In what may have been the most awesome blind taste test ever, a BusinessWeek writer served his friends chilled shots of various brands of vodka to see whether there was any noticeable difference in taste. His argument was that vodka is a neutral spirit and by definition is nearly indistinguishable from one brand to the next—and that consequently the “brand story” (including country of origin) is really all that separates a Grey Goose drinker from a Ketel One alkie. To test this, he asked his subjects to pick their favorite brands from shots and mixed drinks.
It turns out, no one could really tell one vodka from the other—there was one successful pick, but it wasn’t repeatable. (Probably because the subjects were all half-drunk by that point.)
The other conclusion I drew was that when it comes to mixing vodka with fruit juice, or unpurified ice, you might as well as save your money and keep a bottle of Popov around. After mixing with fruit juice, muddled mint, simple syrup, or tap-water ice, the slight subtleties of the vodka in these concoctions go out the window faster than the promise of a contractor who says he’ll come to your house every day to work until the job is done.
Oddly, there’s a related slideshow of various vodka brands with “tasting notes” that seem to imply that every vodka is a unique and beautiful creation. Hmm, looks like we’ll have to try our own blind taste test.
“World’s Best Vodka? It’s Anybody’s Guess” [BusinessWeek]
“The Best Vodkas” (slideshow) [BusinessWeek]
(Photo: Getty)
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@BrianU: Alcohol has a taste. It burns and tastes like nail polish removal.
@TVarmy: I completely concur with you. I’ve never understood the allure.
I don’t care what anyone says, I’ve had everything from the 5 dollar plastic bottle vodka, to vodka that I can’t even pronounce the name that was $98.
But, I will say, 100% that Ciroc vodka, does NOT taste like any other. Probably because it’s made from Grapes, but, all Vodka is def. not created equal when compared to Ciroc.
All the same? Who did this test? A bum with a scalded tongue? Sheesh.
Potato vodka. Hands down. Teton Glacier from Idaho, Cold River from Maine, Chopin and Monopolowa from Poland.
No difference. How droll.
I call semi-BS. If you can’t tell Grey Goose from other vodkas in a *neat* taste test, you’re not a vodka drinker. GG has a distinctive nose to it. I will however grant that it is difficult to tell K1 from smirnoff from belvedere from absolut. Of course, as several have mentioned, the morning after is the real test. Personally, I find K1 has good balance between the damage to your wallet and your morning.
FWIW the best vodka I’ve ever had the pleasure of gracing my lips has been Zyr. If you ever have the fortune of seeing that sexy blue bottle behind the bar, ask for it chilled and neat — to mix in a cocktail would be a gross bastardization.
what about the severity of hangover?
i’m sure there has to be a difference between makes all things (public lushness) being equal, no?
No difference, ha! That’s not what my two-day hangover tells me.
Slate did a great article on this years back. BusinessWeek is flat-out wrong:
[www.slate.com]
I call shenanigans. I can drink top shelf vodka straight from a glass. cheap white label drug store vodka is like drinking flaming barbed wire, mixed or not.
Personally, I like mid ranged vodka. It’s cheaper and doesn’t make me want to vomit.
Well, there’s your problem: Half a shot of vermouth! You could put airplane fuel in that martini and it wouldn’t matter.
This is pretty much a do-over of an old story. ([www.abcnews.go.com] for example)
It doesn’t prove that cheap vodka is the same as more expensive versions. It does prove that some people won’t notice a difference. Also, the guy served “frozen shots” of vodka. The colder something is, the less you can taste it, which is why the pros generally taste spirits near room temperature.
*sigh* Do we have to go through this every time we have a vodka thread? As a vodka drinker (Moskovskaya for preference), I get pretty tired of people saying that because *they* can’t taste the difference, then *nobody* can taste the difference, and therefore vodka drinkers are fooling themselves/falling for a line of advertising/both.
The reality is…
– Cheap vodka tastes like medical spirits and the smell alone identifies it.
– The mid-price (so-called “premium”) vodkas that you’ve heard of because they get advertised a lot and marketed mainly on image (Ketel, Grey Goose, etc.) have all been designed not to offend a Western palate and do all taste pretty much the same as each other, but quite distinct from cheap vodkas.
– The authentic Russian and Polish vodkas that aren’t toned down for export to the West all have distinct tastes. When I persuaded a group of friends to try Moskovskaya in a bar in Prague, every one of them could immediately tell the difference in taste and texture, even the ones drinking martinis. And they all preferred it, too.
Moral 1: Ketel, Grey Goose, etc. are not the end of the vodka story. If you haven’t tasted authentic central european or eastern european vodka, its not so surprising that you think they taste the same.
Moral 2: Matters of taste should not be argued
The Icelandic vodka, Reyka, is fantastic! And I do think that there is a discernible taste difference with certain vodkas.
um, duh, if you mix it’s pointless to use expensive liquor.
Blind taste tests of people that swear by gray goose actually rate it lower than other vodkas. i always laugh on the inside when someone snobbishly orders gray goose…’omg it’s french. it HAS to be better’. tools.
I hate Grey Goose… tastes… I dunno, charcoal seems to come to mind after I have it..
I like Absolut… it is reasonably inexpensive, mixes very well, and I don’t have a hangover after I have it
I will pay extra for ‘good’ vodka in my drinks not because I notice a taste (usually) but rather because I will notice the difference the morning afterward…
Oh, and never buy Grey Goose Citron… tastes absolutely horrid. If you need flavored vodka I would stick to Absolut
All vodka tastes bad.
The quality determines how horrible the hangover will be the next day, nothing more. That is my personal experience.
Taste testing sounds in order.
Never have I seen a more wrong post!! Vodka is all about the brands. You cant even compare say an absolute Vodka to a Grey Goose. The taste is completely different.
Saw a nice article on this website [www.clubpath.com] that had a great article on Vodka comparisons. They use high volume comparisons in nightclubs across Toronto.
@nweaver:
Hangar 1 is sooo drinkable, even warm. What the layman may not be able to tell in a fully chilled or mixed vodka becomes obvious when the stuff is sipped straight and room temp.
@johnperkins21: Spudka is pretty darn cheap [www.hrdspirits.com] I only use vodka in mixed drinks when I want to drink something straight up it has to have flavor so it’s scotch and gin for me.
TVarmy; No sir, PURE ethyl alcohol IS tasteless, please look it up in any of he numerous scientific reference to it. You describe “burn” which isn’t a taste but a feel. I also made mention to similar effects in my OP regarding why I have brand preference. The taste of nail polish remover is from impurities, not the actual alcohol. Combined with the burn of strong liquor, these sensations are still mostly physical feelings other than taste – strictly speaking. I know what you mean, but you are technically incorrect. If you also accept the fact that pure alcohol is odorless, then it HAS to be tasteless. Again, I’m sure both you and I can tell if our noses are over a glass of PURE alcohol, and once again I point out this is a feeling ( irritation of the nasal passages ) and not an actual odor. You can also take into consideration why perfumes and colognes contain alcohol; it is very effective in getting very small quantities of scent ingredients to put off a lot of smell that is easier for your nose to detect. Have you ever heard the story of someone getting of a DUI/DWI charge because the police officer testified that they smelled alcohol on the driver’s breath, and the defense lawyer used the fact (technicality) that alcohol is odorless so that could it could not be used as reasonable cause to make them take a sobriety test? I think there is truth in that legend as the wording has indeed changed to “alcoholic beverage” and the like. So, I can agree that you can taste a difference BUT it’s not the alcohol ( per se ) that’s causing it.
Let’s knock off all this nonsense with panels of a couple guys, because that clearly isn’t enough to convince some people. Let’s get 1000 people together and broadcast a live stream of the whole thing, or let’s get a friend with access to an HPLC to compare the two and see if there’s anything that correlates with published tasting notes. On second thought, let’s not. All some vodka company would have to do is “sponsor” a study that showed a difference and people would go back to believing they could find one. Lessons learned from global warming.
All I know is, I’ve slipped McCormicks and SKYY to so many people and they’ve never noticed.
@rewind:
I can’t stand the rot gut bottom shelf vodka. Even after chilling it I can certainly taste a difference. I agree with Steaming Pile. Middle shelf vodka is good enough to have minimal taste and cheap enough that you don’t blow close to or over $100 on a bottle of booze.
And personally, after I started drinking 100 proof Stolichnaya I can’t get myself to go back to 80 proof. Now if you think there is no difference in taste then you should try these two next to each other. I understand it has to do with the strength of each of them but the 100 proof reminds me of cough medicine when mixed with the wrong thing or when downing a shot.