Review: Charbay Vodka
Charbay Vodka was introduced in 2002. Charbay was one of the early pioneers in the modern American Artisan distillery movement when they began distilling in California. Master distiller and company founder Miles Karakasevic is a 12th generation distiller. This is a true family craft distillery with Miles wife and co-owner Susan handling packaging and marketing, his son Marko is a 13th generation master distiller, and Marko’s wife Jenni is responsible for social media and distribution. Charbay also crafts whiskey, rum, brandy, and several flavored vodka’s, along with a tequila they craft in Mexico. All of the spirits are hand distilled using proprietary double and triple distillations with 7-10 fraction separation techniques. Their vodka is created with Midwest grown corn and rye that is distilled to 192 proof in a 660 gallon still using a proprietary process. Pure water that has been filtered to 3PPM purity is then blended to reduce to 80 proof. The vodka is then gently filtered without using charcoal, limestone, or filter-agents to preserve the spirits body and mouth feel. Read more
Review: Charbay Meyer Lemon Vodka
Charbay Meyer Lemon vodka is one of six flavored vodka’s the Karakasevic family crafts in Napa Valley with their unflavored vodka as a base. Their clear vodka is created with Midwest grown corn and rye that is distilled to 192 proof in a 660 gallon still using a proprietary process. Pure spring water that has been filtered to 3ppm purity is blended to reduce to proof. Tree ripened Meyer lemons from Central California are shred whole. The flavor and color is extracted and integrated with their clear vodka. Meyer lemons are thought to be a cross between a lemon and Mandarin orange. Read more
Review: Charbay Pomegranate Vodka
Charbay Pomegranate vodka is one of six flavored vodka’s the Karakasevic family crafts in Napa Valley with their unflavored vodka as a base. It is crafted with Midwest grown corn and rye. They use 660 gallon still along with a proprietary distillation process, and distill to 192 proof. Pure spring water that has been filtered to 3 PPM purity is used to reduce the proof. One batch of Pomegranate is made each year with organically grown tree ripe pomegranate at a family farm in Central California. Charbay only uses Wonderful Pomegranates, the sweetest and juiciest variety, and the only ones POM uses for their Pomegranate juice. The pomegranates are pressed at the orchard and rushed to the distillery. The flavor and color extraction process takes six months. The extraction is then gently blended with the vodka and it is bottled at 70 proof. Read more
Review: Charbay Blood Orange Vodka
Charbay Blood Orange vodka is one of 6 flavored vodka’s the Karakasevic family crafts in Napa Valley with their unflavored vodka as a base. It is crafted with Midwest grown corn and rye. They use a 660 gallon still along with a proprietary distillation process and distill to 192 proof. Pure spring water that has been filtered to 3 PPM purity is used to reduce the proof. One batch of Blood Orange is made each year with whole blood oranges grown in Central California. They are crushed whole within the first three days of picking in February each year. The flavor and color extraction process takes six months. The extraction is then gently blended with the vodka and bottled at 80 proof. Read more
Review: Charbay Red Raspberry Vodka
Charbay Red Raspberry vodka is one of six vodka flavors the Karakasevic family creates in Napa Valley with their clear unflavored vodka made with Midwest grown corn and rye as a base. They also create whiskey, tequila, rum, brandy and liqueurs. They use a classic 660 gallon still along with a proprietary distillation process and distill to 192 proof. Pure spring water that has been filtered to 3PPM purity is used to reduce to 80 proof. One batch of Red Raspberry is made each year with whole fresh red raspberries from the Williamette Valley of Oregon. After a 3 month extraction, the raspberry is blended with their vodka and bottled at 70 proof. Read more
Review: Charbay Ruby Red Grapefruit Vodka
Charbay Ruby Red Grapefruit vodka is one of seven vodkas made in Napa Valley by the Karakasevic family. Their Ruby Red vodka starts with their clear vodka as a base. This vodka is crafted with Midwest grown corn and rye. They use a classic copper Alambic Charentais pot still along with a proprietary distillation process and distill to 192 proof. Pure spring water that has been filtered to 3PPM is used to reduce to 80 proof. One batch of Ruby Red is made each year with Texas Rio Star Grapefruits. They are picked in February at their peak of freshness. The entire fruit is immediately shredded. Extracting the flavors and colors takes up to 6 months before it is blended with their original and bottled at 40% alcohol. Read more