Vodka..... confused

[Karenj2]

I can't help you with vodka brands - I'm not much of an alchohol afficianado. But I wanted to tell you a funny story (at least I think so...)

My dad always carried Smirnoff vodka, but my Aunt was a vodka "snob", and at the time, only liked Absolut vodka. She brought a bottle of Absolut to their house one day and said that he should really stock THIS kind, because it was so much better than the Smirnoff. So, from then on, my parents had Absolut vodka stocked at their house for when my Aunt came to visit... or so we thought... It turns out, Dad would buy Smirnoff, and carefully pour it into the Absolut bottle. And every time my Aunt would come over, she'd pour herself a drink, smack her lips, and say, "See, aren't you glad I know what vodka brands are good - this is delicious!"
(I think she - and my Dad - have moved on to 3 Olives or Gray Goose.)

 

[kathie859]

I can't help you with vodka brands - I'm not much of an alchohol afficianado. But I wanted to tell you a funny story (at least I think so...)

My dad always carried Smirnoff vodka, but my Aunt was a vodka "snob", and at the time, only liked Absolut vodka. She brought a bottle of Absolut to their house one day and said that he should really stock THIS kind, because it was so much better than the Smirnoff. So, from then on, my parents had Absolut vodka stocked at their house for when my Aunt came to visit... or so we thought... It turns out, Dad would buy Smirnoff, and carefully pour it into the Absolut bottle. And every time my Aunt would come over, she'd pour herself a drink, smack her lips, and say, "See, aren't you glad I know what vodka brands are good - this is delicious!"
(I think she - and my Dad - have moved on to 3 Olives or Gray Goose.)

Great family story!! I think I like your Dad

 

[cdrn1]

This thread title cracked me up! My thought was, yeah...vodka makes me kind of confused too!!! LOL!!!

 

[Redwitch]

I've always had the theory of cheap vodka mixed, good vodka straight. And keep the good vodka in the freezer, not on the bar.

 

[MAH4546]

Svedka is the best to stock - great taste, low price. Another low priced vodka that taste good is UV.

 

[disneysteve]

keep the good vodka in the freezer

How could I forget to mention that! Yes, vodka should be in the freezer, though that really only matters if you are drinking it straight.

 

[it's kelly]

Ketel One is my vodka of choice. Pinnacle for flavored.

 

[powellrj]

Forget the vodka, I just want to come and hang out in your bar! Its amazing!

 

[branv]

You could just try instead some of the new styles of gin. I mean, they taste more like vodka than gin anyway. Kidding...sort of.

I told a friend of mine and her DH about the 20/20 episode as well, she being a "Grey Goose" snob and he a "Ketel only" person. They both swore up and down that they'd done taste tests like that before and could tell the difference. So next time I saw them we did one, blind of course. They did NOT pick their favorites as their favorites, and Smirnoff beat out their faves. I'd like to say they had a sense of humor about it, but mostly it came down to accusations of tampering. To be fair, this isn't singular among vodka drinkers. John Cleese had a funny taste test for wine lovers with "cheap" and expensive and it went the same way. We did a taste test with bourbons for some friends who claim to know what's what. We had a 15 year Pappy, Bookers, Knob Creek, threw in Yamazaki Scotch to throw things off, Dickel and a flat-out-take-the-paint-off jug bourbon. One bourbon snob rated them backwards -- picked the cheapest as most expensive and the most expensive (Pappy) as cheapest. DH nailed them all -- not sure why that makes me proud. I think my priorities are confused

That being said, the only difference we notice between really cheap vodka and "better" vodka is in the fumes. Not sure why...same ABV, but some seem to choke you up more. But we're not so much vodka drinkers (just don't see the point). Give me gin any day over that stuff. That being said, the expert at our local liquor store (who has never led us wrong with any choice) did recommend Dripping Springs Vodka over Tito's for a good mid-line mixer brand. DH has enjoyed it in his bloody mary's, that's for sure

 

[Alesia]

That being said, the only difference we notice between really cheap vodka and "better" vodka is in the fumes. Not sure why...same ABV, but some seem to choke you up more.

There are a few factors (different ingredients, etc.) but the main reason is that more expensive vodkas are distilled several times. If you wanted to go to the trouble to rig up a still, you could turn a not-so-great vodka into a pretty tasty one.

 

[mill4023]

It's 95% marketing hype.
As another poster pointed out, it is not like Scotch.
Scotch is made with lots of different recipes and lots of different techniques, then it's aged for varying lengths of time, which brings out very different flavor notes.

The whole point of Vodka is for it to be as tasteless as possible.
That doesn't mean that every Vodka tastes exactly the same. But the differences are much more subtle than in any other liquor.

You may notice a harsher taste in the very cheapest brands you can find, but as numerous blind taste tests have shown, almost nobody can tell the difference between Grey Goose and Smirnoff and if they can, they prefer Smirnoff at least half the time.

 

[Pesky]

For general purpose vodka, plain. Go mid-range like Grey Goose, Absolut or Stolichnaya. I think you would be fine with any of those. I find some of the others can have more of a bite and those three are fairly smooth. You should be fine unless you have some vodka snob over and then he/she can bring his/her own dang liquor.

 

[disneysteve]

The whole point of Vodka is for it to be as tasteless as possible.
That doesn't mean that every Vodka tastes exactly the same. But the differences are much more subtle than in any other liquor.

That's basically true, but the same could be said of bottled waters. They don't all taste the same. I generally avoid buying bottled water but over the years, I've tried enough to know that they aren't all the same and there are some that I actually don't like much. The same is true of vodka. They aren't all made from the same grain or combination of grains. They're bottled in different locations so the water used varies and that impacts the taste. And, as noted, how much they are filetered is probably the biggest factor.

Also, as we said earlier, vodka should be kept in the freezer. Even good vodka will burn more going down if serve at room temp while it will be much smoother if served ice cold. I'd rather have frozen Smirnoff than warm Skyy.

 

[sookie]

Ok, trying to figure out Vodka. I don't really drink it but trying to stock our new bar, can't get a straight answer from the liquor store people.

they say personal preference,, or get a bad one you get bad headaches

okidoki, so what do you guys suggest?
I see Smirnoff, grey goose, Absolut etc.
a bunch of russian names
then you get to the flavors, like 3 olives, & pinnacle,, 3 olives costs about 1/3 more than pinnacle & twice the cost of burnetts.

is there really a difference in taste?

(ok, I am sure someone will shout "of course there is a difference")

oh, in case you are interested, you can look at out bar build.
http://www.avsforum.com/t/1398290/o...om-scratch-thats-ireland-not-notre-dame-theme

YOU NEED BIRTHDAY CAKE VODKA!!
it is wonderful stuff. mix with orange fanta and enjoy

 

[momxx5]

As a former bartender/waitress,
The brand of vodka matters the most the NEXT morning.
Less expensive vodka usually will give you more of a....umm, hangover feeling. While the "better" vodka's will not require as much asprin the next morning.

Back in the day, at the bar:

House Vodka was Stoli
Name Vodka was Smirnioff
Premium was Absolut

Absolut is an excellet quality for a good bar. Grey Goose is the best quality for a great home bar. Sure to impress


The best summer time mixer is Pink Lemonade (kind in can that add water)

While I don't drink, but on the specialist of occassions, my BIL brought Grey Goose over and half a bottle is still in freezer. In the cabinet is Absolut, maybe leftover from our wedding??

 

[tasha99]

YOU NEED BIRTHDAY CAKE VODKA!!
it is wonderful stuff. mix with orange fanta and enjoy

Oh yum! My neighbor has a bottle of some kind of vanilla vodka. We put it in orange juice now and then for "creamsicle screwdrivers." Delish.

I notice that a lot of vodka isn't made from potatoes anymore (the Grey Goose site says they use wheat). Just seems a little odd to me, because I thought vodka was by definition a potato liquor.

 

[disneysteve]

I notice that a lot of vodka isn't made from potatoes anymore (the Grey Goose site says they use wheat).

Most vodkas are made from wheat. There are some potato vodkas available though. Any starchy grain can be used so there are also ones made from corn, rye and other things.

 

[tasha99]

Most vodkas are made from wheat. There are some potato vodkas available though. Any starchy grain can be used so there are also ones made from corn, rye and other things.

Now the wheat vodka makes a lot more sense to me.

 

[CathrynRose]

20/20 or a show like that did an piece on this issue a few years ago. They took several people that considered themselves "vodka snobs". They all had their brands that they drank exclusively. They all swore they could tell the difference. After a round of blind taste tests, almost no one picked their favorite. The mid and low price ones generally scored as good or better than the high priced ones.

Thanks. Glad I'm not the only one who saw this. I think it was Dateline, and yes. No one could tell the difference.

The one Vodka I absolutely hate is Svedka. I think I'd rather drink rubbing alcohol, and Effin Cucumber is awesome, however every-single-time, I end up with a helluva headache afterwards. Makes such good Bloodies, too.

 

[Evi]

I'd go with svedka or pinnacle for bar stock but you should still keep a bottle of chopin, kettle one or greygoose for special mixes.