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You might think Russia pumps out the most vodka, but technically, they didn't even invent it (that's Poland). Here's who exports the most vodka yearly.

Stolichnaya Vodka’s name was changed to “Stoli” in 2022 to distance itself from Russia. Bloomberg via Getty Images Caldwell also cited ongoing legal battles with Russia, which named the ...

At the same time, Western vodka brands that have Russian sounding names, such as global bestseller Smirnoff, were quick to point out that they aren't actually from Russia.

Russian vodka accounts for only about 7% of the market, and a lot of what you might think of as Russian really isn't. Smirnoff, for instance, is an American brand.

And Shefler, as head of SPI, paid Soyuzplodoimport, the company of which he was president, some $300,000 for 43 Russian vodka brands, including the Stolichnaya and Moskovskaya trademarks.

Vodkas like Russian Standard, Beluga and Mamont became household names in the 1980s, with slick marketing campaigns promoting vodka as a drink for luxurious, cosmopolitan high-rollers.