How to drink vodka and stay sober

[zippyt]

the link , http://konstantin2005.blogspot.com/2...tay-sober.html

How to drink vodka and stay sober

Russians are renowned for drinking a lot of vodka staying sober. That’s not something to do with biological inheritance but with the way we drink. Russians believe that foreigners don’t know how to drink. They don’t eat while drinking. They mix cocktails. They sip vodka instead of taking shots. They drink vodka with highly carbonated sodas. In short, they do everything to get drunk from the minimum amount of alcohol. May be it has something to do with innate Western avidity or expensiveness of alcohol.
Russians, on the other hand, do everything to stay sober while drinking as much alcohol as possible. How do we do it? We try to neutralize alcohol as long as possible. I try to outline the basic principles of vodka drinking for uninitiated.

One hour before the party.

1. Eat a couple of boiled potatoes.
2. Drinks one or two raw eggs.
3. Drink one or two table-spoons of olive oil. Sunflower oil will also do.
Thus it’s guaranteed that at the Russian party you will stay sober for at least one bottle of vodka. I’m not kidding. Raw eggs are the most important part of Russian pre-party preparations.

At the party.

1. If you start drinking vodka – drink only vodka. No beer or wine. No water or juice. Carbonated drinks are taboo.
2. Drink vodka only in shots. Never sip.
3. Eat immediately after taking a shot. Russian zakuskis are often translated as appetizers. That’s not quite correct. Zakuskis are something you ‘zakusyvayesh’ with after taking a shot of vodka. They are very important to neutralize alcohol. That’s why they all contain two most important alcohol neutralizers – acid and salt. I recommend taking the following sequence:
- immediately after taking a shot – two slices of lemon;
- then some salted cucumbers, pickles, marinated tomatoes or caviar.
- then something with a lot of oil: herring (traditionally with cold boiled potatoes and onion), sardines, or shproty (small smoked sprats in olive oil);
- then traditional Russian salads, like Oliviye or Herring with boiled beet and mayonnaise. Almost all Russian salads come under heavy mayonnaise dressing. Remember – acid, salt, eggs and oil. Ukrainians and Southern Russians prefer smoked lard with garlic but it’s a zakuska for professionals.

4. Only three first vodka shots at a Russian party are ‘obligatory’ so to say. That means you have to take them if you want to show you’re a friendly person but not an unsociable person. After that you can ‘miss’ one or two shots. Just say, “Ya propuskayu” (Literally, I make it slip) and cover your glass with your palm. That doesn’t mean you can abstain from drinking till the end of the party. It means (excusing yourself that you’re a foreigner) can take one shot out of two your Russian guests take.

I think, some Russian party traditions need to be explained here. In Russia we party around a big table with bottles and zakuskis. We drink only when someone makes a toast and we drink all together. The person who makes a toast usually pours vodka to all glasses. Taking a bottle yourself and drinking vodka without others is a faux pas. Actually you (and all others) are ordered to drink after a toast. Everyone at the party is supposed to make a toast – being a foreigner is not an excuse. So be prepared – buy yourself a book on party toasts (there are a lot of them on sale in Russia) and learn some by heart.

5. Zakuskis part of the party take about an hour – or something like 200 grams (4 shots) of vodka. Then comes “goryacheye” (hot dishes). Even though zakuskis could be very filling – you should eat goryacheye if you want not be become drunk.
6. Actively participate in intellectual talks around the table. Mental activity is probably the best method to keep you excited but sober. Try, for example, to drink two pints of beer while reading a philosophical book and see the result.
7. At the end of the party come tea and cakes. Don’t miss it too. This way you show your hosts that you’re survived the party without dire consequences.

Now in the course of 4 or 5 hours you drunk a bottle of vodka (500 grams) and you’re only slightly tight.

After the party.

1. Keep a small bottle of beer in refrigerator. Wake up at about 5 in the morning, drink your beer and go back to bed. It prevents hang-over in the morning.
2. If the early morning beer didn’t help (it usually does), drink a glass of brine from the jar you kept you pickles in.
Many Russians recommend taking a shot of vodka in the morning to fights hang-over. Don’t do it. It helps only alcoholics. If you’re not, it will make things worse.

More on the subject of vodka drinking in Russian Marketing Blog.

posted by Konstantin | 12:52
51 Comments:

[Trilby]

Why on earth drink vodka and STAY sober? What the hell? Just don't drink vodka and-voila!-you'll stay sober! I don't understand people who drink alcohol "for the taste." Why bother? Like drinking de-caf. Weird and unnatural.

[Kitsune]

What the hell? You get that kind of talk out of here!

Drinking to stay sober, especially with a beverage with as little taste quality as vodka, serves no point. You drink to drink. I would have thought the Russians, of all people, would certainly know this rule.

Russians believe that foreigners don’t know how to drink. They don’t eat while drinking. They mix cocktails. They sip vodka instead of taking shots.

Russians need to understand that foreigners sip their drinks because their drinks don't taste like windshield washer fluid and even more because their drinks don't contain windshield washer fluid.

In short, they do everything to get drunk from the minimum amount of alcohol.

There is absolutely nothing wrong with that. Why criticize the efficient?

Keep a small bottle of beer in refrigerator. Wake up at about 5 in the morning, drink your beer and go back to bed. It prevents hang-over in the morning.

Those Russians sure know how to party!

[Kitsune]

Originally Posted by Brianna

I don't understand people who drink alcohol "for the taste." Why bother? Like drinking de-caf. Weird and unnatural.

Here, here! I'll drink to that!

...and enjoy it, too. Sips, buzz, stumble and all!

[xoxoxoBruce]

Right on, drink something that tastes good to you. After all, there is booze with a lot of different flavors so why not enjoy one you like.
Don't like to get real drunk.....women take advantage of me.

[limey]

From One Who Knows...
It's not about drinking and staying sober, it's just that 500ml (half a litre, about a pint - ) of spirits is the least that you will get through at such a gathering, and in order to do so without throwing up/bursting into tears/falling over/passing out or otherwise letting your side down it's useful to know the tricks.
I never did the pre-prepare thing (eggs, oil etc), and disagree with the don't drink juice/water rule, but the snacks are essential for survival, especially fatty ones (I've done the "I need lard" bit, does that make me a professional?).
No, you don't stay sober, you just get mellow on a pint of 40 degree proof alcohol, and you don't get into quite the mess you would have done if you'd done without the snax.
By the way, the Russians I know drink for the effect, not for the taste. Reasonable Russian vodka (the most available equivalent in the UK is Stolichnaya), when drunk cold, has little or no flavour, and they could not understand why we British have to eat before we begin to drink as it dulls the effect of the first hit of that first shot. There's nothing like it, to be honest. If anyone wants to try a less formidable, but still effective approach to vodka drinking let me know via this thread and I'll post instructions!

[limey]

Originally Posted by Kitsune

Those Russians sure know how to party!

Soviet era joke: Drunk goes into a chemist and asks for two bottles of aftershave and a bottle of perfume. "Why the perfume?" asks the sales clerk. "Because we have a lady drinking with us tonight" replies the drunk.

Notice stencilled by the radiator on all Soviet era buses/lorries "Antifreeze is poison!".

I swore I never would, but I did find myself imbibing a concoction of medical grade ethyl alcohol and water at the end of a very boozy evening with a bunch of doctors when all else had run out. And I live to tell the tale.

[limey]

Oh, and a proper vodka hangover is something else, too! Almost lovely in a crystal, I-feel-transparent-and-fragile kind of way ...

OK. Here's Marichiko's trans-Siberia, multicultural, just in time for New Year's Eve advise:

1) If you are a social drinker, don't bother with the following. Look up a recipe for those cute, deadly-poison-if-not-done-just-right Japanese fish thingies, instead.
2) Line up your designated driver, NOW! Either that or stash your taxi money in a safe place where you can find it - even when you're 16 sheets to the wind.
3) Unless you want to pass out before the NewYear ever arrives, forget about the, "But I'll get higher on an empty stomach" thought. Sure, you'll get drunker quicker. You'll also pass out quicker. The name of the game is staying on your feet until 0ne second after the New Year, right?
4) The raw egg and/or oil secret is great to use both before and after imbibing. Drink lots of liquids, also. Orange juice or plain water are excellent beverages. Avoid carbonated stuff. Ketones are what help give you that rotten hang-over the next day. Avoid sweet liquores and most wines - they all have a high ketone content. The purer the spirit, the better. The Danes drink something called Aquavit which is like 200 proof potato peels or something. Don't quote me on the aquavit. I just know that its very potent. The Danes keep the stuff in the freezer and gulp down a shot along with a bite of pickled herring on a cracker. It seems to work for them.

End of my expertise in the strong spirits dept.

[Trilby]

Took my sister out to dinner tonight (her 50th birthday) and I drank cranberry juice with club soda and a twist! WAS FREAKIN' DELISH! And, no DUI, which, I think we can all agree, is a total bonus.

[limey]

Have decided that we're walking to the neighbours' to first foot (= visit after midnight) tonight. Last year we drove to half-a-dozen houses, but with a shiny new sergeant and a shiny new breathalyser on the island this year I'm not taking any chances

[Griff]

Originally Posted by limey

Have decided that we're walking to the neighbours' to first foot (= visit after midnight) tonight. Last year we drove to half-a-dozen houses, but with a shiny new sergeant and a shiny new breathalyser on the island this year I'm not taking any chances

Takes a while to break them in doesn't it.

[wolf]

If you do it just right, you can make an inhale sound like an exhale.

Not that I've ever tried this.

But I know someone who has.

The instructions for drinking lots of vodka are interesting, but entirely too complex to be followed while drinking vodka.

I can't stand vodka anyway.

There are sooo many wonderful types of alcohol that DO taste like something. Why bother with that stuff?

[busterb]

Wolf.

If you do it just right, you can make an inhale sound like an exhale.

Not that I've ever tried this.

But I know someone who has.

Please tell me more. A little late I know.

[WabUfvot5]

Originally Posted by wolf

I can't stand vodka anyway.

There are sooo many wonderful types of alcohol that DO taste like something. Why bother with that stuff?

Bad experience? I liked vodka myself. Never made me puke like tequila (although vodka made my hispanic drinking buddies lose it) and Skyy didn't give me a hangover!