Review: Grey Goose Essences Watermelon & Basil Vodka
Grey Goose Essences Watermelon & Basil is one of three vodka’s in the new Grey Goose Essences product line. Before there was Hard Seltzer, and Peanut Butter Whiskey, and before Fireball Whisky became a monster hit, flavored vodka was the hottest adult beverage. While flavored vodka sales and selection are not what they used to be, 0 sugar botanical vodka is the hottest flavored vodka trend right now. With the exception of Grey Goose La Vanille, Grey Goose has done a great job with their flavored vodka. I also enjoyed Grey Goose Essences Strawberry & Lemongrass so I’m anxious to try Grey Goose Watermelon & Basil. Read more 
Review: Absolut Watermelon Vodka
Absolut Watermelon Vodka was just released. It is one of 16 flavor varieties Absolut crafts with a vodka base made from Swedish winter wheat sourced from 450 local farms. One kilo of wheat is needed to create 1 liter of vodka. The wheat is milled onsite and blended with water and a proprietary yeast. A continuous distillation process is used with steel column stills and copper plates. The vodka is filtered once through a mesh filter. Pure deep well water from naturally filtered aquifers is softened through reverse osmosis and blended to reduce to proof. Natural flavors are infused before bottling at 76 proof. Absolut Vodka was first released in 1879 in Ahus Sweden, and launched globally in 1979. Absolut Vodka is currently the fifth best selling vodka brand in the US, and the second best selling vodka world wide. Read more
Review: New Amsterdam Watermelon Vodka
New Amsterdam Watermelon is one of 11 flavored vodkas produced by New Amsterdam. The other flavors include Raspberry, Apple, Pineapple, Orange, Coconut, Red Berry, Mango, Lemon, Grapefruit, and Peach. Each flavor starts with a vodka base made from the finest corn distilled five times and filtered three times. Watermelon and other natural flavors are infused before bottling at 70 proof. Read more
Review: Smirnoff Watermelon & Mint Zero Sugar Infusions
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mirnoff Watermelon & Mint Zero Sugar Infusions joins the previously reviewed Strawberry & Rose, and Cucumber & Lime flavors in Smirnoff’s recently released Zero Sugar Infusions line of vodka. Gone are the days of desert flavored vodka. Todays two hottest flavored vodka trends are real fruit juice infused, and zero sugar infused vodka. Smirnoff also offers 4 fruit juice infused vodka flavors in their Sourced line of vodka. The timing for this release is perfect. Memorial Day weekend is the unofficial start of summer and no fruit represents summer more than watermelon. Smirnoff Watermelon & Mint is made from a gluten free vodka base distilled from corn. Natural flavors and essence of real botanicals are infused before bottling at 60 proof. Read more
Review: Ciroc Summer Watermelon Vodka
Ciroc Summer Watermelon Vodka was just released. Summer Watermelon is a Limited Edition flavor. It joins a flavor lineup that already includes 9 year round flavors. Last years Limited Edition flavor, Summer Colada is still available, while supplies last. To create Summer Watermelon Sean “Diddy” Combs worked with DJ Khaled and Diageo to develop the flavor profile. The vodka base is made from a blend of Ugni Blanc and Mauzac Blanc Grapes. The juice is made into wine. The wine is distilled four times in stainless column stills by Master Distiller Jean-Sebastien Robicquet at his 500 year old family owned Maison Villevert Distillery. A fifth distillation follows in a traditional custom copper pot still at Distillerie de Chevanceaux in the South of France. The vodka is infused with a blend of watermelon and natural flavors before bottling at 70 proof. Read more
Review: Skyy Infusions Sun Ripened Watermelon Vodka
Skyy Infusions Sun Ripened Watermelon Vodka will soon be released. I was lucky enough to get my hands on a bottle a little early. This is not the first watermelon flavored vodka Skyy has produced. Three years ago Skyy Vodka released a 60 proof line of flavored vodka under the Skyy Barcraft product line. One of those three flavors was Watermelon Fresca. The Barcraft line is no longer produced. Sun Ripened Watermelon is the one of 15 flavors in the current Skyy Infusions line up. Watermelon continues to be a popular flavor ingredient for both beer and spirits. This will be my 13th Watermelon flavored vodka review. The vodka base is made from Midwestern grown wheat quadruple distilled in Pekin Illinois. Once in San Jose the spirit is triple filtered through California limestone and blended with water filtered through reverse osmosis. Natural watermelon flavors are infused before bottling at 70 proof. Read more
Review: Seagrams Juicy Watermelon Vodka
Seagrams Juicy Watermelon Vodka was released June 2017. Seagrams Vodka is one of over a dozen brands owned by Infinium Spirits. Those brands include Templeton Rye, Corralejo Tequila, Kerrygold Irish Cream, and Crystal Head Vodka. A quick look at the Infinium website shows Seagrams also produces an Apple, Peach, Sweet Tea, Red Berry, Ruby Red Grapefruit, and Golden Apricot flavored vodka. The Seagrams Vodka Facebook page also includes a Grape flavored vodka. Seagrams Extra Smooth Vodka was awarded a Double Gold Medal at the San Francisco World Spirits Competition in 2016. No information is provided as to whether this is the vodka base used for Seagrams Juicy Watermelon Vodka. Seagrams Juicy Watermelon Vodka is made from high quality American grain. It is distilled 5 times. Flavor is added at the distillery in Lawrenceburg Indiana before it is bottled at 70 proof. Read more
Review: Burnetts Watermelon Vodka
Burnetts Watermelon Vodka was introduced in 2005. While Burnetts wasn’t the first watermelon flavored vodka, Smirnoff Watermelon Twist was released in 2004, it was along with Three Olives Watermelon, one of the first three. Watermelon is one of 37 flavored vodka’s made by Heaven Hills Brands under the Burnetts label. With Pinnacle Vodka reducing their flavored vodka lineup to 30, Burnetts now only trails Smirnoff and their 42 flavors. Burnetts Watermelon Vodka is made from 100% grain in Bardstown Ketucky. The vodka base is quadruple distilled and triple charcoal filtered. Natural flavors are infused before bottling at 70 proof. Read more
Review: Western Son Big Stripe Watermelon Vodka
Western Son Big Stripe Watermelon Vodka is one of eight flavored vodkas created at the Western Son Distillery in a former panty factory in Pilot Point Texas. Believe it or not there are over 1200 cultivars of watermelon. Big Stripe is a member of the Crimson Sweet Watermelon family and is commonly grown in Texas. It has a light green rind and darker green stripes. The flesh is red and sweet with large black seeds. The Western Son vodka base is made from yellow corn, and is distilled ten times through a 20 foot column still and filtered four times. Water filtered through reverse osmosis is blended to reduce to proof. Natural watermelon essence and natural flavors are blended with the original vodka base before bottling at 60 proof. Read more
Review: Smirnoff Sourced Watermelon Vodka
Smirnoff Sourced Watermelon Vodka was just released. It joins their Sourced Vodka lineup that includes Pineapple, Ruby Red Grapefruit, and Cranberry Apple flavors. Smirnoff Sourced Watermelon is made from a vodka base of Smirnoff Recipe 21 vodka. Real fruit juice from concentrate and natural flavors are added. Unlike several flavored vodka’s on the market today, no high fructose corn syrup is added. Real fruit juice flavored vodka is a product category also occupied by the Shady Fruit, Stoli Crushed, and E&J Gallo owned, High Noon brands. Read more