We all have our favorite cocktail or spirit. In today’s world, most of us know how to make our favorite cocktail at home too. We know that a Cosmo is made with vodka, a Mojito with rum, and a Margarita with tequila. We know which liqueurs and juices and fruit we need to make our favorite drinks. But how many of us understand where the base spirits came from or how they’re made? How many of us know how to decipher high quality liquor from a poorly made version (aside from the difference in how we feel the morning after)? Of course it isn’t necessary for you to know the ins and outs of your favorite spirit or cocktail in order to enjoy them, but once you learn more about it, you’ll appreciate a well-made, high quality cocktail so much more. Today, let’s talk a little bit about the nation’s most beloved spirit, vodka.
I could go on for pages and pages about vodka’s history, and trust me we will get into the history in future posts. But today, I want to talk about tasting – really tasting – vodka. It’s really the first step in understanding spirits and can help you, bartender or not, develop cocktails. What’s the proper way to taste it? What flavors can you pick out? What exactly are you looking for when comparing multiple brands?
To be totally honest, vodka presents more challenges than any other spirit when it comes to tasting. It is a neutral spirit and so it can be difficult to pull individual flavors. Don’t be intimidated by this though, there are flavors to be found and it helps if you know what you’re looking for.
In the distilling process, most of the flavors are removed from vodka. But we are left with yeast, water, and whatever grain the spirit was made from.
Obviously, you cannot make comparisons if you only taste one brand. You’ll want to have a small taste of at least three variations. There are roughly 820 vodkas in the world. Find any three that you’re interested about and get started.
Tasting is all about using multiple senses. You’ll use sight, smell, and taste together. You’ll want to start off with sight.
Clearly, with vodka, you won’t see much of the color difference that appears with brown spirits. But there are things to notice. Swirl the glass around and then check out the sides. The spirit will leave “legs” on the glass, which is caused by either alcohol or sugar. The legs look different based on the spirit; gin versus vodka for example. Further, flavored vodka will have a ton of sugar in it, which will leave different legs or columns than straight, neutral vodka. Take note of the legs left with each variation.
Next, move onto smell. Do NOT just stick your nose in the glass and inhale. Vodka is strong. Not only will this be unpleasant but it could actually hurt if you take too big of a whiff. Nobody wants that. Hold the glass and wave it in front of your nose gently. If a spirit is made well, you’ll be able to pick up the scent this way. It all goes back to distillation, a lesson for another day. Again, just make a mental note of the differences you notice.
Finally, we move on to taste. You want to take a small sip of the vodka and push it past the tip of your tongue and into the middle of your mouth. Let it flow down the sides of your tongue and roll it around your mouth before spitting it right back out. NOW you’re really ready to taste. The first sip simply prepared your mouth to pick out flavors and textures. Think of it as a palette cleanser or paint primer. You prime your walls before you paint so that they are ready to showcase the new color. Similarly, you’re priming your mouth to get rid of whatever you ate, drank, smoked, whatever, before your tasting began. The second sip will be different. Sip the vodka and again, drop it to the middle of your tongue and again, let it fall down the sides before pushing it behind your teeth, rolling it over your lips and basically coating your entire mouth. Keep your lips closed and breathe out through your nose. This pushes the aromatics against your soft palette, which is located in the back of your mouth, under your nasal passage. Carefully purse your lips, breathe in through your mouth and out through your nose. This will cool the spirit and allow you to use aromatics again.
A quality vodka will taste just like its ingredients; doughy or similar to yeast or grain – possibly nutty. It may also have an earthy flavor or taste a bit like minerals. Ask yourself:
- “Is it clean or dirty?”
- “Is it smooth or sharp/aggressive?”
Tasting spirits, especially vodka, is kind of an art form. There are specific techniques to employ and differences to look out for. But understanding the differences and why they exist helps you to truly appreciate a high quality spirit or cocktail. It also allows you the creative freedom to start to play around with the spirit yourself – come up with a new favorite!
Rebecca McKinney
I wanted to create this blog for a few reasons. First and foremost, to share tips, tricks, and knowledge about the food and beverage industry in general but also to help people see a different side of the restaurant world. Every restaurant has a totally unique culture and world within it. I want to help open people’s eyes to more than how fast the service is or how easy or hard it is to secure a reservation.
So, thanks for stopping by! I welcome your ideas, input, and feedback and hope you enjoy!
Eat well & travel often,
Becky McKinney
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