vodka

Flavored Vodkas Continue To Climb at High and Low Ends

Filed under: Spirits

Liquor store owners are becoming shelf challenged to handle all the flavored vodkas spirits companies are turning out. It's gotten to the point where industry experts aren't sure if the proliferation of flavored vodkas is answering a demand, or if the growth of sales isn't literally being driven by the avalanche of products.

Flavored vodka sales were up 16% last year, compared with a 1% gain for traditional vodka. So, it's easy to see why the liquor marketers keep the flavors coming. Burnett's Vodka now has 20 flavors! The addition of flavors ranging from coconut to root beer has the obvious and intended result of attracting more women to spirits, especially young women But the flavors attract the young men as well, and have been a force in taking them away from beer.

After all, vodka is the least expensive spirit to actually manufacture. It is usually derived from grains, grapes or potatoes, and doesn't require any aging. The flavors are pretty easy to come by. So the task for the distiller, in the end, is to find the right flavor of quality to achieve the mouth-feel and finish that is desirable.

A round-up of recent flavored vodkas shows that there is no end of flavors hitting the shelves. The other reason so many are coming is that it is cheap to test the market to see what sticks. If a particular flavor doesn't stick, the changeover or elimination of the flavor happens easily and with minimal cost.

What can you look for? And what is good?

CÎROC, a French ultra-premium vodka, made from select Mauzac Blanc and Ugni Blanc grapes grown and harvested in the Cognac and Gaillaic regions of France, is one of the finer and more interesting vodkas to hit the market in the last several years even without the addition of flavors. And I was surprised to see that Red Berry and Coconut were the first ones out of the gate. I was expecting flavors from CÎROC more reflecting the French sensibilities: Elderberry or perhaps Apple to suggest a Cognac and Normandy fusion.

CÎROC Red Berry and Coconut: 70-Proof, $34.99. The Coconut infused vodka is nicely buttery and carries the scent of a tasty macaroon. I drank it frozen, and was happy. then tried wit a splash of pineapple juice and ice. After sipping that, I added a bit of cream and a dash of Angostura Bitters, which pleased my group the most. The Red Berry is fruity as you would expect, but maybe a tad sweet. I drank this frozen, as well as with a bit of soda and ice. I would prefer a dryer fruit finish, especially with an ultra-premium, but I still like the base grape vodka of CÎROC, and believe it works as a better mixer than some cheaper flavored grain vodkas.

Gallery: Flavored Vodkas Fill High and Low Ends of Vodka Market

Tags: alcohol, Burnetts Vodka, Chambord Vodka, Ciroq, Flavored Vodka, ketel one oranje, Rokk Vodka, Smirnoff, Smirnoff Blue, vodka

Continue reading “Flavored Vodkas Continue To Climb at High and Low Ends”

Scotland Creates World's Strongest Vodka

by Deidre Woollard (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Spirits

Scotland is already home to the world's strongest beer but now it can also claim the world's strongest vodka. Pincer Shanghai Strength was created by the Scottish distiller Pincer for the Chinese export market. It is 88.8 percent ABV (lifting it over Balkan 176, the formerly world's strongest vodka which is at 80 percent). Eights are considered lucky numbers by the Chinese. The vodka comes packaged in a black and gold bottle and priced at £85. The regular Pincer, shown at right, is made of grain and Scottish mountain water with botanical extracts of milk thistle and wild elderflower. It is distilled to 38 percent alcohol by volume.

The Scotsman reports that Scotland also holds the title for the world's strongest gin, Blackwood Vintage Dry Gin 60, which is 60 ABV and the world's strongest whisky, Bruichladdich X4, which, at 91.2 percent and still maturing at the Islay distillery.

Tags: pincer shanghai strength, pincer vodka, scotland, vodka, worlds strongest vodka

Chambord Launches Premium Pink Vodka

by David Kiley (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Spirits

The flavored vodka category is getting mighty crowded with new brands and a myriad of flavor extensions from familiar brands like Smirnoff, Absolut and Ketel One. Into the fray this month enters Chambord vodka, the first line extension ever from the Loire Valley maker of black raspberry liqueur.

Chambord-flavored vodka is just that. It is French vodka, distilled from grains. The Chambord Black Rasberry flavor is then infused into the spirit. The result is a 75-proof pink vodka. Pushed with an ad message of "Pink Your Drink," the idea for the vodka was driven not only by the growth of the flavored vodka market, but by the fact that Chambord was already an ingredient in several popular vodka cocktails.

Chambord Liqueur, marketed and distributed by Brown-Forman, has seen a sales slide in the last 18 months due to the decline in the on-premise business effected by the economic downturn. Flavored vodka is one of the few solid growth areas of the spirits business. Flavoring, in fact, is going beyond vodka and into whiskies. Jim Beam successfully rolled out Jim Beam Red Stag, a cherry-flavored Bourbon, in 2009.

Tags: Chambord, Chambord Liqueur Royal de France, Chambord Vodka, Jim Beam Red Stag, liqueur, vodka

Continue reading “Chambord Launches Premium Pink Vodka”

Moscow Plans Vodka Selling Changes To Curb Drinking

by Deidre Woollard (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Spirits

Moscow's drinkers will have to remember to buy their vodka early come September. Starting next month it will be illegal for Moscow's supermarkets, shops and kiosks to sell alcohol with more than 15 percent alcohol content from 10pm to 10am. Beer, wine and lighter alcohols can still be sold and bars can still serve whatever they want around the clock. This is just the latest move to try and curb excessive drinking, other moves have included setting a minimum price for vodka and reducing the legal limit of alcohol in the blood allowed for drivers.

This is Russia's strictest stance on drinking since 1985 when President Gorbachev made it so that vodka could only be sold from two in the afternoon to seven at night. That decision was disastrous causing nationwide panic and deaths when people drank other hazardous substances like perfume to get their hands on some alcohol. Current President Dmitry Medvedev has called Russia's drinking problem "a national disaster."

Tags: Dmitry Medvedev, moscow, vodka

Look for the Berlin Wall to Rise in New Orleans at IPCPR

by Tom Johansmeyer (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Cigars

The cigar industry's major annual convention occurs in New Orleans next week, and there are plenty of new products being announced. From lifestyle brand Hammer + Sickle, which includes both vodka and cigars, look for the "Berlin Wall" to be introduced.

Celebrating the twenty-first anniversary of the fall of communism in Europe, the Berlin Wall cigar is rich, flavorful and medium-bodied, according to a statement by the company. It will be packaged in a handmade marble box, said to be a first for the cigar industry. The cigar will deliver "a complex and powerful interplay of wood, spice and leather flavors with an earthiness reminiscent of pre-embargo era Cuban offerings."

According to Eric Hanson, Chairman of Klin Spirits, "As a company, we would not be here without the fall of the Berlin Wall and the way it significantly transformed U.S. – Russian political and industrial relations," stated Eric P. Hanson, Chairman of Klin Spirits.

[photo and video courtesy of Cigar Reader]

Tags: berlin wall, cigar, cigars, europe, lifestyle, lifestyles, vodka, vodkas

Kanon Organic Vodka from the King of Sweden's Distillery

by Jared Paul Stern (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Spirits, Green

New to these shores, Kanon Organic Vodka is a Swedish spirit from Gripsholm Distillery, founded by King Karl IX of Sweden, which has been producing organic vodka for over 400 years. Forsaking charcoal filtering and multiple distillation, the distillery uses local organic wheat and untouched spring water for a subtle, natural flavor without the usual vodka burn.

Gripsholm is the only EU and US certified organic distillery in Sweden. Once the king's cannon maker in the late 16th century (hence the vodka's name), Gripsholm started supplying vodka to the foundry workers and people in the surrounding area. With its 29 pot-still pans, 280 workers and a production of over a million liters of vodka annually, Gripsholm was once the largest distillery in Sweden.

Kanon is distilled from locally grown organic wheat in a continuous process without the use of environmentally harmful or genetically modified additives. The whole setup is eco-friendly; the distillery is run on wind and water power and all by-products are renewed. Even the attractive bottle is made from 60% recycled glass. Now available in New York at Morgan's hotels, Kanon will be launching in Los Angeles in January 2011.

Gallery: Kanon Organic Vodka

Tags: distillery, eco-friendly, organic, organic spirits, organic vodka, royalty, spirits, Sweden, vodka

Small Northwest Distillery Tempts With Lemonade Cocktail

by Deidre Woollard (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Spirits

Vodka and lemonade is a popular drink and a small Northwest distillery combines the two in one bottle. Hello Lovely is a strawberry lemonade made with all natural flavors and pure cane sugar. The 34 proof pre-mixed cocktail is vodka based. Northwest Distillery also makes Liquid vodka, a reasonably priced vodka that sells for under $20.

"Liquid Vodka is successful because it's a great vodka for a very reasonable price. Customers also appreciate that we are a Pacific Northwest, family-owned business," said Meghan Zonich, owner of Northwest Distillery in a press relase. Meghan Zonich, a Bellevue, Washington native and mother of two produces the spirits along with her husband Cory in a remodeled 1940s-era barn in Warren, Oregon. The vodka has already received a bronze medal at the San Francisco Wine and Spirits Competition and a silver medal at the International Wine and Spirits Competition in London.

Tags: craft distilleries, craft distillery, hello lovely, liquid vodka, northwest distillery, premixed cocktails, vodka

Chase Vodka Heads To The U.S.

by Deidre Woollard (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Spirits

An English vodka favorite is making its way to the U.S. Chase Distillery is an English artisan spirits company founded by UK Entrepreneur William Chase in 2007. The brand won the "World's Best Vodka" award as voted by the San Francisco World Spirits Competition 2010. The potato vodka will be represented by Pelican brands. "Success in the US is the benchmark for all spirit brands and businesses like ours and as such it is a fiercely competitive market. It is critical that we enter the US with the right partner and we have been extremely impressed by Pelican Brands' people, processes and ambitions," said Will Chase, Founder and CEO Chase Distillery. Pelican Brands will launch Chase Distillery's flagship brand Chase Vodka and Chase Elderflower Liqueur in key markets in the US in September.

Tags: chase vodka, distillery, spirits, vodka

Wacky Sells Wodka

by Deidre Woollard (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Spirits

Plenty of celebrities sell vodka, just ask Diddy (Ciroc), Bruce Willis (Sobiewski) and most recently Julia Stiles and Hugh Hefner for Stoli, but can celebrity look-a-likes also boost a vodka brand? Wodka vodka is turning heads with a couple of billboards in New York City that they say are prompting calls wondering if the manic-looking guy with the unique facial hair is Ben Stiller. It's not, it's a local actor and doorman named Wass Stevens. The resemblance appears to be accidental. Stevens is a friend of the brand and was chosen for his wacky style. The billboards read "Hamptons Quality, Newark Pricing," a nod to the fact that the simply named brand also has a basic price (around $15). The vodka is rye-based, triple-filtered and Polish in origin.

Tags: vodka

Belvedere Introduces Pink Grapefruit

by Michael B. Dougherty (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Spirits

The latest wave of flavored vodkas continues to swell with the release of Belvedere's Pink Grapefruit.

A recent launch party in Manhattan's Meat Packing District included a blending session, food pairings, giant photos of hipster queen Leigh Lezark (the model and Misshapes DJ) and enough pink lighting to rival a "Sex and the City" premiere. It was here that Claire Smith, Belvedere's Head of Spirit Creation & Mixology, led us through a blending tutorial whose purpose was to illustrate the various notes found in Pink Grapefruit, including ginger and lemon, and to dissuade us from thinking that a bottle of vodka and grapefruit is all it takes to replicate. Afterward, we were presented several sweet and savory food pairings with Pink Grapefruit-based cocktails, most of which were so chockablock with mixers as to obscure the spirit itself.

Which brings up a good point: if you're going to choose a vodka for its flavor, a typically ironic proposition, let that flavor express itself. For this Belvedere release those flavors came from Argentinian grapefruit, ginger and Spanish spring lemons. The Polish spirit maker is quick to point out that these are arrived at by means of a maceration process, which removes essences from natural ingredients and blends them back into the vodka, rather than via an injection of sugar or glycerin. The raw ingredients spend four to six weeks soaking in vodka baths before being distilled again to avoid oxidation when put into bottle.

Thankfully the result is a balanced spirit, ideal for sipping or (restrained) mixing, with nary a candy aisle flavor present. Pink Grapefruit is light and citrusy to the nose with hints of vanilla; ginger is noticeable mainly on the finish, and is present on the palate to push the notes of lemon and grapefruit forward. There's even a bit of a creamy texture going down.

(750ml, $39.99)

Tags: belevedere vodka, cocktails, flavored vodka, pink grapefruit, spirits, vodka

Spike Lee Designs Absolut Brooklyn Bottle

by Deidre Woollard (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Spirits

Director Spike Lee is the bottle designer behind Absolut vodka's latest limited edition flavor, Absolut Brooklyn. The bottle features a depiction of a brownstone with the number from Lee's childhood home in Cobble Hill and bears his name on the bottle. Inside the bottle is a vodka flavored with apple and ginger. It has a retail price of $29.99 . Each of the city editions of Absolut has a charitable initiative attached, as part of this campaign Absolut is donating $50,000 to Habitat for Humanity to help fund an affordable homes project in Bedford-Stuyvesant.

Previous city editions included Absolut Boston (black tea and elderflower), Los Angeles (blueberry, acerola cherry, açai berry and pomegranate) and New Orleans (black pepper and mango).

Tags: absolut brooklyn, absolut vodka, flavored vodka, spike lee, vodka

Petrossian: Caviarchitect of Luxury

by Jason Tesauro (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Dining, Modern Gentleman

Who knew so much Petrossian decadence could fit into a diminutive box no larger than a panettone. Nestled between cold packs, five jars of edible jewels from Petrossian Caviar begged to be unloosed and introduced to a stack of blinis. Yet, in an age of depleted wild sturgeon and general oceanic irresponsibility, I wondered if satisfying a caviar craving was akin to picnicking on White Spotted Owl sandwiches or proposing to a lover with conflict diamonds. Thus, to properly understand and appreciate the goodies, I boned up on Inga Saffron's vast, gritty and noir-esque read, Caviar: The Strange History and Uncertain Future of the World's Most Coveted Delicacy Unlike some glossy, coffee table tome, this is a behind-the-scenes, sea level perspective of the rise and fall of sturgeon, Caspian politics, and caviar culture. After absorbing the book and the jars of caviar, I also caught up with Petrossian Inc.'s Michel Emery, Director of Sales & Purchasing for the eighty-year-old New York firm, Luxist's 2009 Reader's Choice Award Winner for Best Caviar.

The Row Over Roe
While caviar's allure has been venerated for centuries, its modern rarity stems mainly from an incompatibility of sturgeon biology and human development. Sturgeon are older than the dinosaurs, and the Caspian Sea contains the world's highest concentration of sturgeon because it's more of a salty lake than a sea and these ancient bottom-feeders love the brackish deltas and estuaries. Further, since sturgeon always return to the same place to spawn, many of the twenty-seven species are only found in a single river basin. "If a dam blocks the way to a sturgeon's birthplace," Saffron writes, "it will refuse to spawn." Yes, nature has given female sturgeon as many as 10 million eggs per cycle, but these slow-moving, easily-caught giants (the largest beluga ever caught weighed over 4,500-lbs and measured 28-ft long) might only produce eggs ten times during its life. We've squeezed habitats, polluted waters, and hunted them to near extinction à la American buffalo and African elephants, and whereas generations of fishermen on the Caspian used to snag 250 beluga per hour, the catch nowadays yields mostly empty hooks.

Tags: awards-main, caviar, caviar tasting, food-pedia, luxist-awards, main-pedia, petrossian, sturgeon, vodka

Continue reading “Petrossian: Caviarchitect of Luxury”

Enjoy Tribeca Film Festival at Home

by Ariston Anderson (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Spirits

2010 marks the eighth year running that Robert De Niro brings his sweeping film festival to the island, and the first year you can experience Tribeca Film Festival Virtual, where you can watch world premieres, shorts, live red carpets, panels and more all from your living room. To celebrate the 2010 Tribeca FF, Stoli, the official vodka and signature sponsor of the fest, has teamed up with B.R. Guest Restaurants to include a special "Leading Lady" Cocktail on the menu, designed by Master Mixologist Eben Klemm, featuring Stoli Vanil, crème de cacao, fresh Blackberries and Blackberry liqueur. The cocktail is available at all B.R. Guests restaurants including Dos Caminos, Blue Water Grill, and Blue Fin during the festival. If you're not in New York for the festival, or near a B.R. Guest restaurant, you can enjoy Tribeca Film Festival Virtual with your own Stoli cocktails at home.Mixologist Charlotte Voisey has designed a series of cinema-inspired cocktails to premiere throughout the festival at exclusive-after screening parties Luxist has the signature cocktail recipes to make at your own cinema events.

Stoli O Cameo
3 parts Stoli® Ohranj
2 parts fresh grapefruit juice
1 1/2 parts simple syrup
1 part fresh lemon juice
Dash of pomegranate juice or grenadine
Mix all ingredients with ice in a cocktail shaker and strain into a chilled martini glass.

Tags: cocktails, drinks, stoli, Tribeca Film Festival, Tribeca Film Festival 2010, vodka

Continue reading “Enjoy Tribeca Film Festival at Home”

Finlandia Charity Water Bottle Project

by Rigel Celeste (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Spirits, Charity, Green

Finlandia Vodka is celebrating both their own 40th anniversary and that of Earth Day by releasing four limited edition Sigg water bottles featuring designs by Finnish artist Klaus Haapaniemi. Each design represents a different element from the heart of Finlandia (the Midnight Sun, its untouched nature, six-row barley and pure glacial spring water) and all profits will go towards supporting four different global environmental projects. "As a Finnish artist and proud of my heritage, it was a pleasure to partner with Finlandia on this project to benefit so many great environmental charities," said Haapaniemi. "I hope my designs bring color and fantasy to Finlandia and glamorize the nature and the wildlife of Finland."

The limited edition bottles will be available starting May 3rd on finlandiawaterbottle.com for $28 each.

Source

Tags: charity, finland, finlandia, klaus haapaniemi, sigg, SIGG water bottles, vodka, water bottles

Belvedere & Matthew Williamson Team Up for Summer

by Ariston Anderson (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Apparel, Spirits

Belvedere Vodka has long had its hand in the world of fashion, as a longtime force behind Fashion Week after parties. Now they're literally dabbling in design, partnering up with noted arbiter of style Matthew Williamson, to release a limited edition kaftan in celebration of Belvedere Vodka's new flavor, Pink Grapefruit.

"My design for the Belvedere Pink Grapefruit collaboration was inspired by the vitality of sultry high summer evenings," said Williamson. "Incorporating a vibrant sun-drenched palette, the print is evocative of exotic destinations ventured by the modern-day, global traveler."

Williamson's kaftans are effortless and versatile, made from delicate, lightweight silk that's perfect to wear from the Hamptons to Dubai. And his collaboration with Belvedere sets the tone for a fun and chic lifestyle and both brands emulate. These bright neon colors and lively tropical pattern are already making me yearn for hot summer nights.

"I am thrilled to collaborate with a brand like Belvedere, which embodies a contemporary sense of luxury and vigor," said Williamson, "and the limited-edition kaftan was designed particularly with that kind of woman in Mind." MisShapes' DJ Leigh Lezark will model the kaftan for a launch party in May. You can pick up the kaftan at Matthew Williamson Stores and online beginning May 13th, the official launch date of Belvedere Pink Grapefruit vodka.

See the kaftan up close after the jump.

Tags: Belvedere, Belvedere vodka, matthew williamson, vodka

Continue reading “Belvedere & Matthew Williamson Team Up for Summer”

← Previous Page|Next Page →

vodka

Featured Galleries

HuffPost AOL Social News Most Popular

Also on AOL