I know this isn't exactly a timely topic, but someone mentioned it in the Gin thread, and it got me to thinking (ouch.)
In my best Seinfeld voice: What's the deal with all these flavored vodkas? Was there a huge demand for pomagranite and chocolate vodkas? Or was this only a transparent attempt to snare the newly 21 crowd? My local liquor store is starting to resemble a Baskin & Robbins 31 Flavors.
Aside from peppered vodka, which naturally goes with Bloody Marys, I just don't see any value in them.
*********** "I was thinking how nothing lasts. And what a shame that is." --Benjamin Button
Posts: 3691 | Location: Everett, WA | Registered: Mar 08, 2002
I've got no problem buying them on occasion, and think they taste pretty good in appropriate mixed drinks. A screwdriver made with vanilla Stoli has long been a favorite of mine.
-IB
"Wine only turns into alcohol if you let it sit."---Lindsay Bluth
Posts: 6135 | Location: Naptown | Registered: Nov 24, 2006
I agree, it's fairly fadish and they are probably geared towards the folks new to drinking legally in bars, etc. However, I'm not ashamed to say I keep a bottle of pear flavoured Grey Goose, and use that plus a little simple syrup to make a nice pear vodka martini with. Garnish with a wedge of Bosch pear
Posts: 251 | Location: Tucson | Registered: Aug 05, 2007
Originally posted by wineismylife: OK, I'll be the first...
No way in hell anybody puts any kind of flavor into my Vodka.
I'd like to echo the sentiment with an onomatopoeia. "Bleeech"
-------------------- "One may dislike carrots, spinach, beetroot, or the skin on hot milk. But not wine. It is like hating the air that one breathes, since each is equally indispensable."
Marcel Ayme`
Posts: 6922 | Location: The Left Coast | Registered: Dec 01, 2001
for *proper* "martinis" the word VODKA does not come to play.
quote:
Originally posted by Dunder: For proper martinis only straight vodka will do (I prefer Chopin) - however an ice cold shot of Van Gogh Espresso vodka can be a very tasty treat.
----------------------------- "religion ='s thought disorder" - sigmund freud
Posts: 6280 | Location: Park Slope, Brooklyn | Registered: Nov 20, 2002
Originally posted by TBird: for *proper* "martinis" the word VODKA does not come to play.
im with Dunder... 99.9% of the time im a Stoli Elite Martini drinker, slightly dirty, blue cheese olives
however, there is a very attractive bartender in Vegas who makes Cucumber Martini's using Hangar One Citron Vodka... in my best Homer Simpson... arghlaghrlghrgalaaaghgrl
Originally posted by mneeley490: I know this isn't exactly a timely topic, but someone mentioned it in the Gin thread, and it got me to thinking (ouch.)
In my best Seinfeld voice: What's the deal with all these flavored vodkas? Was there a huge demand for pomagranite and chocolate vodkas? Or was this only a transparent attempt to snare the newly 21 crowd? My local liquor store is starting to resemble a Baskin & Robbins 31 Flavors.
Aside from peppered vodka, which naturally goes with Bloody Marys, I just don't see any value in them.
Love the Seinfeld take! I believe it is strictly "business". Most of us tend to be "purists" around here. A great Vodka need not be disguised with a flavor. I remember drinking the cheap lime flavored vodka as a teen.
Posts: 927 | Location: Minneapolis | Registered: Jan 06, 2009
Originally posted by TBird: for *proper* "martinis" the word VODKA does not come to play.
quote:
Originally posted by Dunder: For proper martinis only straight vodka will do (I prefer Chopin) - however an ice cold shot of Van Gogh Espresso vodka can be a very tasty treat.
I was waiting for someone to chime in with this comment! I've never been a big gin drinker except with on a hot summer day with tonic and a bunch of lime, however Bond's "vespa" is surprisingly delightful.
Posts: 1225 | Location: Vancouver | Registered: Feb 19, 2008
I like Grey Goose Orange. I keep it in my freezer. One of my dad's partners used to send it send it to me when I was in Iraq so I am a bit partial. Those were the best packages to get from home.
Originally posted by TBird: for *proper* "martinis" the word VODKA does not come to play.
quote:
Originally posted by Dunder: For proper martinis only straight vodka will do (I prefer Chopin) - however an ice cold shot of Van Gogh Espresso vodka can be a very tasty treat.
I think Pepper Stoli came out around the mid 80's, and I did enjoy it in my Bloody Marys. But it seems to be, oddly, the only one they don't seem to make any more. At least, I haven't been able to find it for the past 10 years or so. My wife bought some Absolute Citron that I used in a Lemon Drop, but it has a weird, phony taste. I still prefer the original. Other than that, mark me as Old School also. If I want flavorings, I'll put them in myself, thank you.
That said, I might just try that pear concoction of yours, Wayfarer, but I doubt I'd buy a whole bottle to do it.
This message has been edited. Last edited by: mneeley490,
*********** "I was thinking how nothing lasts. And what a shame that is." --Benjamin Button
Posts: 3691 | Location: Everett, WA | Registered: Mar 08, 2002
They are good for some mixed drinks. But, yeah, I see them used mostly by people in their twenties and early/mid thirties. I think my parents keep some sort of flavored vodka around, too, though...
"What contemptible scoundrel stole the cork from my lunch?" -- W.C. Fields
Originally posted by mneeley490: I think Pepper Stoli came out around the mid 80's, and I did enjoy it in my Bloody Marys. But it seems to be, oddly, the only one they don't seem to make any more.
Try Absolut Peppar. I've got a bottle I keep around just for bloody marys, and it does a nice job I think.
-IB
"Wine only turns into alcohol if you let it sit."---Lindsay Bluth
Posts: 6135 | Location: Naptown | Registered: Nov 24, 2006
I think this falls into "There are favoured Vodkas and then there are FLAVOURED Vodkas..."
For instance, gin is really just flavoured vodka. I quite like it!
As far as actual Vodkas go, Van Gogh Espresso vodka is simply very very good. It tastes like espresso in vodka.
Smirnoff anything tastes like vodka with ultra sweet chemicals added. Kind of like chewing bubblegum while drinking...
I think that's where we get the backlash from. The cheap vodkas that market to new drinkers are over sweet and over flavoured, making them taste less like alcohol and so easier for young-uns to gulp down. Premium Vodkas that cater to more sophisticated palates like Grey Goose Orange etc. are subtle, less sweet and taste much more like the real thing, Bitterness and all.
