British Brand Upsets Favorites in Third Vodka Taste-Off

MONTPELIER, VT -- "This is as if there were a blind rice tasting in China, and Russian-grown rice beat out all Asian varieties," quipped Russian Life Editor, Mikhail Ivanov, referring to the fact that a little-known British brand beat 15 competitors from 10 countries (including Russia, the birthplace of vodka) in a major blind vodka tasting this past weekend.

Over 125 Russophiles from around the US gathered in Burlington, Vermont on July 2 for the Third Annual International Vodka Taste-Off, sponsored by Montpelier-based Russian Life magazine. Some participants traveled from as far away as Michigan and Washington, DC for this blind tasting of 16 premium vodkas, held this year on board a cruise ship plying the waters of picturesque Lake Champlain.

Vodka is the best selling distilled spirit in the United States and represents some 25% of a $13 billion liquor market. The premium vodka market niche is the fastest growing segment of this market, with some six million cases sold yearly. The vodkas tasted at the Russian Life event range in price from $16 to over $30 for a .75 liter bottle.

"The US government defines vodka as 'neutral spirits without distinctive character, aroma, taste or color,'" said Russian Life Publisher Paul Richardson, "but nothing could be farther from the truth with premium vodkas. Each of these fine spirits have a very distinct taste, smell and texture, depending on the raw materials used, the manner and degree of filtration and other factors."

In the blind tasting, each participant was randomly assigned six vodkas to taste and evaluate according to their personal preferences, on a scale of 1 to 5, with 5 being the highest and 1 the lowest score. Each of the vodkas was blind tasted by 30 or more persons and then ranked according to average scores for all participants combined.

"The whole point of this contest," Richardson said, "is to bring together enough varying, subjective opinions to attempt a reasonable approximation of consumer tastes. These are not so-called 'vodka experts,' but they are vodka lovers and we like to think that their tastes are somehow representative of wider consumer preferences. To the best of my knowledge, there is no other blind consumer tasting of vodka on this scale."

This year's contest saw first-time participant 3 Olives Vodka from England pull off a stunning upset victory, while top-rated Russian vodkas Cristall and Stolichnaya came in a close 2nd and 3rd place, respectively. Meanwhile, last year's top vodka, Finlandia, fell to 13th place, while the well-respected Grey Goose (3rd place last year) brought up the rear. Some vodkas, notably Cristall, Stolichnaya and the American SKYY, all held on to their strong rankings of last year.

"These are all very fine vodkas," Richardson said. "But those that placed high in the pack were consistently rated much higher than the others by nearly three dozen average consumers. That says something about each vodka. But more than anything, I think the results this year show that people should set aside their preconceived notions about some of the better-known premium vodkas and go out and do a bit of sampling of the 'lesser-knowns.'"

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