THE DIFFERENT STYLES OF VODKA

Today it is very wrong to think that all vodkas taste the same or that vodka tastes of nothing at all. Many remain neutral in taste to provide the ideal base for mixed drinks but some will deliver tastes and aromas beyond the taste of the alcohol itself. Though not neutral, the best of these will still rightly pride themselves on their purity. Unlike other spirits, with vodka there are no industry standards that can imply quality through letters or marks on the label. Instead vodka brand names offer the promise of consistency, good and bad and country of origin, if stated, can suggest the use of certain raw materials and production processes. Increasing references to the use of specific raw materials can provide more guidance as to likely character but much will then depend upon the nature of filtration. (See above)

VODKAS WITH CHARACTER

These will include Eastern rye, wheat and potato vodkas that, thanks to modern distillation techniques, are now pure and clean, unlike their ancestors, but which still retain some of the character of their raw material because they are distilled to relatively low levels of alcohol.
These will include vodkas rooted in the East, like in Poland, a country on the spice trade route from Asia to Europe and will use exotic herbs and spices or local materials such as the fragrant bison grass or wild bees’ honey. Initially such ingredients were used to mask the unpalatable raw alcohol and to help the ‘medicine’ go down but, as the aristocracy in both Russia and Poland took greater responsibility for distillation, so flavours and aromas were added to enhance and individualize the vodkas. The traditions are strong and the flavours result from lengthy processes such as infusion, maceration or leaching. Today such vodkas can be enjoyed for their individuality whether mixed or taken neat. They are not the result of cold compounding (See Gin Explained) as may be the case with some of today’s flavoured vodkas.
These will also include an increasing number of Western vodkas, keen to be differentiated from neutral vodkas by claiming that the process of distillation or the character retained from single or multiple grain formulae, potatoes or fruit carries through into the finished spirit either in terms of taste or texture or both.

 AGED VODKA

This is a tradition noted particularly in Poland, where the vodka may be laid down in empty wine casks at the birth of a daughter, to be enjoyed on her wedding day.

WESTERN STYLE/NEUTRAL VODKA

Initially all and still most Western vodkas are rectified spirits usually distilled from grain or molasses and filtered, the more expensive through tons of charcoal and others, more crudely. They are then reduced with pure de-mineralized water and bottled, ready to drink, with no maturation, to be judged on their purity and cleanliness alone. They are simply pure alcohol and water. Style not substance, packaging not content may be the keys to the success of most though some will rightly claim their exceptional purity, combined or not with texture, underpins their success.

This style of vodka arrived in the West thanks to Rudolph Kunett whose family, prior to the Russian Revolution, had supplied grain to the Smirnov family. He met Vladimir Smirnov in Paris after both had fled the Bolsheviks and there it was agreed he would take the recipe for Smirnoff to the States (Vladimir had changed his surname from Smirnov to Smirnoff). There, in 1934, post- Prohibition, he set up the West’s first vodka distillery but he was ahead of his time and it was not until a marketing man, called John Martin, acquired the rights to Smirnoff in 1946 and launched Smirnoff, as a pure, neutral spirit to mix with anything, that the West woke up to vodka. The Moscow Mule was the first of many cocktails to encourage sampling of this tasteless, odourless spirit and in the 50+ years since, vodka has grown to become the world’s most popular spirit. The appeal of most Western vodkas remains their lack of aroma beyond the pure smell of ethyl alcohol and a taste that’s light and crisp without heavy flavours or oily texture to overwhelm any liquid added as a mixer.

FLAVOURED VODKA

Flavoured vodka is defined as having been given a predominant flavour other than that of the raw materials. It may be sweetened, blended, flavoured, matured or coloured. Though many are brand extensions of vodkas that have appeared relatively recently, it is certain that the original vodkas would have been flavoured to mask the raw nature of the alcohol. Today flavourings may be cold compounded extracts, natural ingredients that have been macerated in alcohol and/or water, the result of percolation or flavoured distillates blended in before bottling. Some may be complex recipes.

CONSUMPTION

In Russia vodka is traditionally drunk chilled or frozen and downed in one. The Russians were known to shoot rather than sip partly because of a belief that the fumes and not the liquid caused drunkenness.

In Poland, vodka is usually sipped, with food and at room temperature to allow the tastes and aromas to be enjoyed.

In the West vodka has gained its popularity mixed with fruit juices or in cocktails but today, knowing more about what’s in the bottle, the production processes and regional variations, heritage and traditions are as important to the enjoyment of vodka as any other spirits.