Is three olives vodka any good?

[K1052]

Over the $20 mark I think it becomes really hard (if not impossible) to tell the difference. I generally favor Tito's for my vodka needs when the price is good but Absolut, Smirnoff, etc are interchangeable IMO. The really super cheap stuff like Skol is quite terrible and should be used to clean cuts not get drunk on.

Flavored vodkas get a little stickier since some brands have better tasting flavor formulations than others. For example High West makes a real peach flavored vodka which is out of this world and untouchable by any of the other brands.

 

[M0oG0oGaiPan]

Wine experts?
http://www.forbes.com/sites/rahimkanani/2012/06/22/consider-yourself-an-expert-think-again/
http://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2013/jun/23/wine-tasting-junk-science-analysis

 

[AyashiKaibutsu]

Blindfold people and they frequently can't tell the difference between pears and apples... So yea it doesn't surprise me that most people wildly can't tell the difference between vodkas. I probably can't either. I mix it with stuff. That's why I buy cheap stuff, but if I go too cheap even I can tell somethings off and they tend to be more like to give me migraines/hangovers.

I do use the super cheap 9 dollar for the giant bottle vodkas for cleaning though (mixed with other stuff too)... 2 parts vodka 1 parts castile soap 5-6 parts water makes a good all purpose cleaner...

 

[smackababy]

Wine experts?
http://www.forbes.com/sites/rahimkanani/2012/06/22/consider-yourself-an-expert-think-again/
http://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2013/jun/23/wine-tasting-junk-science-analysis

The only thing I took from that is I have to start listening to different music while drinking and see which fits better.

 

[RearAdmiral]

When I really sit down with each of my bottles I can certainly discern between them(not blindly). The differences aren't very marked, nor do I really rate one above the other, each has a different characteristic:

Zyr - like drinking glass is how i describe it, glorious when chilled
Tito's - lovely and neutral, legit modern vodka
Americana - has a peppery flavor noted by myself and another i was drinking with

As was mentioned we aren't talking about whiskey here but there are differences, which for me can be hard to discern.

 

[preslove]

Wine experts?
http://www.forbes.com/sites/rahimkanani/2012/06/22/consider-yourself-an-expert-think-again/
http://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2013/jun/23/wine-tasting-junk-science-analysis

If you accept this line of criticism of wine experts, then buying anything above smirnoff is nonsensical.

 

[ElFenix]

Russian Standard is a great cheap vodka. Tito's used to be good too but somehow word caught on and it got expensive. My personal favorites would be Amaretto Ciroc with cola, Peach ciroc with sprite, and Belvedere with anything.

Absolut is nasty and I do not know why it is so expensive here. It used to be my pregame vodka in Italy because it was 9 euros a bottle. On the other hand Smirnoff in Europe is expensive as hell.

"luxury" flavored vodka has completely jumped the shark when the flavors are other alcohols.

next thing you know they're going to have vodka that been "infused with 23 different herbal ingredients including juniper and cucumber" and a special small batch vodka that's been "aged in new charred oak barrels for a minimum of 2 years."

what. the. fuck.

that's actually a really good idea.

surprised I never thought of it... growing up, I used to replace my parents' brown liquors with iced tea.

csb: i ordered a garrison bros. bourbon (small batch overpriced texas whiskey) at a bar. i'd never had it before. out it came and i took a deep whiff of it. heavy cut grass nose. i passed it around the table having other people smell it, all of them said the same thing. i thought to myself, wow, amazing what you can do when you're not bound by convention and tradition. then i tasted it. fuckers had brought me tea.

maybe someone switched the contents of the bottle behind the bar? i had chalked it up to incompetence by the wait staff (they were awful), but maybe it was actual theft?

 

[AznAnarchy99]

If your definition of "something fancy" is Ciroc peach and Sprite, then no, I most definitely have not.

What I meant was you can't really go to a club and start ordering crafted drinks. Ciroc is great for a quick order.

 

[M0oG0oGaiPan]

i go with my personal taste. i don't base it a study or what the price on the bottle is. you guys know how to suck the fun from everything.

i can picture you guys at the now. Oh don't buy this vodka. I read this study somewhere... you don't need to preach about everything.

geezes your wife probably picks out your clothes for you. stop being so boring.

 

[ElFenix]

What I meant was you can't really go to a club and start ordering crafted drinks. Ciroc is great for a quick order.

disaronno is cheaper than ciroc and is actual amaretto.

 

[preslove]

i go with my personal taste. i don't base it a study or what the price on the bottle is. you guys know how to suck the fun from everything.

i can picture you guys at the now. Oh don't buy this vodka. I read this study somewhere... you don't need to preach about everything.

geezes your wife probably picks out your clothes for you. stop being so boring.

You overpay for alcohol in order to be exciting? That sounds pretty fucking boring.

 

[nageov3t]

maybe someone switched the contents of the bottle behind the bar? i had chalked it up to incompetence by the wait staff (they were awful), but maybe it was actual theft?

some bartenders are assholes.

a few weeks ago, I was at a dive bar in Manhattan for a friend's birthday. my BF and I were both ordering vodka tonics, and the first couple or so were fine, but after the third round, the bitch bartender was straight up giving us glasses of tonic. after the second time it happened, we just walked out without tipping.

 

[smackababy]

When I really sit down with each of my bottles I can certainly discern between them(not blindly). The differences aren't very marked, nor do I really rate one above the other, each has a different characteristic:

Zyr - like drinking glass is how i describe it, glorious when chilled
Tito's - lovely and neutral, legit modern vodka
Americana - has a peppery flavor noted by myself and another i was drinking with

As was mentioned we aren't talking about whiskey here but there are differences, which for me can be hard to discern.

You would hope there is no difference, considering Vodka is alcohol and water (with the impurities or flavors).

 

[NetWareHead]

"luxury" flavored vodka has completely jumped the shark when the flavors are other alcohols.

next thing you know they're going to have vodka that been "infused with 23 different herbal ingredients including juniper and cucumber" and a special small batch vodka that's been "aged in new charred oak barrels for a minimum of 2 years."

Lol hahahaha


I think there is a difference in vodkas and it probably has to do with the filtering. Forget where I read it but some vodkas contain chemical traces that are known to cause headaches. Beleive they are called cogeners or somethign like that. My GF hates Russian Standard Vodka for this reason and I'm looking for a way to finish the bottle I bought for the bar. I dont drink vodka or like to mix it with anything, I prefer scotches, rums and bourbons on the rocks. But when I mix a drink for her containing Svedka, she enjoys it more and doesnt get headaches.

 

[M0oG0oGaiPan]

You overpay for alcohol in order to be exciting? That sounds pretty fucking boring.

when did i say i buy premium anything? i have my own personal taste. that goes for more than vodka. i'm happy with the plastic bottle. i'm not going to sit there and link to articles about "wine experts" who supposedly know what the best tasting vodka is. Just enjoy whatever your drinking. Let people enjoy what they drink. I just picture someone going out and telling people about this new york times article about what some wine experts said was the best vodka and it just seems boring to me. don't be that guy.

 

[thegimp03]

Ketel One is usually what I buy. It's always on sale for between $30-35 for a 1.75L which is cheap.

 

[thegimp03]

Wine experts?
http://www.forbes.com/sites/rahimkanani/2012/06/22/consider-yourself-an-expert-think-again/
http://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2013/jun/23/wine-tasting-junk-science-analysis

Another thing I've learned from participating in blind wine tastings is that a majority of people will list the cheapest wines as their favorites instead of the more expensive and supposedly better wines. Probably because they are more accustomed to the $5-20 bottles instead of $100-200 bottles.

 

[iRONic]

 

[preslove]

when did i say i buy premium anything? i have my own personal taste. that goes for more than vodka. i'm happy with the plastic bottle. i'm not going to sit there and link to articles about "wine experts" who supposedly know what the best tasting vodka is. Just enjoy whatever your drinking. Let people enjoy what they drink. I just picture someone going out and telling people about this new york times article about what some wine experts said was the best vodka and it just seems boring to me. don't be that guy.

I see. You completely misinterpreted what I was saying. If wine snobs think that the cheapest vodka they reviewed was the best, then buying expensive vodka is a worse waste of money than buying expensive wine.

Is that simple enough for you to understand, mr. moran?

 

[Fritzo]

It's funny how snobby people get about a a beverage that- at it's peak form - has no taste at all.

 

[M0oG0oGaiPan]

don't be mad i called you out on your wine expert thing. lol

 

[RearAdmiral]

You would hope there is no difference, considering Vodka is alcohol and water (with the impurities or flavors).

I can't imagine that zero essence of whatever the vodka was made of remains. I don't believe that US made vodka can screw with the ingredients / flavorings unless it is explicitly stated on the bottle, which is actually why American vodka rules.

Perhaps a lot of the differences come from the water?

 

[preslove]

don't be mad i called you out on your wine expert thing. lol

What, exactly, was your point? You didn't call me out on anything.

 

[ElFenix]

I can't imagine that zero essence of whatever the vodka was made of remains. I don't believe that US made vodka can screw with the ingredients / flavorings unless it is explicitly stated on the bottle, which is actually why American vodka rules.

Perhaps a lot of the differences come from the water?

column stills (which pretty much everyone uses) can do that. pot stills are good for things like whiskey where you want some of the underlying grain to come through. but they're much more expensive to run than column stills.


most vodka is actually distilled by big ag concerns and then sent to the beverage concerns for final finishing and packaging. other than filter and maybe add water i don't think the bev companies actually do much.

 

[MrPickins]

Guess Titos skyrockets once it leaves Texas. We normally get a handle of it for $27. If it's on sale, $25. It's all the wife ever drinks now. (She used to be all about 3O, and at one point, K1)

This.

Specs has it for cheap.