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“Vodka Is Pretty Much The Same No Matter What Brand You Buy”

Total BS, I agree if you get “vaule brands” (Absolute, etc) they are all the same and the high end stuff is close to each other in comparison but I can tell an absolute from a grey goose from a Chopin (BEST) and potato vodka is the only way to go! In my opinionthere is three tiers of vodka. Normal Vodka (Absolute, etc,) for mixing with anything, High End (Grey Goose, Ketel One, etc,) I’d hate to mix it but I won’t hurt ya if you do, and High Quality Potato Vodka (Chopin, etc) that should never be mixed with anything but pure filtered ice!
clipped from consumerist.com

In what may have been the most awesome blind taste test ever, a BusinessWeek writer served his friends chilled shots of various brands of vodka to see whether there was any noticeable difference in taste. His argument was that vodka is a neutral spirit and by definition is nearly indistinguishable from one brand to the next—and that consequently the “brand story” (including country of origin) is really all that separates a Grey Goose drinker from a Ketel One alkie. To test this, he asked his subjects to pick their favorite brands from shots and mixed drinks.

It turns out, no one could really tell one vodka from the other—there was one successful pick, but it wasn’t repeatable. (Probably because the subjects were all half-drunk by that point.)
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By Bill on May 26, 2008 - Filed under: DeysCast
  • zoe
    I buy two vodkas - the cheap kind for mixed drinks and grey goose for my martinis.

    And if I ever saw anyone mixing my Grey goose with juice/pop etc....they would feel the wrath. It's just wrong because there is a HUGE difference in taste and smell.

    Why didn't they ask me for the taste test? ;)

    z
  • I've also heard that you can't remember small differences in taste after about 10-12 different items.
  • I agree that there are big differences in taste between brands of vodka (or rum or whisky or whatever). However, blind taste tests are more informative than my own non-blind perceptions, and they seem to indicate that differences in taste are more about expectations than what the tastebuds are actually doing. Of course, a writer having a few friends over isn't exactly scientific, so I'll wait for the peer-reviewed research.
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