Review: Corbin Sweet Potato Vodka
Corbin Sweet Potato Vodka is crafted with 100% estate grown sweet potatoes by forth generation farmer David John Souza. He named the vodka after his son Corbin. Ten varieties of sweet potatoes are grown on the family farm. David spent a decade experimented with each variety of sweet potato using several different distilling techniques in creating Corbin Sweet Potato Vodka. He found some sweet potatoes tasted better and others produced more alcohol. He found the perfect balance by blending three varieties of sweet potatoes. It takes over ten pounds of sweet potatoes to produce one bottle of spirit. Each potato is hand selected and cured for 12-16 months. The potatoes are ground and cooked for 6 hours, and then fermented with yeast for five days. The spirit is small batch distilled in a 2 column Alembic copper still and filtered slowly through a carbon blend. The spring water used in production is recycled back to the farm for irrigation and the spent mash is used as fertilizer or cattle feed. Read more 
Review: Our/Detroit Vodka
Our/Detroit Vodka was the second member of the Our/Vodka family. Our/Vodka was started by six entrepreneurs in Stockholm Sweden in 2011. Our/Vodka is a global family built by local partners in cities around the world. Our/Detroit is a collaboration between Pernod Richard and local partners Kate Bordine and Catherine Kelly. Currently there are seven city members including Berlin, Amsterdam, New York, London, Los Angeles, and Miami. More are in the development stage. Each location starts with a raw wheat distillate sourced from Ahus Sweden. Each distillery then adds their own local ingredients. Our/Detroit is made in Hubbard-Richard, a neighborhood in Southwest Detroit in a building that once housed Bagley Billiard Center, and later a liquor store. After several years of neglect the building was rehabbed to give life to this micro distillery. Our/Detroit Vodka adds a corn based ethanol sourced from Hiram Walker just across the Detroit River in Canada. This is re-distilled with the raw wheat distillate and then blended with Detroit city water before hand bottling onsite in a 375 ml squat beer bottle shaped container, topped with a metal crown cap. Read more
Review: Our/Los Angeles Vodka
Our/Vodka is a global family of vodkas made in micro distilleries in city centers around the world. Our/Vodka was started by six entrepreneurs in Stockholm Sweden in 2011. Our/Los Angeles Vodka is the sixth release in the series. An electrically heated copper still with a filling capacity of 15.8 gallons is used to distill a raw wheat distillate sourced from Ahus Sweden. This distillate is contant across all of the sister cities. Each micro distillery then adds their own locally sourced ingredients and unique distilling process in crafting their own personal vodka. Our/Los Angeles Vodka starts with demineralized and deionized Los Angeles city water to achieve a pure starting place for the process. The water, high wine distillate from the alembic and rectified spirit which is sourced from Idaho wheat and fermented with a non GMO strain of yeast that is traditionally used in wine making, are blended in a stainless steel agitating tank that has a maximum filling capacity of 132 gallons to achieve the final product. Once blended the bottles are rinsed and filled in a 375 ml. bottle similar in shape to a bottle of Red Stripe beer, then capped with a crown cap on the bottling machine. Read more
Review: Humboldt Distillery Organic Vodka
Humboldt Distillery Organic Vodka is crafted from organic sugarcane and pristine water sourced from a watershed that originates in old growth redwood forests. The spirit is small batch distilled four times. Humboldt Distillery Organic Vodka is free of glycerin, sweeteners, citrus acid or additives. Abe Stevens founded Humboldt Distillery in 2012. They currently also produces a gold rum, spiced rum, and a cannabis infused vodka. All are certified organic. The Humboldt Distillery has increased distribution of their entire product line to now include 12 states. Read more
Review: Broken Shed Vodka
Broken Shed Vodka was released 2011. The vodka is named for the broken down shed where the spirit was first created on the South Island of New Zealand in the Township of Wanaka. Wanaka is situated in a glacier carved basin on the shores of Lake Wanoka. Broken Shed is made from distilled whey and a blend of water from two of New Zealand’s purest water sources. East Tamaki located on the North Island and Central Otago located on the South Island. It is four times distilled and filtered through a custom designed charcoal and depth filtration process. Whey is the liquid remaining after milk has been curdled and strained. While whey may seem like an unusual base to distill vodka from, several other vodkas including Milk Money, VDKA 6100, Vermont White, and Black Cow also distill their vodka from milk. Broken Shed is crafted without using additives or sugars. Read more
Review: Enchanted Rock Vodka
Enchanted Rock Vodka is made at the Rebecca Creek Distillery in San Antonio Texas. The distillery was founded by Steve Ison in 2009. The Rebecca Creek Distillery also produces Enchanted Rock Peach Vodka, Rebecca Creek Whiskey, and Texas Ranger Whiskey. Enchanted Rock is named for the pink granite mountain located about 17 miles north of Fredricksburg Texas. It is said to be haunted by ghosts. Enchanted Rock Vodka is crafted in small batches. The hearts of the distillate are made from corn and distilled in a Christian Carl copper pot still. The spirits then enter in vapor form under pressure into a modern 6 plate copper column still where the spirit is distilled the functional equivalent of 10 times. The flavor is rounded out using a proprietary 28 degree frost filtration. The temperature is first reduced to 28 degrees and then the chilled vodka is passed under pressure through 25 microfiber paper filters. Pure limestone filtered water is blended to reduce to proof. Read more
Review: American Anthem Vodka
American Anthem Vodka was released by Diageo May 2018. Diageo already produces the Smirnoff, Ketel One, and Ciroc brands. For every bottle of American Anthem Vodka sold, Diageo will donate $1 to charities supporting military personnel and their families. American Anthem is 5 times distilled from corn grown in Iowa and Indiana. With a retail list price of $14.99 for a 750ml bottle, I purchased my bottle for $9.99, American Anthem appears to be positioned at a price point at or below market leader Smirnoff. This has been a fast growing segment, as the comparably priced New Amsterdam and Platinum 7X have been two of the fastest growing vodka brands in recent years. Read more
Review: Till American Wheat Vodka
Till
American Wheat Vodka was released for sale April 2016 in Kansas and Missouri. Since then several states have been added. As each month passes, they expand their footprint, with the goal someday soon of National distribution. Till American Wheat Vodka is produced by MGP, a leading supplier of premium distilled spirits who first opened their doors in 1941 as a small distillery in Atchison Kansas. In 2011 they acquired a second distillery in Lawrenceburg Indiana once owned by Seagram’s. Many of today’s best known spirits start as a grain neutral spirit distilled by MGP. Their Indiana distillery produces whiskey for about 130 brands. Till is made from red wheat grown in Kansas and distilled using a 75 year old proprietary process. Till American Wheat Vodka was MGP’s first attempt at creating their own brand. Since launching Till, MGP has introduced the Master Crafted line of whiskey. Read more
Review: Two Founders 80 Acres Vodka
Two Founders 80 Acres Vodka was recently released. I found my bottle at Total Wine and More. Two Founders is one of several vodka varieties that are bottled in Princeton Minnesota that I only seem to find at Total Wine and More stores. Two Founders is made from corn grown in Iowa, presumable on an 80 acre farm. The spirit is distilled five times in Iowa before heading to Princeton Minnesota to be bottled at 80 proof. Read more
Review: Straw Boys Irish Vodka
Straw Boys Irish Vodka was launched in 2015. It is crafted at the Connacht Distillery that sits on the banks of the River Moy. The Connacht Whiskey Company is the result of a dream shared by four men, three Americans, and one Irishman, to bring pure pot still Irish whiskey back to the west of Ireland after a 100 year absence. While they wait for their own produced whiskey to mature they have sourced Irish whiskey distilled from a secondary source, and they craft a gin, poitin, and vodka. The Straw Boys name comes from an age old tradition in Ireland where a fun bunch of young men appear suddenly at a wedding to dance with the bride and groom. They depart as swiftly as they arrived. Their name comes from the straw hats used to hide their identity. Their appearance is said to bring good fortune. Straw Boys Irish Vodka is created using select wheat and is batch distilled in copper pot stills and hand bottled at the distillery. Read more