DiningBuzz! - American vodka

I am beginning to really appreciate American Vodka. I was at a restaurant recently, which prided itself on it's fine "mixologists." It was the Hungry Cat in Santa Monica. My husband and I decided to have a cocktail (or 2) and a lot of oysters. We ate at the bar and noticed no imported vodka. We were told that the restaurant preferred to serve the American vodkas, suggesting that they were superior to the popular European brands. We are now drinking http://titosvodka.com/
Very smooth, even straight-up out of the freezer. $16.99 at Trader Joes in Los Angeles. :)

I am beginning to really appreciate American Vodka. I was at a restaurant recently, which prided itself on it's fine "mixologists." It was the Hungry Cat in Santa Monica. My husband and I decided to have a cocktail (or 2) and a lot of oysters. We ate at the bar and noticed no imported vodka. We were told that the restaurant preferred to serve the American vodkas, suggesting that they were superior to the popular European brands. We are now drinking http://titosvodka.com/
Very smooth, even straight-up out of the freezer. $16.99 at Trader Joes in Los Angeles. :)

Titos is one of the most underrated vodkas. Well worth the price (roughly $20/750ml here in PA).

Titos is one of the most underrated vodkas. Well worth the price (roughly $20/750ml here in PA).

We were also offered a taste of Square One. (http://www.squareoneorganicspirits.com/homepage.html) It is made of rye and is organic. It was excellent, but is about 2-1/2 times the price of Titos. IMHO, not worth the difference.

I've been wanting to try Boyd & Blair (http://boydandblair.com/) potato vodka for a while. Made in Pennsylvania it's received some nice accolades.

Tito's is superb. But Monopolowa (sold by TJ for about half the price of Tito) is even better :) Not American, though (made in Vienna). The heavily marketed brands such as Belvedere and Grey Goose have never been the finest, though they are good. And Smirnoff red (made in USA) regularly wins blind tastings -- showing that non-artisanal vodka can be good too, though without the nuances that Tito's etc. have.

I've been wanting to try Boyd & Blair (http://boydandblair.com/) potato vodka for a while. Made in Pennsylvania it's received some nice accolades.

I just looked at the website and see that they make a 151 proof version. :eek:
I don't think I have ever seen (let alone tasted) anything that strong.

Stoly comes in 151 proof in some countries. Quite a few rums are made overproof and 151 seems to be the magic value (perhaps due to tax laws -- though the high proofs become close to undrinkable unless diluted as they dessicate the mouth too much). Tea rum is often made at 80% (160 proof) as a teaspoonful is added to a cup of tea :)

The practical limit is 95% or 190 proof -- removing the rest of the water content gets to be quite expensive and is only done for laboratory purposes. Also somewhat dangerous as it can kill cells on contact (above 70% ethanol is a good bactericide).

The practical limit is 95% or 190 proof -- removing the rest of the water content gets to be quite expensive and is only done for laboratory purposes. Also somewhat dangerous as it can kill cells on contact (above 70% ethanol is a good bactericide).

Try some of this stuff:
http://www.sunsetrum.com/verystrongrum.htm

It's the go to drink (diluted in coke) in St Vincent and the surrounding islands. Just don't show off by dropping a bunch on the ground (including your foot) and setting fire to it.

http://crystalheadvodka.com/about

I won this is a Xmas raffle. Came in a gift set with two shot glasses, 750ml. Made in canada. Very smooth taste.

There is a vodka made not too far from where I live: Seven Brothers

http://www.seven-brothers.com/seven%20brothers_002.htm

Looking forward to a taste test!

i have sent a request to the washington post. want them to get a couple certified "mixologists" to blend those vodka fruit punches and have a group of experts distinguish various vodkas. all would be double tasted, and a few placebos tossed in. should be interesting results to see if the chosen ones can tell a mega buck vodka from a two buck chuck.............

There's a wonderful Vodka made in Ferndale Mi, just out side Detroit. You can visit the distillery and sample.

http://www.valentinevodka.com/distillery.html

Hangar One (http://www.hangarone.com/main.html) out of Alameda makes nice vodka as well.

But something interesting I heard recently from a friend is that you can make cheap crap vodka into very drinkable vodka by running it through a Brita :eek:

...But something interesting I heard recently from a friend is that you can make cheap crap vodka into very drinkable vodka by running it through a Brita :eek:Very true -- but that just eliminates the impurities; it doesn't add back in the desirable elements that give the best vodkas their subtle flavour and beautiful mouth feel. Still a very cheap way to get decent vodka (slightly below Smirnoff Red quality, fwiw). If you don't have a Brita, burning a match and swirling it in the vodka also works (best done inside Russia).

Interesting thread.

As a very minimal social drinker (I maybe drink 3 or 4 times a year), I'm no longer in the loop on booze.

Years ago, when I did drink, I drank some Vodka. I never even thought to try "American" vodka. It was just not on my radar.

I do remember the buzz in America many moons ago over "Passport Scotch". Evidently fairly popular in parts of Europe, yet in the US, it was rather inexpensive - and thought of by many as rather cheap and not worth drinking. Something about Tariff laws if I recall, made it inexpensive in the US and it got the false reputation of being bottom shelf stuff. So I drank it and did not know any better. But when it came to Vodka I usually stuck with the top shelf stuff. I don't even recall American Vodka being offered or available at most restaurants I drank at. Back then anyway.

But something interesting I heard recently from a friend is that you can make cheap crap vodka into very drinkable vodka by running it through a Brita :eek:

This is what I do normally since I've been drinking vodka straight since about five years ago. I guess my secret is out! :D

Titos is one of the most underrated vodkas. Well worth the price (roughly $20/750ml here in PA).

I don't get the hype on Tito's... When I first started coming to DFW, everyone was telling me I had to try Tito's...

Meh.

It gets the job done, but not my favorite vodka by any measure.

I don't get the hype on Tito's... When I first started coming to DFW, everyone was telling me I had to try Tito's...

Meh.

It gets the job done, but not my favorite vodka by any measure.

Perhaps, because Tito's is local it doesn't have the same appeal.;)

44 North (http://www.44northvodka.com/Home.htm), out of Rigby, Idaho, makes a Mountain Huckleberry Vodka. I don't get too fired up for flavored vodkas but this one I love. Straight up, or even better, mixed with lemonade and fresh huckleberries. Great summer drink. ^

I don't get the hype on Tito's... When I first started coming to DFW, everyone was telling me I had to try Tito's...

Meh.

It gets the job done, but not my favorite vodka by any measure.

For me it really satisfies the quality for price calculation. I prefer other more expensive vodkas, but I don't like paying for more expensive vodkas.

Tito's is superb. But Monopolowa (sold by TJ for about half the price of Tito) is even better :) Not American, though (made in Vienna). The heavily marketed brands such as Belvedere and Grey Goose have never been the finest, though they are good. And Smirnoff red (made in USA) regularly wins blind tastings -- showing that non-artisanal vodka can be good too, though without the nuances that Tito's etc. have.

I won't class Tito's as superb, but it's certainly drinkable. I do believe Monopolova to be, day in and day out, the best value for the price.

But then, the closest I come to drinking straight vodka is an occasional Vodka Gibson, "up", in a chilled glass and made from vodka kept in the freezer, a la Doppel Korn in North Germany. Honestly, the drink tells me far more about the Vermouth and the onions than it does the vodka. When it comes to vodka in most of the currently popular mixed drinks and cocktails, the other ingredients so overwhelm any possible subtlety to the vodka, "well' brands serve adequately.

There are several Scotch blends imported in the barrel instead of the bottle, far lower tariff/tax. I suspect that Passport may be in that category, just as once "Crawford's" served as the poor man's Johnny Walker Red. Of course, Chivas was once but a medium priced not very popular blend, until the late great Doyle Dane Bernbach (the mad/ad man who made VW a household name) put it is a new bottle with a fancy label and box (with a high price) to make it chic. Years ago, I realized that Crown Royal was no more than a product of imaginative, innovative marketing of an otherwise modest tipple.

.....And then there's the Cognac and Coke crowd, palate-less in the quest to keep up with the neighbors. Why spoil either good or expensive cognac?

Try Leopold Bros. (http://leopoldbros.com/New_site/Leopold_Bros.html) out of Colorado. Not just their vodka, but all of their spirits are fantastic.