rethought his stance on Zubrowka (and Absinthe, but that’s another review) and it is now available, slightly adulterated but close enough for government work.

Happily, this particular bottle of Zubrowka was purchased in Europe where the original recipe has remained the same, so happily Ben and I poured ourselves a couple shots of this liquor.

The taste is smooth for a vodka of questionable quality, it coats the mouth with a sweet and herbal taste along with a slight rubbing alcohol flavor. Don’t get me wrong, the Bison Grass is the main player here, I just wish they used a higher quality vodka as a base. The taste itself is that of lime and wintergreen with a few other herbal elements that are harder to place. Overall, this is an excellent drink to have neat or over rocks. I could see this working incredibly well in a mojito or a modified mint julep, but my drink recipe for you is this… I call it a Brazilian Buffalo:

1.5 shots Zubrowka

1 shot Cachaca

1 tbsp sugar

1 sprig of mint

½ of a lime

Squeeze lime juice into a rocks glass, drop in lime half, mint leaves, and sugar. Muddle until well mixed, drop in a handful of crushed ice, pour in liquors and stir gently. Garnish with a lime wheel and a sprig of mint.