Basenka is a distilled, clear, and colorless liquor most popular in the Greater Vosk Basin, composed mainly of water and ethanol but sometimes with traces of impurities and flavorings. It has no definite aroma or taste. It can be made from the cheapest and most readily available materials suitable for fermentation. Grains were traditionally used, and later, potatoes were increasingly employed in countries that populated the Basin region.
The name of the drink, meaning "basin" in the Vosk language, comes from its region of origin, the Vosk River Basin. It came into being around the 8th or 9th century of the Second Age and slowly became popular in the greater basin among the commoners. The drink eventually became so popular around the whole basin in the 14th century 2nd age, the beverage became a cultural icon of the region as a whole. This popularly did not go unnoticed by the noble families of the basin, who quickly began to create and sell their own blends and mixes.
However, as the states of the basin centralized more and more, the production of basenka moved away from noble families and into private business. In the industrialization of Voskgardia and later the rest of the basin, the drink’s production became one of the first things to be industrialized. As tension between Voskgardia and the Elderkin grew, basenka became a symbol of national pride of the nation, helped by promotion by the government to stir nationalism. Consumption of the drink continued even though the war of the dawn, especially with the soldiers of the republic and from the forces from the states that would form the Vosk-Moreva Federation.
When Voskgardia was conquered, the drink took on even more symbolic meaning. Basenka was not just a symbol of Voskgardia, but a symbol of all the Greater Vosk Basin, and an icon of unity throughout the whole Vosk-Moreva Federation. The soldiers of the VMF now have a saying. “When we cross the River Vosk, may we carry guns, bullets, and lots of basenka.