Review: Pristina Espresso Flavoured Vodka

Four of us were gathered around my kitchen table sampling four flavoured Vodkas and two new rums on a lazy Sunday afternoon a couple months ago. The line up of flavoured Vodkas included Alchemia’s Chocolate Infused Vodka and their Ginger Flavoured Vodka. We also had the Birch Special from Nemiroff.  And the two rums were great, Panamonte’s Panama Red 108, and Atlantico’s Private Cask Rum. If you follow the links you can read all the reviews; but, I did save the last review from that lazy Sunday afternoon flight of spirits for the one which surprised me (in a most delightful way) the most. The Pristina Espresso Flavoured Vodka towered over the rest in that informal tasting session, and it is time for me to provide a review.

As a bit of background information, the Pristina Espresso Flavoured Vodka was introduced to the Western Canadian market in 2009 by Highwood Distillers. The product is produced from Highwood’s own quadruple distilled, triple filtered, wheat vodka (called Pristina Vodka), and flavoured with the extracted oils from real espresso coffee beans (and inverted sugar from Taber, Alberta). A final filtration is completed after the flavoring process is complete to ensure spirit clarity and removal of any suspended particles. The result of Highwood’s care and attention to detail is evident in the final spirit.

Here is an excerpt from my review:

“…I wish that I would have had a video camera rolling when I poured those first shot glasses of Pristina Espresso on that lazy Sunday afternoon with three of my friends. The reactions each of them had as they raised the glass to their noses to take a sniff was absolutely priceless. It was a look of shock, mingled with joy and excitement, and that look was the same on all of the faces (probably my face as well)…”

You may read the full review here:

Please enjoy the review and the suggested recipe that follows!

Review: Alchemia Imbirowa (Ginger Flavoured Vodka)

Alchemia Vodka is distilled in Poland by a company called, Bialystok S.A., which is apparently one of Poland’s largest producer’s of distilled spirits. Alchemia Imbirowa (pronounced eem-beer-ova ) is a premium grain distilled vodka from Poland infused with natural ginger root. The infusion process saturates the already distilled vodka with the flavouring ingredient allowing both colour and flavour to be imparted to the final spirit.

I was given a sample bottle of Alchemia Imbirowa for the purposes of this review by Paul Charabin of PB Beverages, an Alberta based company which imports and distributes a wide selection of spirits from around the world. The bottle I was given was the 750 ml size, and the label tells me the ginger infused vodka is bottled at 40 % alcohol by volume.

Here is an excerpt from my review:

“…There is far more sweetness than what was evident on the nose and the mouth-feel is somewhat syrupy. The ginger is also very apparent quickly heating the mouth with a peppery sharpness. I have been experimenting lately with flavoured syrups for cocktails and this reminds me of what I imagine a ginger syrup would taste like. ..“

You May read the full review here:

As well I have included a new twist on the classic Cosmopolitan which I have chosen to call the Ginger Cosmopolitan.

Please enjoy the review!

Review: Alchemia Czekoladowa (Chocolate Infused Vodka)

Alchemia Vodka is distilled in Poland by a company called, Bialystok S.A., which is apparently one of Poland’s largest producer’s of distilled spirits. The Alchemia Czekoladowa (pronounced chek-o-la-dova ) is a premium grain distilled vodka from Poland infused with naturally derived cocoa. The infusion process saturates the already distilled vodka with the flavouring ingredients allowing both colour and flavour to be imparted to the final spirit.

I was given a sample bottle of Alchemia Czekoladowa for the purposes of this review by Paul Charabin of PB Beverages, an Alberta based company that imports and distribute a wide selection of spirits from around the world. The bottle I was given was the 750 ml size, and the label tells me the chocolate infused vodka is bottled at 40 % alcohol by volume.

Here is an excerpt from my review:

“…I had three friends over when I sampled the Alchemia Czekoladowa. I poured each of them (and myself) a healthy shot of the flavoured Vodka and watched each bring the glass up to their nose and take a deep wiff. A satisfied smile broke out on each of their faces…”

You may read the full review Here:

Of course I could not resist a few cocktail experiments with this richly flavoured spirit, and at the end of the review I share two of them, The Chocolate Cola Martini and The Iced Chocolate Cocktail.

Please enjoy the review and the cocktails which follow!

Review: Nemiroff Birch Special Vodka

The Nemiroff Birch Special Vodka is one of the youngest of the Nemiroff flavours. It is advertised on the Nemiroff website as being built upon centuries-old traditions of Ukrainian ‘horilka’ distilling, and the use of high quality natural ingredients. Launched on the Ukrainian market in March, 2005, its recipe includes the light bitterness of birch buds, and the mellow flavour of the linden blossom. Some ingredients used in the blend to apparently trace back to the traditional Kievan Rus recipes of birch-bud-flavoured liquors.

Here is an excerpt from my review:

“…The entry into the mouth is most unexpected based upon the aroma in the glass. Instead of being beguiled by a sweet sugary lemon citrus which carries hints of mildly bitter birch, I taste exactly the opposite. A decidedly bitter birch with overtones of sap leads out with the citrus sweetness trailing far behind…”

You may read the full review here:

The special taste of the Nemiroff Birch Special required me to construct a a new cocktail which I have named, The Blue Thunder Cocktail.

Please enjoy the review of this rather unique flavoured Vodka and the cocktail that follows!

Review: Nemіroff Premіum Lіme Vodka

Nemiroff Premium Lime was introduced to the Nemiroff brand line-up in August of 2006.  According to the Nemiroff website, the Premium Lime Vodka undergoes 10 stages of purification and is additionally polished with the specially prepared absorbent. Additionally, real citrus and lime aromas are used in the production of Nemіroff Premіum Lіme.  The citrus aroma is the first and the most perceptible note of the new drink, it changes gradually into the central note of lime which brings about a subtle, but pleasant lime aftertaste.  As with all of the Nemiroff vodkas, all the ingredients of this  new vodka are completely natural.

I was asked to review the Nemiroff Premium Lime by Igor Kashcan, who is the importer of Nemiroff Vodka here in Alberta, Canada.  Here is an excerpt from the resulting review:

“…when the Vodka was introduced to my mouth it coated my tongue and my palate with a nice creaminess, but only the flavour of lime was forefront. Lime is a very aggressive flavour, and I suspect that this is why I was not able to detect any other underlying grain  flavours….”

You may read the full review here:

As well, I included a nice recipe which I heartily recommend for the Nemiroff Premium Lime, The De Lurey.

Please enjoy the review and cocktail!

Vodka Review: Nemiroff Rye Honey Vodka

Today I am  continuing with my mini series of Vodka Reviews with another flavoured Vodka produced by the Nemiroff Vodka Company. The Nemiroff Rye Honey Vodka, (which was launched in 2003), is a lightly flavoured Vodka spirit which combines the essences of freshly baked rye bread with the sweetness of real honey. I received a sample bottle to review from Igor Kashkan, the local importer of Nemiroff Vodka..

Nemiroffis a Ukrainian Vodka company based in the town of Nemyriv in Vinnytska Oblast. Since it was founded in 1992, the spirits company has experienced widespread recognition of their products and witnessed rapid growth in world-wide sales. The company currently exports to over 50 different countries in Europe and abroad.

Here is an excerpt from my review:

“….When I took my first sip, the cold vodka (about 5 degrees Celsius) felt creamy in my mouth, and it coated the palate with light but firm rye spices which also had hints of bread dough, and a feathery sweetness which did actually remind me of honey…”

You may read the full Review here:

As well I have included recipes for the Balalaika and the Rye Honey Vodka Martini.

Please enjoy the review!!