The recent series ‘Chernobyl’ depicting the nuclear disaster in 1986 during the last breaths of the USSR as a country sparked a lot of interest in the region. So high is the interest that hundreds of tour guides are trained to take people through ‘the exclusion zone’ in Ukraine, as people want to see it with their own eyes.

A new venture proposed to grow crops in the region to make spirits. The first bottle of ‘Chernobyl vodka’ has been produced from the grains grown in ‘the zone’ depicted in many actions movies of the last decade. But is it safe to drink?

Vodka from Chernobyl: Yes or No?

Vodka is produced via the process called distillation. When something is distilled, all impurities are staying in the waste, according to the science of chemistry.

The first bottle of ‘Atomik’ — a new brand of vodka made from grains grown in the Chernobyl exclusion zone — has been already produced and tested in UK. It’s no more radioactive than any other vodka, the scientists report.

The zone around the town of Pripyat, abandoned after the fire at the nuclear reactor of Chernobyl Power Station, is still desolate 33 years after one of the most famous technogenic catastrophes of the 20th century.

Now a team of scientists who worked in the region for many years managed to produce something that could become a product, safe to consume. The team began by farming grains in the post-disaster precinct.

There are many communities still suffering the aftermath of the disaster. It is these communities that would be getting a large share of the profits from the production. The rest will be reinvested into the company.

The rye used for the production was still ‘slightly radioactive’, scientists admit, but all the problem waste was gone after the drink had been distilled into vodka.

The city of Pripyat was abandoned in the aftermath of the nuclear accident at the Chernobyl power station on 26 April 1986. Now, 33 years later, scientists believe that reviving of the restricted area is a more urgent priority than the levels radiation, which are substantially down.

Social spirit enterprise

The newly established Chernobyl Spirit Company includes Ukrainian scientists, as well as scholars from the UK.

Dr Gennady Laptev from the Kiev’s Institute of Hydrometeorology pointed out, “We don’t have to just abandon the land. We can use it in diverse ways and we can produce something that will be totally clean from the radioactivity.”

In fact, the level of radioactivity in parts of the restricted zone is lower than in some  areas in the world where the natural background radiation is elevated.

The team is calling their initiative a “social spirit enterprise”.

Professor Smith, a scientist from UK’s University of Portsmouth, believes that now, 30+ years after, radioactivity is not the main problem, it is the economic development and restoration of the area that should be the focal point.

Apparently, the new drink from Chernobyl has ‘fruity notes’ as compared to a regular vodka. According to a professional barman, it’s perfect to mix a classic martini with champagne.

The plan is to produce 500 bottles of ‘Atomik’ already this year. First butches will be sold to tourists to the exclusion zone, which experiences a hike in popularity, especially among experimental travellers looking for something cool and different.

Would you buy a bottle of Atomik for yourself? Would you drink it?

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