Industrialization

Socialism changed most aspects of Serbian economy from its industry to its agriculture. This shift in industry and mindset in general also affected the production of Serbia’s traditional drink, Rakia.

Most notably, the changes occurred in how Rakia was produced, consumed and the quality of the drink in general. What was according to most people that lived through it a  “Golden Age” , the period of Socialism wasn’t so kind to our favorite national drink.

Modernization made most things easier and faster to produce, Rakia was also one of them which sounds like a good thing at first but this wasn’t the case.

The drink was easier to make, in turn it became cheaper and more accessible for people to buy, but everything comes at a cost. What was once a homemade drink made with love and a thousand small but noticeable varieties in flavor depending on the person making it has now become an industrialized and standardized product.

Even the consumers themselves helped this process along by opting for now known brands of Rakia that came at a much lower price, even if it was mediocre, slowly it seemed people forgot what real quality Rakia tasted like.

Fortunately this industrialization never made its way to a lot of smaller villages where people could and did continue to live the way they did before, completely unfazed by the changes happening in the big cities.

This also meant that a lot of traditional ways of making Rakia still carried on, even if it didn’t hit the shelves of stores in Belgrade as much. There was still thousands upon thousands of homemade Rakia being made and over time people began to rediscover this almost hidden national treasure, even more so after the Socialist Era has ended.

Today there are hundreds of family distilleries where you can buy your Rakia online UK aside from standardized brands that are as mediocre as they were 40 years ago, and if you’re up for an adventure you can always visit numerous beautiful villages each with its own take on this iconic Serbian drink.