I buy (the cheapest) vodka by the case. At the grocery store recently, a women saw me loading up my empty case box that I brought with me. I have a ponytail, ratty hooded flannel shirt, PABST hat (as in Pabst Blue Ribbon). And she thinks “Now THERE is a vodka connoisseur”. How do I know she thought that? Because she stopped me on the other side of the store and asked my opinion about a bottle of vodka she had picked out.
Currently sipping a concoction called “Hot Chocolate”-Hot water and two shots of Double Chocolate Vodka, served with a cinnamon stick.
I buy Vladimir, which is pretty damn cheap and often has sale offers beyond that. I know stoners who buy it to clean their glassware.
Last xmas a good friend bought me a couple bottles of high-end vodka. I thanked her effusively, plus she heard from several mutual friends how much I loved the gift. But if I’m spending my own dollars, Vladimir is just fine.
This year she dropped off a very heavy box at our house when we weren’t home. She left it just inside the man-door of our garage. A case of Grey Goose: six 1.75 liter bottles. I’m happy.
I told the women “Vodka’s all them same.” You shouldn’t take advice from someone buying cases of the cheapest vodka.
Yeah, it’s wonderful. Great in a Negroni too.
Any particular rye you like? I like both Templeton and Pikesville.
Oh, I’m thrilled to give advice! Belvedere is so crisp and alcoholy, I just love it. Grey Goose is fantastic. In a blind taste test I can identify Belvedere, Grey Goose, and Vladimir (did it at a party when someone kept arguing all vodkas are identical).
CiROC Is another good one. I even like their flavored offerings.
If I had more time to think about it… I would have picked up the bottle and looked at it and said “That IS a good year”
While I don’t quite agree with this, the difference between bad vodka and good vodka is way less than for say, whiskey. Like anything better than Popov is fine and if you spend $20 a fifth you’re 95% of the way to whatever is considered premium (an acquaintance swears by elit, which I thought was fine, but also basically the same as Titos’)
I am not a fan of vodka, despite being Polish and it being the omnipresent drink at family functions. But, no, not all vodka is the same. Not at all. Not in the fucking least. Back in college I remember having some punch made with whatever the cheapest plastic bottle vodka was at the time and I just could not. No. On the flip side, you don’t have to get $50/fifth fancy for a good bottle. Plenty of stuff in the $20-$30 range that is fine.
If it’s over $7.99 I’m pissed.
Let’s see…the only vodka in the house is Tito’s. What a surprise.
Technically, the Vladimir is in the garage, not the house. And it isn’t for drinking. But it’s cheaper than the equivalent amount of rubbing alcohol for what I use it for (Yo, kayaker!) Vodka is vodka - once you hit mid-level you are paying for water and panache.
It does depend how you drink it. If you are a “shots” person it’s probably better, but I do 1-part vodka to 7-parts water and it doesn’t matter.
OK, that will make me vomit, for sure. For a fifth? Serioously? In the US? I actually don’t drink anymore. I have an alcohol whatever disorder… I 'm an alcoholic. And that’s beneath me.
Have to buy a case otherwise it’s $9.99 a bottle
The only vodka I couldn’t drink even in a screwdriver was Wolfschmidtt which I see is $12 a handle. In college my friends drank Burnett’s which looks like it’s $7 a fifth at the local liquor store. And it was bad, but fine if you’re drinking vodka cranberry or whatever. Really surprised it’s that cheap.
Yeah, Wolfschmidt was bottom of the barrel for us. Though, even worse, I remember going to a house party as a senior in college in 1997. I had a sip of the punch and I nearly wretched. “What the fuck is in this?” It was some bottle of Osco vodka (local brand from the Jewel grocery store, now part of Albertson’s sold in plastic bottle.) It was like $7 a fifth back then in those dollar. Good fucking Christ. I didn’t have any sense of taste back then, but holy shit was that awful.
In vodka, my price/performance winner is Monopolowa. $12 or so for a 750ML bottle, and I haven’t had any I like better at any price.
Similarly, my whiskey/bourbon winner in the same category is Four Roses. The small batch and single barrel ones are nice, but the garden variety regular stuff is great. I can usually get it for about $23 for a 750ML. I won’t say there’s nothing better, but there’s nothing as good as that at its price point.
When I want fancy whiskey, I often go with Balcones Baby Blue. $30-39 a 750ML depending on where you buy it. It’s exquisite (drinking it now, as a matter of fact). True Blue is about $20 a bottle more, and almost worth it. My BiL is kind of obsessed with KY bourbon, often some eye-wateringly high priced whiskey. I get to taste a lot of them. Not a whole lot of them are better than Four Roses, and even fewer are better than the two Balcones whiskeys. Many don’t really measure up to either of them.
Interesting. I’ve strongly disliked all the Balcones whiskeys I’ve had.
Best bangs for the buck bourbon-wise: Wild Turkey 101 and Old Granddad 114, both should be under $30. If you want to spend ~$50, then Wild Turkey Rare Breed, Old Forrester 1920, or Knob Creek Small Batch Select are all phenomenal. Unfortunately bourbon prices have gone up significantly in the past 2 years.
I met a guy from Poland who was visiting the US. He turned me on to Belvedere, and went on and on about the bottle art. Cool guy.
To be honest, I’ve tried some of their other whiskeys, and they mostly seem to have the “Woah, the sun in Texas ages whiskey fast, and in weird ways!” problem. It tends to make a kind of harsh, but very flavorful whiskey in short order. The oiliness and sweetness of Baby/True Blue seem to be able to handle and even benefit from those aspects of aging a whiskey here. But the minimum age of Baby Blue is 12 months, and it’s got a ton of flavor for something that’s been aged that shortly.
And of course on the third had, our mouths and brains ain’t the same. Tasty to me might be nasty to you. I still usually feel like I’m drinking a campfire when I’m drinking highland scotch.