Skip to content

Posts tagged ‘unflavored vodka’

6
Oct

Review: Leopolds Silver Tree American Small Batch Vodka

Leopolds Silver Tree American Small Batch Vodka was introduced in 2001.  It is crafted at Leopold Bros. Distillery in Denver Colorado.  Founders Todd and Scott Leopold started brewing beer and now they craft distill Gins, Whiskies, Liqueurs, Aperitivo, Absinthe, and Amaro.  They malt their own barley and mill their grains.  Silver Tree Vodka is made from a unique blend of potatoes, malted barley, and summer wheat.  Seven separate small batch distillations through a 40 gallon copper Vendome Pot Still, finishing through a column still follow.  The vodka is lightly filtered before it is hand bottled and labeled with the batch number hand printed on each bottle.  Read more »

17
May

Review: High Noon Original Vodka

High Noon Original Vodka is one of three vodka’s produced for E&J Gallo by the Holladay Distillery, the makers of 360 Vodka in Weston Missouri.  High Noon Ruby Red Grapefruit and High Noon Lemon are the other two varieties.  All three are currently only available in Madison Wisconsin, Denver Colorado, and Charleston South Carolina.  Production details are limited, but High Noon is made from Midwest grown corn.  For the record, E&J Gallo has a very successful history of building new spirit brands including New Amsterdam Vodka, and Gin, Camarena Tequila, Shellback Rum, and Rum Haven Coconut Rum. Read more »

1
May

Review: Two James 28 Island Vodka

Two James 28 Island Vodka is crafted at the first licensed distillery in Detroit since prohibition.  The Two James Distillery was founded in 2012 by David Landrum and Peter Bailey in Corktown, Detroit’s oldest neighborhood.  The distillery is built in what was originally a turn of the century donut manufacturing plant.  Two James is named for the founder’s fathers, James Bailey and James Landrum.  The vodka is named for the 28 islands on the Detroit River.  These islands were used as hideouts for bootleggers during prohibition.  28 Island Vodka is made from a blend of 70 percent corn and 30 percent soft winter wheat.  Two James is small batch distilled in a 500 gallon copper pot still.    Read more »

25
Apr

Review: Marble Vodka 80

Marble Vodka 80 is made with an original blend of all natural Colorado grains.  White wheat and malted barley are distilled in Hazel, a 250 gallon Vendome Copper Pot Still that was crafted in Louisville Kentucky.  The vodka is filtered through crushed marble pieces sourced from the Yule quarry located about 20 miles from the distillery.  The idea for this distillery started with two mountain family’s, one from the Colorado Rockies and one from the Blue Ridge Mountains of North Carolina.  These in-laws were determined to build an artisan distillery where water and energy conservation for environmental sustainability, is a daily practice. Because of this commitment, the Marble Distillery saves 4.1 million gallons of water per year by recapturing cooling water.  Their renewable energy produces 7,270 Kilowatt hours of electricity per year, and their building design and distilling process saves 1.8 billion BTU’s of energy each year.  The grains are sourced locally, and the distilled grains are given to ranchers for livestock feed and compost. Read more »

28
Jan

Review: Batch 206 Vodka

Batch 206 Vodka is made from 100% corn.  This vodka was previously made with a red winter wheat base.  The Batch 206 Distillery opened in Seattle March 2012.  It is owned and operated by Jeff and Dallen Steichen.  They also craft gin, bourbon, whiskey and moonshine.  Batch 206 vodka is distilled in a 1000 liter handmade German Kothe Still.  The vodka is then filtered for 206 hours in a charcoal polishing regimen using coconut shell charcoal.  The vodka is further subjected to a pharmaceutical grade filtration.  Pure water that measures Absolute 7 on the pH scale is blended to reduce to 80 proof before hand bottling and labeling.   Read more »

11
Jan

Review: Boardroom Vodka

Boardroom Vodka was launched with the opening of the Boardroom Distillery in Lawnsdale Pennsylvania.  The distillery is in a warehouse that once housed the Tyco Fire Production Products CO.  They also current craft a Fresh Cranberry, and Fresh Citrus Vodka, a rum, gin, and a 100% Real Beet distilled 90 proof spirit.  The company was founded by three former road warriors, brothers Marat and Vlad Mamedov, and Marat’s wife Zsuzsa.  Boardroom Vodka is made from locally grown 100% Non GMO corn.  The corn is fermented with yeast in temperature controlled closed top tanks and distilled in a custom built Hagyo Distilling Company still made in Miskole Hungary.  The vodka is filtered and blended with water before it is hand bottled at the distillery.  After receiving a Double Gold Medal from The Fifty Best, in the domestic vodka category, I thought I would give Boardroom Vodka a try.. Read more »

1
Jan

Review: Woody Creek Vodka

Woody Creek Vodka is crafted in Basalt Colorado.  Woody Creek Distillers was formed by three longtime friends Mary and Pat Scanlon and Mark Kleckner.  They began production October 2012 and opened their 10,000 foot distillery to the public March 2013.  They also craft a Reserve vodka made from Stobrawa potatoes, a straight rye, and a gin.  Woody Creek Vodka is made from Rio Grande Russet, Chipeca, and Lady Claire potatoes grown on the Scanlon family farm located 8 miles from the distillery.  This allows the potatoes to be washed and peeled the sames day they are harvested.  13 pounds of these potatoes are needed to produce one bottle of Woody Creek vodka.  Locally sourced yeast is added and the potatoes are fermented in stainless steel tanks.  A single distillation follows in a custom copper stainless steel Carl Distilling system crafted in Goepingen Germany.  This still features two 34 foot tall rectification columns, each with 21 bubble plates.  Mountain spring water softened and filtered through reverse osmosis is blended with the vodka to reduce to 80 proof.  Read more »

31
Dec

Review: Crater Lake Reserve Vodka

Crater Lake Reserve Vodka is crafted at the Bendistillery in Bend Oregon.  While Batch 333 was created as another batch of Crater Lake Vodka, by mistake the vodka was left to filter over 100 times through charcoal and crushed lava rock.  The result was a vodka with extraordinary purity and smoothness.  This vodka was originally sold as Diamond 100 Vodka.  Now named Crater Lake Reserve, it is made from corn and distilled five times.  After filtering 100 times through charcoal and crushed lava rock, pure Cascade Mountain water is blended to reduce to 80 proof.  The vodka is then briefly rested in oak before bottling. Read more »

23
Dec

Review: St George All Purpose Vodka

St George All Purpose Vodka is one of three vodkas introduced by the St George Distillery in March 2016.  The other flavors include California Citrus and Green Chili.  The St George Distillery is best known for creating Hangar One Vodka.  After selling H-1 to Proximo, and waiting out a non compete agreement, distillers Lance Winter and Dave Smith crafted their latest take on vodka.  All Purpose Vodka is based on the pear brandy Jorg Rupf launched the company with in 1982.  The Pear Brandy is distilled from Bartlett pears to 95.1 ABV.  The resulting distillate is blended with a non-gmo base spirit made from American grain.  The vodka is then filtered before bottling at 80 proof.    Read more »

21
Dec

Review: Idol Vodka

Idol Vodka is produced by Boisset La Famille des Grands Vins, the third largest wine group in France.  Idol is made with hand picked sustainably farmed Chardonnay and Pinot Noir grapes from the Burgundy region of France.  The grapes are slow distilled 7 times with the pristine waters of the Cote d Or, and then filtered 5 times. Read more »