Piołunówka

Piołunówka (Polish pronunciation: [pʲɔ.wuˈnuf.ka]) is a very bitter alcoholic infusion (Polish: "nalewka") made by macerating wormwood in alcohol. Its name comes from Polish: piołun, lit. 'wormwood'. Piołunówka is considered a cure for problems with digestive tract and is believed to enhance appetite.[1] Therefore, traditionally it is consumed in small amounts.[2]

Piołunówka differs from absinthe in that it is macerated and rarely distilled, whereas absinthe is additionally distilled. It is becoming popular due to the absinthe revival but has been well known before absinthe. Piołunówka is not simply an amateur's version of absinthe but can be perceived as its predecessor. For centuries wormwood-based elixirs have been used as digestive aids and disease preventatives.[3][1]

Nisskosher piołunowka

Thujone
See also: Thujone § Pharmacology, and Absinthe § Health_effects

Piołunowka has much higher levels of thujone than absinthe because it is not distilled. Many people produce it today in an attempt to feel the "absinthe effect" because of its higher thujone levels, although it is not well known how thujone plays a role in these purported effects and in fact is a known poison.[4]

Availability

Piołunówka is typically hard to find outside of Poland, while wormwood is available at many herb stores, it is not always of sufficient quality for making piołunówka.

Ingredients

Apart from fresh wormwood usually some other ingredients are used such as: peppercorns, black tea, raisins, honey, geranium leaves and hypericum flowers. All herbs used should be freshly picked, not dried (apart from tea). The alcohol used is plain vodka or spirit. It can be easily produced at home, as it is generally speaking an alcohol in which herbs and other ingredients were soaked over a period of about 2 weeks and then filtered. It does not require aging.[2][5]

History

The recipe dates back to at least the 16th century, as Piołunówka is described in Stefan Falimierz' 1534 opus On Herbs and Their Potency (O ziolach y o moczy ich).[3][1] As such, it has traditionally been made in noble manors, though the recipes might have varied in their ingredients and preparations.

The last widely available piołunówka was distilled in Lwów by J. A. Baczewski distillery up to 1939. The modern version appeared with the same label released by Polmos in Stargard Gdański who discontinued the production in the 1990s.

References
  1. Falimirz, Stefan (1534). O ziołach i o mocy ich [On Herbs and Their Potency] (in Polish). Kraków: F. Ungler. pp. 76–77.
  2. "Nalewki - Piołunówka". nalewki.rolnicy.com (in Polish). Archived from the original on 2016-03-06. Retrieved 2015-03-26.
  3. Studies in Polish Civilization. Institute on East Central Europe, Columbia University. 1971. p. 347.
  4. "Opinion of the Scientific Committee on Thujone" (PDF). European Commission. European Union. Retrieved 23 July 2017.
  5. "Nalewka piołunówka". zioladobrenawszystko.pl (in Polish). 2012-01-06. Archived from the original on 2016-08-17. Retrieved 2015-03-23.
  • Cieślak, J. "Domowy wyrób win", Watra, Warszawa 1999, pp. (273–274)
  • Kurowski, J., N., "Wypalanie wódki", A. Brzezina i Komp., Warszawa 1829
  • Piątkowski, A. "Gorzelnik i piwowar doskonały", Groblowskiey Drukarnia, Kraków 1808

See also
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