🥤 DRINK
Biarozavik (Belarusian Fermented Birch Sap)
Spring birch sap lightly sweetened and fermented with a handful of raisins into a pale, tangy, gently fizzy drink.
Belarusian · easy · serves 12
prep 15 min · cook 0 min · plus 4 days hands-off time
~62 cal · 0g protein · 16g carbs · 0g fat · 0g fiber · 15g sugars · 0g sat fat (estimated, per serving)
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Biarozavik is the Belarusian name for birch sap and for the lightly drink made from it. Every spring, from March into April, the sap rises in the birches and is tapped and collected, and for centuries Belarusians have drunk it fresh as a clean, faintly sweet tonic after the long winter. The sap and the drink were known across the lands of the old Grand Duchy of Lithuania, and collecting it was important enough that Belarus introduced licences for tapping in 2008.
Fresh sap spoils within days, so it was preserved by fermenting it. The oldest way was to fill a barrel with sap, add sprouted and roasted barley or dried bread and a little honey or sugar, and keep it cold for weeks; another added yeast and currant twigs so it would last until haymaking. At home today the simplest method is a jar of sap with sugar and a few unwashed raisins, whose natural yeasts start a gentle fermentation in a few days.
It is sometimes called birch kvass, but unlike the bread kvass of Russia the sap itself is the base, with no bread at all. The result is pale, lightly sour and softly sparkling, with only a trace of alcohol, and it is drunk cold through the spring and summer.
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Make it yours
✓ Naturally vegetarian, vegan and gluten-, dairy-, egg-, nut- and pork-free. No swaps needed.
Toggle a diet and the ingredients rewrite themselves with regional substitutes.
🥕 Vegetarian
🌱 Vegan
🌾 Gluten-Free
🥛 Dairy-Free
🥜 Nut-Free
🥚 Egg-Free
🐖 Pork-Free
Dietary labels are a cooking guide, not allergen-safety advice. We track dairy, egg, gluten, tree nuts and peanuts (we count coconut as a tree nut, following FDA labeling), fish, and shellfish; we do not screen for sesame, soy, mustard, celery, or sulphites. If you have a food allergy, read the label on every product you use, and note that a kitchen can cross-contaminate in ways a recipe cannot control.
Ingredients
US
Metric
Serves 12
- 3 l fresh birch sap, collected in early springHard to find? 3 l plain bottled birch water with nothing added - if you cannot tap birches; the raisins supply the yeast
- 150 g sugar
- 50 g raisins, unwashed
- 1 lemon lemon zest, in strips (optional)
Instructions
- 1Strain the birch sap through a clean cloth to remove any bark or insects, and pour it into a large clean glass jar.
- 2Stir in the sugar until it has completely dissolved.
- 3Add the raisins, and the lemon zest if using.✎ Chef’s noteDo not wash the raisins. The natural yeasts on their skins are what start the fermentation, so avoid raisins coated in oil or preservatives.
- 4Cover the jar with a double layer of gauze tied on with string and leave it in a warm, dark place for 3 to 5 days, stirring once a day, until it tastes pleasantly tangy and small bubbles rise.
- 5Strain into clean bottles, seal them and put them in the fridge for a day before drinking.✎ Chef’s noteOpen the bottles carefully over the sink, since the drink keeps building fizz. Drink it cold.
Belarusian spring tradition.
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🌏 While it simmers, know your destination
📍
Minsk. Draniki means shredded, and the claim to have invented them is weaker than the affection for them: the first printed mention is from 1830 and the dish sits in a family with German kartoffelpuffer, Ukrainian deruny and Jewish latkes. What is not in dispute is the enthusiasm.
🗺️
Belarus. Draniki simply means shredded, and the country puts more potato per head into its cooking than almost anywhere, on the order of a hundred and sixty kilos a year, with several hundred potato dishes recorded. The pancakes are fried until lacy at the edges and eaten with soured cream, and often with pork crackling.
🌍
Europe. European cooking is built on the land and the seasons, wheat, butter, and cured pork in the north; olive oil, tomatoes, and seafood around the Mediterranean; preserved vegetables and hearty stews through long winters. Centuries of peasant tradition, guild craft, and royal courts refined techniques from French mother sauces to Italian fresh pasta and Central European baking. Regional identity runs remarkably deep, with a single dish often changing from one valley to the next.
The story behind this dish is up top, worth a read while the pot works.
More from Belarus
DranikiCrisp-edged potato pancakes fried golden and served with a generous spoon of sour cream.
Manna KashaSmooth semolina milk porridge, lump-free and lightly sweet, topped with jam or butter.
MachankaA rich pork and sour-cream gravy for dunking soft potato pancakes, a filling Belarusian country dish.
Browse all Belarus recipes →
Good to know
Storing it: Keep chilled and covered, and enjoy within 2 to 3 days.
Make it a Belarus meal
DranikiDinner
KulagaDessert
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Frequently asked questions
What is Biarozavik (Belarusian Fermented Birch Sap)?
Spring birch sap lightly sweetened and fermented with a handful of raisins into a pale, tangy, gently fizzy drink.
Where does Biarozavik (Belarusian Fermented Birch Sap) come from?
Biarozavik (Belarusian Fermented Birch Sap) is a Belarusian dish from Minsk, Belarus.
Can Biarozavik (Belarusian Fermented Birch Sap) be made vegan, gluten-free, or dairy-free?
This Biarozavik (Belarusian Fermented Birch Sap) recipe includes substitution suggestions for vegetarian, vegan, gluten-free, dairy-free, nut-free, egg-free, and pork-free versions. Treat the substitutions as a starting guide rather than a guarantee, and see the allergen note below.
Is Biarozavik (Belarusian Fermented Birch Sap) safe for people with food allergies?
Our dietary labels and substitutions are a cooking guide, not medical or allergen-safety advice. We track dairy, egg, gluten, tree nuts and peanuts (we still count coconut as a tree nut to be cautious, although the FDA stopped listing it as one in 2025), fish, and shellfish, but we do not screen for sesame, soy, mustard, celery, or sulphites. If you have a food allergy, always read the label on every product you use, and remember a home or commercial kitchen can cross-contaminate ingredients in ways a recipe cannot control.
How long does Biarozavik (Belarusian Fermented Birch Sap) take to make?
About 4 days in all: 15 minutes prep and 0 minutes cooking, plus 4 days of hands-off waiting the method needs, serving 12.
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