Sniffer's Day

Connoisseurs of strong alcoholic drinks do not always have a snack after drinking alcoholic beverages. Often, according to an ancient tradition, vodka or moonshine is snorted with bread, a cucumber, a sleeve of clothing, and even a neighbor’s head. In Rus', this custom arose with the advent of strong alcohol - vodka and bread wine, polugar. At that time, the quality of alcoholic drinks left much to be desired, but only wealthy people could afford to have a snack after drinking them. This is how a tradition emerged that formed the basis of an unusual holiday. September 10th is Sniffer's Day. In villages and hamlets, this simple custom helped determine the degree of intoxication. Snorting vodka with black bread helped check the drinker's condition. If after the next libation the smell of rye flour was not detected, the person was considered drunk. Drawing in air deeply allows you to remove alcohol vapors from the throat and avoid burns to the mucous membrane. As a result, the burning sensation in the nasopharynx first weakens and then disappears altogether. Sniffing is practiced not only because of the lack of snacks. Sometimes a person does this purely reflexively, based on previous experience of drinking moonshine, whiskey or cognac. The tradition of sniffing helped the main character of the film “The Fate of Man” performed by S. Bondarchuk to bring bread to the barracks of his comrades in misfortune and divide it among all the prisoners. The ancient custom is played out funny in many domestic films. Thus, Nikulin’s hero, nicknamed the Goonie, in L. Gaidai’s comedy snorts vodka with a cockerel on a stick. The ritual became the basis for numerous jokes. One of them sounds like this: “Aesthetically developed people smell vodka with flowers.” The giving tradition does not always apply to drinking alcohol. The aroma of coffee overcomes any odors that are perceived by special glands located in the human nose. This feature of the grains is used when choosing perfumes. When the nose ceases to distinguish odors, perfume store employees helpfully offer customers a sniff of the coffee. In Rus', a pinch of tobacco was used to clear the nose and sneeze, while experiencing unprecedented pleasure. The custom appeared in the era of Peter I and lasted for 300 years. Snuff boxes were fashionable accessories associated with nobility and wealth. The boxes were made of gold and silver, decorated with mother-of-pearl and ivory. The elegant thing spoke of the refined taste of the owner and his passion for “dry drinking” - snuffing tobacco. Women and men, merchants and peasants, officials and aristocrats were subject to this destructive hobby. These pages of history and traditions of the past are remembered during the celebration of the funny Sniffer's Day.