Review: Akva Vodka
Akva Vodka recently arrived on shelves at Total Wine and More stores throughout the US. Priced at $11.99 for a 750 ML bottle in Brookfield Wisconsin, Akva is a value priced vodka. It is made from organic Swedish wheat grown in local fields and mineral rich water from Vanern, Sweden’s biggest Lake. It is distilled five time in Sweden and bottled in The Netherlands. Svedka is also a value priced vodka distilled five times and made from Swedish wheat. I’m interested in how the two compare. Read more 
Review: Svedka Vodka
Svedka Vodka was launched in 1998 by Guillaume Cuvelier in Lidkoping Sweden. He sold Svedka to Constellation Brands in 2007. It is made from Swedish winter wheat. Four pounds of wheat is needed to produce one 750 ml bottle of Svedka. It is distilled five times in a continuous distillation process. Pure ice cold Swedish spring water is blended to reduce to proof. The spirit is run through high performance purification columns five separate times to remove impurities before bottling at 80 proof. At one time Svedka also produced a 100 proof vodka using the same process. Svedka currently makes 13 flavored vodka’s and they also introduced Svedka Spiked Seltzers a line of canned cocktails that surprisingly contain no vodka. They are made from a malt beverage base. Read more
Review: Ravo Vodka
Ravo Vodka was introduced in the US February 2017. Ravo is a combination of the Swedish words raw and vodka. It is made from winter wheat and is continuously distilled five times in a stainless steel column still lined with ceramic filters. The spirit is then blended with locally sourced natural spring water further filtered through reverse osmosis to reduce to 80 proof. Ravo is made in Lidkoping Sweden at Reppe Branneri, the second largest distillery in Sweden. Read more
Review: Kanon Organic Vodka
Kanon Organic Vodka is distilled once from locally grown organic wheat. Each batch is divided into three parts, the head, the heart, and the tail. Only the heart which is pure ethanol is kept. The heads and tails are recycled into biogas for local buses. Pristine spring water is blended before bottling at the Gripsholm Distillery in Akers Styckebruk Sweden. In 1580 King Karl IV of Sweden built the Akers Styckbruk Foundary to produce cannons for the Swedish Army and the distillery to make vodka for its workers. By 1775 King Gustaf III had monopolized alcohol production to fund his many wars. Unable to pay his debt, he made Gripsholm a Royal Distillery. It soon became the largest distillery in Sweden producing over 1 million liters of vodka a year. King Gustaf was shot and his successor outlawed the private production of spirits. The distillery remained closed for over 200 years. Kanon owner Peter Hjelm began construction of the new distillery in 2008 and shipped his first case of Kanon Organic Vodka to New York in 2010. Read more
Review: Precis Vodka
Precis Vodka derives it’s name from the precision distilling process which combines traditional distilling methods with modern techniques. Precis is made from 100% corn distilled once and unfiltered. Pure water from Lake Boren in Sweden is blended with the vodka to reduce to proof. The Precis bottle is hand blown and then painted from the inside. A unique pour spout and steel pop top completes the package design. Read more
Review: Karlssons Gold Vodka
Karlssons Gold vodka was introduced in the US in 2007. The idea for the brand started in 2001 when a group of local potato farmers in Cape Bjare Sweden met with their neighbor Peter Ekelund to discuss forming a co-op and possibly creating a vodka with their virgin new potatoes. A virgin new potato is a young potato that hasn’t fully developed a skin yet. Peter who 25 years earlier helped lead the launch of Absolut Vodka, enlisted the help of Borje Karlsson the former head of Product Development of the V&S Group during the development of Absolut. After a few years of trial and testing Karlsson’s Gold Vodka was launched. It is crafted with seven varietals of virgin new potatoes including Solist, Gammel Svensk Rod, Princess, Sankta Thora, Hamlet, Marine, and Celine. Each varietal is distilled once through a continuous column still lined with copper. They are then blended and unfiltered. 17 pounds of Virgin new potatoes are needed to craft one bottle of their vodka. The result is a full bodied vodka with a distinct viscosity. Read more