The True Magic of Vodka

I witnessed the power of Vodka last night. In Chicago, for the Restaurant Show, one of the biggest conventions in the world. 100,000 new people in town for one show. Anyway, it becomes a "Hump Fest" to see which company can outspend the other company to try and get the most Buyers out on the town. And what a town it is. Fishbowl, an online marketing company, started off the weekend right: they rented out the House of Blues. Shut it down and invited 300 VIP guests. So, while it's no Red Carpet, in the restaurant business, it's the Who's Who.

Now...feed the masses vodka.

Next thing you know, you have the CEO of this company locked in a showdown with the Food Manager of a competing company in a Battle of Geriatric Guitar Hero. And let me tell you, both are into it. Gray hair flying, somehow CEO boy has rediscovered his youth and is competely rocking out to "Hit you like a Hurricane" by the Scorpions. One look at this guy rolling back and forth and suddenly I need a drink myself. Martini please!

As I get to the bar, of course it's sponsored by one of the giant vodka companies and they have this contraption: at the top of a giant ice sculpture, there are two very nice looking young ladies, one has a litre size bottle of Skyy Vodka, the other has either Pomegranate or Prickly Pear "Finest Call" mixes. You get to choose. I pick Pomegranate, well of course, it's the Healthy Shot. They both begin pouring, in different holes, the product runs thru this very cool path on the inside of the sculpture and they have this mid-ice collision and then out comes your shot, red of course, chilled perfectly. A few of those and suddenly I want to talk politics.

Everywhere I turn, people are playing trivia games (What's the name of Maddonna's first book?) eating pretzels with rock and roll pepper on them, and just laughing. It's the bar. the bar made them do it. And what is one out of every 4 drinks made from: Vodka. Vodka made them do it

Vodka....what you've heard and then the reality

There are so many stories about Vodka nowadays, I thought my first post should be about some of the vodka urban legends that are out there. Let's face it, guys try to impress their friends on Friday nights showing off the only time of the week they can afford to buy Zodiac Vodka, or Grey Goose, but they have their facts all wrong...very very wrong....



“Times distilled” vs. “column distilled”?
Technically, “times distilled” refers to a pot-still operation. “Column distillation” obviously refers to a column. Each time alcohol is “distilled”, it goes through a heating and cooling process. Too many of these cycles may “bruise” the alcohol much like a beer may be “skunked” when heated and chilled. Column stills may be considered one continuous distillation. Zodiac uses a column still and distill it just once… They basically get it right the first time! Chopin can make the same claim (Also due to the quality ingredients, let's face it, Idaho is still an untouched wonder in this great country of ours, water source and filtration process goes through – multiple distillation is just not necessary for Zodiac. They could – just choose not to. This contributes to the unique character and subtle flavor profile that accompanies each sip of Zodiac)

4 times filtered? 10 times filtered? Does it really matter?
For vodka in particular, some filtrations are not only necessary, but for quality control purposes, it's required. Charcoal filtration adds a clarity, crispness, and sparkle to the blended alcohol and water combination, a.k.a. vodka. Zodiac goes one step further using a birch charcoal filtration – hand cut birch from Canada. This gives it even more clarity and contributes to the naturally smooth taste of Zodiac. Other filtrations that are necessary include filters for removing the charcoal, as well as paper filters prior to bottling. However, if you have to filter a product 20 times, you likely have a problem.
Does water matter?
Word plays on water source and type that can make up as much as 60% of the volume of a bottle of spirits can be extremely important to the flavor of the product, but don’t be fooled by gimmicks. All water blended with spirits must go through a de-ionization treatment process to ensure that the water and alcohol blend properly, or they may separate. Water sources from mountain wells may, however, provide different quality water from those used from a municipal water system where treatments may have already been added. At Zodiac., where we actually make the alcohol that we sell, the same water is used in cooking, cleaning, steam generation for distillation, and bottling, all of which comes from our 200 ft. deep well tapping into the Snake River Aquifer
“Premium”, “Ultra Premium”, “Super Ultra Premium” and other descriptive terms
These terms may sound like grades of gasoline, but they are commonly used for “high-end” spirit brands. What defines a product to be qualified to use these terms…? Price? Bottle quality? Whether it is imported? There are no federal or state guidelines on the use of "premium" descriptive terms. In reality, the only true descriptive definition of a good quality vodka is how it feels on the palette. When tasting vodkas, look for four attributes; 1) a tinge on the front of the tongue, 2) a lasting burn down the back of the throat, 3) how it feels in the back of the mouth, or, "gills", 4) overall flavor. The best vodkas will leave no tinge or burn, will feel smooth in the "gills" and finally, will have an overall sweet and smooth flavor that makes them delicious.
Oh you can tell the difference, those gallon jugs made out of plastic on the bottom of the shevles that sell for less than $10.00 a gallon. Are there for a reason. Buyer Beware!! You're body will remind you the next day!!