Kvass

So I was shopping for ingredients for the Soup Dumplings in my local Pan-Asian/Mexican/Russian market and I came across something that seriously tempted me. A week or two later I was back looking for sake koji and finally gave in.

Kvass. Russian Kvass. For like a $1.50 a liter. Look! It's got a fat and happy little monk. And yet it's only 73 calories a serving.

Kvass is a malt beverage, like Malta, for example. It's basically a form of un-or-lightly fermented beer. To be clear, I hate Malta, and similar brands like Vitamalz. Seriously, sorry, it's terrible. Just too darn sweet for my tastes. But Kvass... I couldn't resist a try. And it was only a $1!

How was it? Like Lemon Iced Tea and Tootsie Rolls. Actually, reasonably good. The sweetness was cut with a tart lemon thing that is lacking in other malt beverages. Not too shabby, but I'm not sure I want gallons of it.

Check out the wiki, Kvass has a weird and interesting anti-cola war going on in the former Eastern Bloc right now.