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 condim ...

made in the

Vologda Vologda ( rus, Вологда, p=ˈvoləɡdə) is a city and the administrative center of Vologda Oblast, Russia, located on the river Vologda within the watershed of the Northern Dvina. Population: The city serves as a major transport hu ...

region of

Russia Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and Northern Asia. It is the largest country in the world, with its internationally recognised territory covering , and encompassing one-ei ...

, 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. 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 The International Exposition of 1867 (french: Exposition universelle 'art et d'industriede 1867), was the second world's fair to be held in Paris, from 1 April to 3 November 1867. A number of nations were represented at the fair. Following a dec ...

. 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 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 adopt a socialist form of government ...

, 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, 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 ...

History

See also

References

Further reading