I’ve finally gotten back to vodka. Aside from a few martinis while dining out, I’ve been drinking mostly wine or dark beer lately. But this past weekend I stopped in to Friar Tuck’s to grab some wine and picked up a bottle of Grey Goose vodka. Grey Goose is French vodka distilled from wheat and filtered through limestone. They claim it’s the “World’s Best Tasting Vodka,” but that’s a pretty arrogant claim considering all the excellent choices out there. And as I sit here now with an ice cold martini, made in the Richard Nixon style (vermouth shaken with ice then dumped before adding vodka), I’m thinking I don’t like it nearly as much as Ketel One or Level. It’s got a strong, biting after taste. Maybe it’d be better straight up, but I’m glad I didn’t buy the 1.75l bottle.

Update: I ended up dumping the remainder of my martini. Something was definitely not right. I’ll give Grey Goose the benefit of the doubt for the time being until I try it straight up. Maybe it was the vermouth. Further updates to follow.

Update – 2/22/07: I tried Grey Goose ice cold and straight up. Still got a nasty after taste. I ended up using the rest to make a few vodka tonics. Yet even with the lime and tonic water, I was still getting an unpleasant after taste. I could chalk it up to a poorly stored bottle. Or it could be that Grey Goose is just not my type of vodka. Either way, I won’t be buying another bottle. Too many other brands to try. :v:

Distilled from 7 pounds of potatoes per bottle, Chopin is the world’s premier luxury potato vodka. The potatoes are sourced from the Podlasic area of Poland, a supposedly low industry area that is touted as being healthy and fertile. I can’t help but think about it’s proximity to Chernobyl, though. Healthy is a relative term here, I guess. 

Chopin is hand-crafted in small quantities. It shows. It is supremely smooth and drinkable. You can almost taste the earthiness of the potatoes. This is the vodka to drink if you like it neat. The Poles know their vodka, after all. I hope I’m not being predictable, but I went with the same Richard Nixon recipe as before. The result is an easy drinking martini, albeit with less of a pleasant burn than Ketel One or Level.  

I highly recommend Chopin if you like it ice cold and neat. Just be prepared to pay-to-play. Chopin doesn’t come cheap. I had to have the staff at Friar Tuck’s open the locked case for my bottle.

Beefeater has been producing gin since 1820. Beefeater is distilled from grain spirits and is 47% alcohol or 94 proof. Like most gin, Beefeater adds a bit of juniper berry to produce the distinctive gin “pine tree” taste. Otherwise gin is virtually tasteless. Much less oomph than vodka, too. Still, a fair burn going down. Tonight I used the same “Richard Nixon” technique as I did with the previous vodka martinis, although I left maybe a teaspoon more vermouth in the shaker than before. The result is a very smooth and drinkable martini. So drinkable, I may make another.

I’m finding I like Ketel One Citroen better straight up than with any vermouth at all. The bottle’s been in the freezer for a week, so it’s about as cold as it can get. Just a lemon peel and it’s perfect. It’s smooth to drink and has a pleasant burn going down. I like it. I’ll definitely be buying another bottle.

Tonight I cracked open the bottle of Level vodka. Level is the ultra-premium label from Swedish vodka producer Absolut. First released in 2004, it’s a winter wheat based vodka which uses both continuous and batch distillation. Level exhibits a hearty bite when sampled straight up, but is nonetheless smooth and clean finishing. Tonight I used the same martini recipe from last night. It produced a flawlessly smooth and enjoyable martini. Much less lemony, of course, but still very refreshing. Well worth the premium price. If you’re skeptical, grab a small sampler bottle and set it in the freezer overnight. Then have it in a martini. But be forewarned, you’ll be kicking yourself for not buying the full size bottle.  

After 315 years of making vodka in Holland, the Nolet family certainly has a mountain of experience. Ketel One vodka shows every year of it. It is very smooth and finishes cleanly. The Citroen (lemon flavored) version has just a hint of lemon and does not overwhelm the vodka. This is not “hard lemonade.” It is excellent vodka. The name comes from the Distilleerketel #1, an alembic copper still. Ketel One is wheat based and charcoal filtered. Vodka connoisseurs will tell you that wheat produces the finest vodka, yet there are also excellent potato based vodkas. I plan on trying those as well. All in the interest of knowledge, you understand.

Tonight I made a very dry martini using the “in-and-out” method favored by Richard Nixon. Pour dry vermouth in to a shaker with ice and shake, then dump the vermouth down the drain and add vodka to the vermouth coated ice. I also added some lemon peel. Shake until frosty cold and pour into a glass. I tossed in a lemon peel. Even with the Citroen vodka and the use of lemon peels, it is still not too lemony. It’s actually quite drinkable. I like it.