Grigory Rasputin, who played a fatal role in the fate of the Romanov royal family, looks from the bottle label. The legendary visionary, intriguer, political adventurer, killed in 1916, on the eve of the February revolution in Russia. The ambiguous personality on the label of a German drink indicates a special attitude towards Russian history and its figures. Vodka was created in 1989 at a German enterprise in the northernmost city of the country, located at a distance of 500 meters from the Danish border – Flensburg. The brand is owned by Dethleffsen.
The designer label has an original protection against falsification: Rasputin depicted on it winks when you look at the bottle from a certain angle.
There was even such a joke in the nineties: if Rasputin starts winking without tilting the bottle, then you have already drunk enough.
About the manufacturer
The history of the company began in 1738, when the German entrepreneur Christian Detlefsen settled on the Baltic Sea and began to supply strong alcohol from America and Europe. Almost 150 years passed before his heirs decided that distribution was not the only thing they wanted to dedicate themselves to. And they built the Diederich Dethleffsen distillery. The product range includes brandy and rum, bitters and vodka.
The Rasputin line was fully completed in 1995 – then, in addition to the classic drink, Citron, Granberry, Prestige, and Magic appeared in it.
Despite the established traditions of distillation, Dethleffsen still buys raw alcohol for this vodka, rectifies, filters and dilutes. Moreover, the recipe for the added flavoring ingredients is kept secret.
About a million bottles of the drink are produced annually, which are successfully sold in Australia, Mongolia, Israel and Russia. Rasputin is rarely drunk neat due to the distinct taste of burnt sugar, usually with ice or ice water.
Types of vodka Rasputin
Rasputin Magic (40%). Vodka with a sharp aroma of burnt sugar, with a rather harsh, burning taste and an unexpectedly caramel aftertaste.
Rasputin Prestige (40%). The aroma of the drink is soft, citrus, sweetish. The taste is balanced and quite soft, with hints of caramel and candied fruits. The aftertaste is hard, with a taste of burnt sugar.
Lemon Rasputin (40%). Spicy aroma with notes of cloves and lemon. Moderately hard taste with citrus tones. Bartenders call the drink too rich to drink clean, so they strongly recommend ice when serving.
Rasputin Cranberry (40%). Vodka is more like a traditional German tincture – bitter, rich pink with an orange tint. The aroma has notes of cranberry and orange. Taste with a touch of medicinal herbs. Long burning aftertaste.
