5 ms·

Kvass

22 points by Rendello 5y ago

RomanPushkin 5y ago
If you're curious, there is bottled Kvass in Russian grocery stores. Probably Cinderella bakery in San Francisco has the real kvass - you have to call though. My grandma used to make it out of the rye bread. And if you're curious, in Soviet Union fresh kvass was all over the place.
- legerdemain 5y ago
  I've never found a canned/bottled kvass at a "pan-East-European" grocery that was better than "just OK." Usually too sweet, too malty, and too syrupy. Sometimes you see on the cans drying drips of molasses (or motor oil or whatever) that it's sweetened with. I'd kill for a Soviet street-vendor style kvass: dry, golden-yellow, fizzy, and tasting of burnt toast.
jasonhansel 5y ago
An interesting quote: > The wide availability and consumption of kvass, including by children of all ages, together with the lacking indication of ABV for kvass on the labels and in advertisements has been named a possible contributor to chronic alcoholism in the former Soviet Union.
- kova12 5y ago
  Same considerations may be valid for kombucha: https://gtslivingfoods.com/pages/does-kombucha-have-alcohol https://gtslivingfoods.com/pages/does-kombucha-have-alcohol . In US 0.5% ABV is considered non-alcoholic, per FDA: https://www.fda.gov/regulatory-information/search-fda-guidance-documents/cpg-sec-510400-dealcoholized-wine-and-malt-beverages-labeling https://www.fda.gov/regulatory-information/search-fda-guidan...
- eps 5y ago
  Lol... what a load of bull. Alcoholism comes from the unfulfilled need for camraderie and general dissasfaction with life, not a childhood exposure to a sweet effervescent drink even if it has some alcohol content. It is also a highly seasonal drink, consumed mostly in late spring and summer.
georgecmu 5y ago
The word kvass is ultimately from Proto-Indo-European base kwat- ('sour')* And other well-known derivatives are queso and cheese.
- legerdemain 5y ago
  Tons of words in Russian cluster around the same root: "to pickle" is "kvasit" (also, figuratively, "to chug"), leading to related words for sauerkraut and fermented dairy products, "sourdough starter" is "zakvaska," the vessel for fermenting dough is "kvashnia," etc.
- Rendello 5y ago
  I learned today it may also be an ancestor to Kvasir, who was a Norse god associated with mead. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kvasir https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kvasir
hekec 5y ago
Kvass is delicious
darebak 5y ago
Ahh, kvass, I remember making it when I was a teenager, it tasted great but the smell was just horrible, it smelled like sewage. Now I just stick to store-bought kvass from a local Russian store.
georgeoliver 5y ago
Kvass is great, a Russian cafe here used to have it off-menu (sadly they closed). I've seen a local producer selling beet kvass but IMO the bread-based one tastes better.
- Rendello 5y ago
  I learned about it last year from the Life of Boris Youtube channel [1], then from my buddy who was making some in his kitchen during lockdown. I started running that spring, and I made gallons of the stuff to drink after runs. I've had two commercial versions, one from Ochakovskiy, which is more like pop, and one more authentic one which was incredibly funky. I would like to try more versions and recipes, including the archaic "white Kvass" [2]. In fact the white kvass link was what I was planning on posting originally, but it lacks much detail. 1. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k1UTJKBMvgc https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k1UTJKBMvgc 2. https://www.rbth.com/arts/2013/09/04/white_kvass_an_old_drink_with_a_new_taste_29499.html https://www.rbth.com/arts/2013/09/04/white_kvass_an_old_drin...
avmich 5y ago
What's next, Kissel? https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kissel https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kissel

22 points by Rendello 5y ago

If you're curious, there is bottled Kvass in Russian grocery stores. Probably Cinderella bakery in San Francisco has the real kvass - you have to call though. My grandma used to make it out of the rye bread. And if you're curious, in Soviet Union fresh kvass was all over the place.

legerdemain 5y ago
I've never found a canned/bottled kvass at a "pan-East-European" grocery that was better than "just OK." Usually too sweet, too malty, and too syrupy. Sometimes you see on the cans drying drips of molasses (or motor oil or whatever) that it's sweetened with. I'd kill for a Soviet street-vendor style kvass: dry, golden-yellow, fizzy, and tasting of burnt toast.

jasonhansel 5y ago

An interesting quote: > The wide availability and consumption of kvass, including by children of all ages, together with the lacking indication of ABV for kvass on the labels and in advertisements has been named a possible contributor to chronic alcoholism in the former Soviet Union.

kova12 5y ago
Same considerations may be valid for kombucha: https://gtslivingfoods.com/pages/does-kombucha-have-alcohol https://gtslivingfoods.com/pages/does-kombucha-have-alcohol . In US 0.5% ABV is considered non-alcoholic, per FDA: https://www.fda.gov/regulatory-information/search-fda-guidance-documents/cpg-sec-510400-dealcoholized-wine-and-malt-beverages-labeling https://www.fda.gov/regulatory-information/search-fda-guidan...
eps 5y ago
Lol... what a load of bull. Alcoholism comes from the unfulfilled need for camraderie and general dissasfaction with life, not a childhood exposure to a sweet effervescent drink even if it has some alcohol content. It is also a highly seasonal drink, consumed mostly in late spring and summer.

georgecmu 5y ago

The word kvass is ultimately from Proto-Indo-European base kwat- ('sour')* And other well-known derivatives are queso and cheese.

legerdemain 5y ago
Tons of words in Russian cluster around the same root: "to pickle" is "kvasit" (also, figuratively, "to chug"), leading to related words for sauerkraut and fermented dairy products, "sourdough starter" is "zakvaska," the vessel for fermenting dough is "kvashnia," etc.
Rendello 5y ago
I learned today it may also be an ancestor to Kvasir, who was a Norse god associated with mead. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kvasir https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kvasir

hekec 5y ago

Kvass is delicious

darebak 5y ago

Ahh, kvass, I remember making it when I was a teenager, it tasted great but the smell was just horrible, it smelled like sewage. Now I just stick to store-bought kvass from a local Russian store.

georgeoliver 5y ago

Kvass is great, a Russian cafe here used to have it off-menu (sadly they closed). I've seen a local producer selling beet kvass but IMO the bread-based one tastes better.

Rendello 5y ago
I learned about it last year from the Life of Boris Youtube channel [1], then from my buddy who was making some in his kitchen during lockdown. I started running that spring, and I made gallons of the stuff to drink after runs. I've had two commercial versions, one from Ochakovskiy, which is more like pop, and one more authentic one which was incredibly funky. I would like to try more versions and recipes, including the archaic "white Kvass" [2]. In fact the white kvass link was what I was planning on posting originally, but it lacks much detail. 1. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k1UTJKBMvgc https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k1UTJKBMvgc 2. https://www.rbth.com/arts/2013/09/04/white_kvass_an_old_drink_with_a_new_taste_29499.html https://www.rbth.com/arts/2013/09/04/white_kvass_an_old_drin...

avmich 5y ago

What's next, Kissel? https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kissel https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kissel