Rating the Vodka at Zed’s Recent Vodka Fest

Along with Chef Adrian’s snacks, one thing I really enjoyed about the recent Vodka Fest at Zed’s in Tech Ridge Center was seeing the preponderance of attractive Austin women happily sipping their vodkas. The marketers are not wrong: women account for 64% of the US vodka market, and the ratio of women to men that night at Zed’s was even higher.

I’ve gotten many emails asking about some of the vodkas on display that night, so let’s do a quick review.

Reyka:
This is an Icelandic Vodka which does not boast, like so many others, of being filtered 18,000 times. It has a simple yet engaging flavor, and a nice bit of zip. The water comes from a 4,000 year old Arctic spring that runs through a lava field. Talk about filtration! It’s made in Borgarnes, about 30 miles from Rekjavik, and it’s Iceland’s first distillery. After tasting, all I can say is, “Takk.” [Thank you, in Icelandic.]

360 Vodka:
This MO vodka has taken an interesting marketing approach. They bill themselves as the world’s most eco-friendly Vodka. This will no doubt inspire tree-huggers all over the US. They are distilled four times, and filtered five times. They may be the leader in ecologically profound vodkas, but I found the taste to be good, not superior. Decent, but not in my top ten.

Dripping Springs Vodka:
How can I not like a vodka that is made five miles from my house? Seriously, I really enjoy their 1876 brand along with their orange flavored vodka that recently won Best Vodka at the Dripping with Taste festival. The flavors are smooth with a great finish, and it’s my vodka of choice for a good Bloody Mary. They are offering regular tours, and I highly recommend one: most interesting.

Svedka:
This Swedish vodka was a pleasant surprise. I thought my pour was very drinkable: mellow with a hint of berry. What was even more pleasant was the price point: around $15 dollars. Great vodka to sip cold and neat. Ice would actually be superfluous here.

Deep Eddy Vodka:
Another local favorite. As I watch their new digs go up on 290-W, I muse about the coalition of Dripping Springs and good vodkas. Who’d a thunk it?

I was first introduced to their Sweet Tea vodka several years ago, and while I found it drinkable, it was not a favorite. Not so for their regular vodka (which has virtually no mouth burn on the swallow) which I found to be quite enjoyable. But then the Ruby Red was introduced. No need to add any mixer to this. Really flavorful just as it is.

Three Olives:
Who knew the Brits could make vodka? This English import was one of the better vodkas on hand that night. I found it to be very clean tasting and almost a bit sweet. Very refreshing. Pretty high price point, but probably worth it. They’ll give Kettle One and Belvedere a run for their money.

Skinny Girl:
I’m not sure why, but for some reason I had avoided this vodka. Perhaps it is my aversion to founder and former NY Housewife Betheny Frankel. This vodka is aimed directly at women with the pitch that it’s got a third fewer calories. And of course their leading brand Bare Naked. I must say that I found it to be a nice pour, smooth and approachable with good mouth feel.

But the low-cal thing? How does that work? It doesn’t. It can’t. Skinny Girl is 60 proof instead of 80 proof. The recommend pour is 1.5oz as opposed to the usual 2.0.

So there you go. While I like the taste, the whole thing revolves around “less is really more.”

Effen:
This Dutch vodka means “smooth and balanced”: in the local lingo. This super premium vodka introduced its Cucumber brand several years ago, and I immediately liked it. It’s a great pour by itself or in any number of cocktails. It is almost ridiculously refreshing, and I was pleased to see their table at Zed’s.

Pinnacle:
Begun in 2002, this wheat vodka is distilled in France and imported to new owner Beam Inc. (recognize that name?) for final production in Kentucky. I must admit that I found this vodka to be very smooth with no noticeable burn or astringency. I would probably drink it on the rocks, one luxurious sip after another.

Tito’s Handmade Vodka:
Every vodka fan by now knows the rags to riches story of former geologist and mortgage broker Tito Beveridge. He was the first Texan to have a legal distillery and bootsrapped himself to get things started. Tito’s had been a word of mouth story until he won a prestigious vodka competition in California beating out 75 competitors to take the top spot. Now he has a national brand. Smoothness got him in the door, and smoothness has kept him in the forefront. And that smoothness and imminent drinkability was on display at Zed’s that night. Hard not to like and appreciate Tito’s.

Cinco:
Texas is rapidly becoming THE place for vodka production and this San Antonio entrant gives up nothing to its Austin competitors. Distilled five times (hence the name Cinco), it takes amber wheat from Idaho and uses water from the Cordova Creme limestone that’s found under the city of San Antonio. I enjoyed it that night: it had a nice feel with a note of wheat and some minor astringency at the end that actually worked to its advantage. It’s a very decent vodka.

So, there you have it. To those who repeat the US government axiom that vodka, by definition, is an odorless, tasteless, liquid, try selling that to the mostly female audience in attendance that night. Or to the to down-on-their luck types who must drink the low-end brands that most definitely have an ethanol odor to them. Yes, marketing is a huge part of the vodka business, but then so is honest hard work and quality. And moat can tell the difference.