For a liquor to be denominated vodka, governments often establish a minimum alcohol content. Vodka's alcoholic content usually ranges between 35–70% by volume. The standard Polish, Russian and Lithuanian vodkas are 40% alcohol by volume (80 proof). The European Union has established a minimum of 37.5% alcohol by volume content for any European vodka to be named as such. Vodka may be distilled from any starch/sugar-rich plant matter; most vodka today is produced from grains such as sorghum, corn, rye or wheat. Among grain vodkas, rye and wheat vodkas are generally considered superior. Some vodkas are made from potatoes, molasses, soybeans, grapes, rice, sugar beets and sometimes even byproducts of oil refining or wood pulp processing. In some Central European countries like Poland some vodka is produced by just fermenting a solution of crystal sugar and yeast. In the European Union there are talks about the standardization of vodka, and the Vodka Belt countries insist that only spirits produced from grains, potato and sugar beet molasses be allowed to be branded as "vodka", following the traditional methods of production
Vodka is traditionally drunk straight up in the vodka belt countries of Eastern Europe and around the Baltic Sea. It is also commonly used incocktails and mixed drinks, such as the Bloody Mary, the Screwdriver, the Sex on the Beach, the White Russian, the vodka tonic, and the vodka martini.
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