![Vologda butter 6](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/e4/Vologda_butter_6.jpg)
Vologda butter, or Vologodskoye Maslo ( rus, Волого́дское ма́сло), formerly known as Parisian butter, is a type of
butter
Butter is a dairy product made from the fat and protein components of churned cream. It is a semi-solid emulsion at room temperature, consisting of approximately 80% butterfat. It is used at room temperature as a spread, melted as a condiment ...
made in the
Vologda
Vologda ( rus, Вологда, p=ˈvoləɡdə) is a types of inhabited localities in Russia, city and the administrative center of Vologda Oblast, Russia, located on the river Vologda (river), Vologda within the watershed of the Northern Dvina. ...
region of
Russia
Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a List of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia, Northern Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the ...
, known for its sweet, creamy and nutty flavor. It gets its flavor from its particular manufacturing process, which involves an exact set of temperatures and fat content; as well as due to the vegetation and breed of cows found in Vologda.
History
The process used to create Vologda butter was invented by Nikolai Vasilievich Vereshchagin,
the older brother of
war artist Vasily Vereshchagin
Vasily Vasilyevich Vereshchagin (russian: Васи́лий Васи́льевич Вереща́гин, October 26, 1842April 13, 1904), was one of the most famous Russian war artists and one of the first Russian artists to be widely recognis ...
. He was inspired by tasting "Norman butter", from the
Normandy
Normandy (; french: link=no, Normandie ; nrf, Normaundie, Nouormandie ; from Old French , plural of ''Normant'', originally from the word for "northman" in several Scandinavian languages) is a geographical and cultural region in Northwestern ...
region of
France
France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...
, at the
1867 Paris Exposition.
After several years of producing the butter, Vereshchagin took his product to the
1878 Paris Exposition, where it won a gold medal. He then labelled his butter "Parisian butter", and it became known as a delicacy in both Russia and Europe.
A factory to produce the butter was built in 1916. In 1917, after the
Russian Revolution
The Russian Revolution was a period of Political revolution (Trotskyism), political and social revolution that took place in the former Russian Empire which began during the First World War. This period saw Russia abolish its monarchy and ad ...
, the factory was taken over by the state, and production decreased. Later, export of it was banned.
In 1939, authorities renamed it to Vologda butter.
In 1991, after the
fall of the Soviet Union
The dissolution of the Soviet Union, also negatively connoted as rus, Разва́л Сове́тского Сою́за, r=Razvál Sovétskogo Soyúza, ''Ruining of the Soviet Union''. was the process of internal disintegration within the Sov ...
, private factories in Vologda started up to again produce Vologda butter for export.
In 2010, after years of rampant counterfeiting, the Russian government declared that only butter created in the Vologda region would be allowed to be labelled as Vologda butter, creating Russia's first-ever
protected designation of origin
The protected designation of origin (PDO) is a type of geographical indication of the European Union and the United Kingdom aimed at preserving the designations of origin of food-related products. The designation was created in 1992 and its main ...
.
See also
*
List of Russian dishes
This is a list of notable dishes found in Russian cuisine. Russian cuisine is a collection of the different cooking traditions of the Russian Empire. The cuisine is diverse, with Northeast European/Baltic, Caucasian, Central Asian, Siberian, East ...
References
Further reading
*
{{Butter
Vologda
Butter
Products with protected designation of origin
Russian Regional Food Specialties