The arrival of premium vodka may be traced again to the Nineteen Nineties. On the time the general reputation of vodka had gone stratospheric. But it surely was time to boost the stakes.
Led by new manufacturers corresponding to Belvedere and Gray Goose, these luxurious spirits got here in smooth, eye-catching bottles with excessive price-tags. And so they captured the creativeness of barflies across the globe.
So what makes a premium vodka? Worth is an apparent issue, and for the needs of this text, we’ve set the decrease finish of the worth bracket as £25. There are a variety of things that justify the elevated value.
First the standard and provenance of the uncooked supplies used, corresponding to the very best winter wheat from Picardy or a rigorously chosen mixture of heritage grains. Secondly, elevated manufacturing methods, from the kind of stills used to the filtration strategies chosen. Lastly there’s a wholesome dose of name advertising and marketing, together with these distinctive bottles.
Are these luxurious vodkas well worth the cash? It depends upon your intentions for the liquid. If it’s to have a number of vodka cokes, or Highballs blended with fruit juice, you’d most likely be finest utilizing a spirit from the subsequent value bracket down. Absolut or Stoli Purple Label could be good selections.
If, nonetheless, you plan to benefit from the spirit neat, in a Vodka Martini, Bloody Mary or different vodka cocktail, then it’s properly price buying and selling up. Listed here are my suggestions to get you began.
Greatest premium vodkas to attempt
Absolut Elyx
The posh expression of Absolut, Elyx is made with winter wheat from the Råbelöf property in southern Sweden. Wheat has been grown right here because the fifteenth century. Distillation happens in a operated by hand copper column nonetheless, and the result’s a silky vodka with flavours of nutty granola, ginger, freshly baked baguette and fudge. Alc 42.3%
Belvedere
Comprised of Dankowskie Gold rye and quadruple-distilled, this vodka is vibrant, with vanilla, almond and citrus notes. There’s additionally a definite peppery spice because of the rye. Belvedere means ‘stunning to see’, and is impressed by the neoclassical Belweder Palace in Warsaw – the distinctive constructing that adorns each stunning frosted bottle. Alc 40%
Copper Rivet Vela Vodka
Based mostly within the English county of Kent, Copper Rivet Distillery follows a farm-to-glass philosophy for all of its spirits. Vela is constructed from a mixture of wheat, barley and rye. The result’s a silky-smooth, medium weight, candy and spicy vodka. Deeper notes of rye bread and low grounds are overlaid with contemporary pear and clotted cream. Alc 40%
Crystal Head Onyx
And now for one thing utterly completely different… Reasonably than the standard grain or potatoes that’s used to make vodka, Crystal Head’s Onyx is produced utilizing Blue Weber agave from Mexico. It’s a clear spirit, with aromas of lemon zest, inexperienced pepper and grass, and a lightweight palate of meringue, extra freshly reduce grass, cinnamon and a contact of chamois leather-based. Alc 40%
Gray Goose
Launched within the late Nineteen Nineties, French vodka Gray Goose is made within the Cognac area utilizing wheat from Picardy, which is in any other case often called the ‘bread basket of France’. Francois Thibault, the maître de chai, focuses on teasing out the flavour of the grain in his spirit. The result’s a creamy-spicy palate, with loads of black pepper, alongside notes of anise, wheat and liquorice. Alc 40%
Ramsbury Single Property Vodka
This field-to-bottle English vodka is distilled on the Ramsbury property in Wiltshire. It’s made utilizing Horatio winter wheat that’s grown, milled and distilled on the farm. A fairly floral nostril of jasmine, honeysuckle, white pepper and lemon leads onto a creamy palate of sharp purple currants, white pepper, anise and lemon zest. Alc 43%
Stolichnaya Elit
The premium expression of Latvian model Stolichnaya, this wheat-and-rye vodka is triple-distilled and charcoal-filtered. It then undergoes a proprietary freeze filtration course of impressed by the previous Russian observe of leaving casks out in freezing temperatures. The result’s a spirit with an oily mouthfeel, notes of butterscotch, a mineral chalky notice, a touch of fennel and a crack of spicy black pepper on the end. Alc 40%
X Muse
Pronounced ‘tenth muse’, this Scottish vodka from the Bonnington Property simply west of Edinburgh is a brilliant spirit stuffed with character. Comprised of a mix of two completely different barley varieties (Maris Otter and Plumage Archer), it’s concurrently creamy and flinty, with flavours of bread, walnuts and hazelnuts, dry cream soda and spicy chilli pepper on the end. Alc 40%
