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Stolichnaya is the most famous Russian vodka. Although it has been produced since the first half of the 6th century, there are many mutually exclusive versions of the appearance of the brand. Various authoritative sources, including memoirs, indicate 1938 dates for the creation of vodka, in the range between 1953 and 2005. The two largest distilleries, the Moscow Kristall plant and the St. Petersburg Liviz, were arguing about where Stolichnaya was first produced. In XNUMX, Rospatent officials conducted an investigation to find out the history of the brand.
The history of Stolichnaya vodka
In 1923, the Soviet government abolished the Prohibition, but on the labels of almost all vodka produced at various distilleries until 1938, it was succinctly printed: “Vodka”.
In 1938, the famous Moskva Hotel was opened in Moscow – a real miracle of architecture, which for many years became one of the symbols of the city. At the same time, Viktor G. Svirida, a 32-year-old employee of Glavlikervodka, created a recipe for a new vodka. The drink was to be made on the basis of highly purified grain alcohol, filtered and treated with activated carbon.
Historians do not have a common opinion about who is the author of the famous Stolichnaya vodka label. They name two artists who worked at that time at the Soyuzprodoformlenie plant: V. M. Yakovlev and A. B. Ioganson. Judging by the angle from which the Moskva Hotel is depicted, the artist painted at the table of a cafe popular with Moscow bohemia at the National Hotel (at the corner of Mokhovaya and Tverskaya). The drawing was crossed by a calligraphic inscription with monograms. At the end of the XNUMXth century, T. Hine in the book “All About Packaging” called the “Stolichnaya” label exemplary.
For some unknown reason, an experimental batch of “Stolichnaya” was first released only in February 1941 at the Leningrad Distillery. Then V. G. Svirida came to the enterprise as a representative of the head office to help with the launch of one of the first bottle washing machines in the USSR.
The production of vodka was interrupted with the beginning of the Great Patriotic War. At the distillery, the Molotov cocktail was bottled, and alcohol for the needs of the front was supplied in barrels. In 1944, after the blockade was lifted, V. G. Svirida again went to the Leningrad Distillery, where the production of Stolichnaya was restored. Since 1953, the technologist worked at the Kristall plant, which also began to produce vodka, which was already beloved by consumers.
Strict and spectacular label “Capital” for a long time ahead of its time. In the USSR, there was simply no printing equipment that could print a drawing with all the details and shades of gray. It turned out something simplified and faded, so, judging by the results of the survey, even in 1966, many consumers assumed that the label of Stolichnaya vodka depicted an elevator or the building of the Moscow Distillery.
International recognition of “Capital”
In 1954, the finest hour of “Stolichnaya” came. According to the results of blind testing, the drink defeated Smirnoff vodka, at that time the most popular in the United States. Four years later, “Stolichnaya” won a gold medal at an international exhibition in Brussels.
Since 1969, the WTO Soyuzplodoimport has been engaged in the export of vodka. After 3 years, a historic agreement was signed between the government of the USSR and the management of PepsiCo. The American company undertook to build a plant for the production of Pepsi-Cola in Novorossiysk and received exclusive distribution rights to sell Stolichnaya in the USA. WTO Soyuzplodoimport patented the vodka trademark, label and advertising slogan: Only vodka from Russia is genuine Russian vodka (“Only vodka from Russia is real Russian vodka”). The label of export vodka was made brighter, “gilding” was added.
Until 1979, the volume of exports of “Stolichnaya”, produced in Moscow, Leningrad and Kuibyshev, was more than 20 million liters, and the annual turnover reached 5-6 billion dollars. In Western Europe, the joint company Plodimeks was involved in the sale, 51% of which was owned by the WTO Soyuzplodoimport, and 49% by the West German company Simex.
But the competitors did not sit idly by. The entry of Soviet troops into Afghanistan in 1979 served as a pretext for the start of an all-American campaign to abandon Soviet vodka. Restaurants stopped buying it, which caused sales to halve. In the early 90s, Smirnoff and the Swedish Absolut vodka were practically forced out of the American market.
The collapse and revival of the legendary brand
The end of the 1991th century is a sad page in the history of Stolichnaya vodka. In 150, the State Patent of the USSR canceled the Stolichnaya trademark. Now this word meant the name of the goods. The famous vodka began to be made by all and sundry (only in Russia – XNUMX distilleries), there was no question of the quality of the drink.
After 6 years, businessman Yuri Shefler founded CJSC Soyuzplodimport and, literally for a penny, acquired the rights to Stolichnaya, and secured them in 150 countries. Then, in 1999, the rights were bought by Spirit International, which is part of the SPI Group owned by the same businessman. In 2006, the international agency Impact Databank estimated the value of this Stolichnaya brand at $2 billion and considered it the third largest after Smirnoff vodka and Bacardi rum.
In 2000, the Accounts Chamber found violations in the alienation of the Stolichnaya brand from the state. By that time, the right to sell Capital in the United States had been sold to the British company Allied Domecq.
The struggle with intermittent success is still going on all over the world. In particular, Russia regained the rights to Stolichnaya in the Netherlands, Bulgaria, Romania, Venezuela, Slovakia, and Brazil. The Pernod Ricard concern, which acquired the Allied Domecq company and invested a lot of money in advertising Stolichnaya, voluntarily relinquished a license to distribute this vodka in the United States and other countries in 2008.
The problem is that the unsinkable SPI Group has registered the Stoli trademark in the US and sells vodka made in Latvia from Russian alcohol. Everything is done so that American consumers do not see the difference between Stoli and Stolichnaya. The vodka commercial sold by the SPI Group featured Playboy creator Hugh Hefner, actress Julia Stiles, and Twitter co-founder Biz Stone.
However, sales of the original “Stolichnaya” are steadily increasing. More than 15 million liters of vodka a year are exported to the USA alone.
Having returned the rights to the Stolichnaya brand in Russia to the state, FKP Soyuzplodoimport began to search for producers capable of providing a decent quality of vodka. Until 2004, about 20 companies received licenses to manufacture Stolichnaya. But subsequently, the FKP did not renew these licenses, and now the drink is again produced by JSC Moscow Plant Kristall.
In terms of sales, Stolichnaya ranks 8th among international brands and 13th among vodkas.
Stolichnaya vodka awards
In the XNUMXst century, Stolichnaya was awarded with:
- “Stolichnaya” – Grand Prix of the International Tasting Contest “Best Product” in 2012, 2014, 2015, 2017, Grand Prix of the “Product of the Year-2014” contest, gold medal of the “PRODEXPO-2013” exhibition;
- “Stolichnaya Sever” – Grand Prix of the “Product of the Year-2014” and “Best Product-2017” contests.
Types of vodka “Capital”
The Moscow plant “Kristall” produces 2 varieties of vodka “Stolichnaya” with a strength of 40%:
- Stolichnaya (“Capital”) – vodka with a mild taste and light wheat aroma. In the composition – alcohol brand “Lux”, sugar and water. Sold in bottles of 0,5, 0,7, 0,75 and 1 l.;
- Stolichnaya Sever Stolichnaya Sever is a soft vodka with a slightly sweet aftertaste. In the composition – alcohol brand “Lux”, water, sugar and honey. The label depicts the cruiser Aurora. Vodka has been produced since 2014. Sold in bottles of 0,5 and 0,75 liters.
How to distinguish the real “Capital” from a fake
Signs of a real “Capital”, produced at the Moscow plant “Crystal”:
- the label says in English that the drink is made in Moscow;
- the center of the bottom of the bottle is deeply depressed;
- at the bottom of the bottle – a three-dimensional inscription “Crystal”;
- there is a dispenser;
- should be a tax stamp.