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This year’s Vodka Masters headed to the Hippodrome in London, where three panels of judges were tasked with dishing out medals to worthy entrants. Located just a few miles from where their spirit’s main ingredient was first cultivated in Brigg, Elsham Wold Distillery have committed 8 years of passion and hard work to bring their vision of ‘soil to spirit’ to life. The first went to Desi Daru Mango Vodka, which Rodriguez-Curtis enjoyed for its “fleshy and vibrant” nose. He said: “The palate is smooth, pleasant, good level of mango flavour and good level of enjoyability. The mango has a brilliant freshness. Chilled out of the fridge or freezer, this vodka would be brilliant to enjoy.”
Other Golds went to Koskenkorva Vodka Climate Action, enjoyed for its “delicate sweetness and hints of white chocolate and earthy spice”, the “sweet and earthy” Jean Marc XO Vodka, and the “clean and crisp” White Claw Spirits Triple Wave Filtered Premium Vodka.Filer said of the Premium flight: “A flight with impressive quality, considering the value of the products; some still have the distinctive ‘cheap vodka’ flavour and texture, but some present a balance and complexity that is impressive for the price point.” They are committed to supporting local farmers and businesses, their vodka bottle is made 60 miles away, their coffee comes from a coffee roaster 300m down the road, and their rhubarb comes from the Yorkshire Rhubarb Triangle. SHS Drinks has extended cordial brand Bottlegreen into alcohol with the launch of an elderflower vodka liqueur made with UK producer Edwards 1902. The liqueur is crafted and hand bottled at the Elsham Wold Distillery in Lincolnshire, England, UK.
They were on the lookout for clean, crisp vodkas, with a smooth mouthfeel and well-integrated alcohol. Our panel – made up of 10-accredited spirits experts and vodka-loving consumers – put 20 vodkas to the test. Each was tried neat and blind, to avoid brand bias, then followed by some water to dilute and soften the alcohol and bring out the core flavours. They make all of their alcohol from 100% raw ingredients that have been grown locally by their founding members for over 100 years. Their unique single variety recipe, using the local Lincolnshire King Edward potato contributes to the distinctive flavour of Edwards 1902, and allows them to control the entire process ‘from soil to spirit’ to create a remarkably smooth, luxurious and now award-winning vodka. A single entry in the potato-based vodka round saw Nine Tines take a Gold, enjoyed for its “sweetness on the nose and palate, and nice balance – would be great sipped neat, or in a Martini”. Pulse Vodka won a Silver in the following flight, Vodka Base – Corn. Meanwhile, Pod Pea Vodka was the worthy recipient of a Master medal in the Vodka Base – Pea round. Chou particularly enjoyed this expression: “Expressive green, grassy, leafy, lactic notes on the nose. Very complex, with sweet caramel on the palate.”Louers Vodka walked away with the top award, described by Prousaefs as having: “Lemon peel and freshly cut grass on the nose. Excellent mouthfeel with very long aftertaste and a hint of bitterness at the end.” Banks and Bloom Ice Vodka impressed Filer, who said: “Soft nose with some creamy vanilla, lemon and grain. A smooth and oily mouthfeel with a saline element, and a balanced profile of peppery grain with sweet citrus, and no disruptive heat.” Melita Kiely, editor of The Spirits Business, and chair of The Global Spirits Masters Competitions (GMSC) led the third panel, which included: Matt Chambers, spirits writer and co-founder of the Whisky For Everyone blog; Joyce Chou, Wine & Spirit Education Trust’s translation project manager; Zaloren Gonzalez Fontes, assistant manager of Hometipple; and Herchelle Perez Terrado, founder of Drinks Partnership.
Next up is filtering, which gives vodka its clean mouthfeel. Although some craft distillers choose to skip this step altogether to impart a more unique flavour. Desi Daru Mango Vodka secured its third Master medal, in the Microdistillery flight. Chambers said: “Tonnes of fresh mango on nose, fresh pulp with bitterness from skin, soft and sweet on the palate, with a very complex flavour profile, lots of fresh mango – this is great to experience, compared with something more confected. It’s juicy and delicious, with a delicate peppery note underneath.” The Rest of the World round awarded two Golds and two Silver medals. Gold winner Meili Vodka was described as “comforting and rich”, with “lemon rind, cacao nibs and a hint of dried vanilla” on the nose. Fellow Gold medallist The Community Spirit Vodka offered a “crisp and clean nose” and a “long and lingering finish”. A Gold was given to Grainger’s Deluxe Organic Vodka, and a Silver was awarded to Koskenkorva Vodka Organic. Emma Hamilton, co-founder of Edwards vodka, described the partnership as the result of “a very clear meeting of minds”.Absolut Elyx also took home a Master, impressing Rodriguez-Curtis with its “clean nose, lemon and ripe stone fruit. The palate has a pleasant mouthfeel, good texture and well balanced alcohol”. Also taking home the top award was 8 Mile Vodka, which Perez Terrado said offered: “Clean, grapefruit aroma, great body and mouthfeel around the tongue, followed by delightful peppery heat balance with light bitter astringency.” Nine Golds were also discovered, including one for Pravda, which offered “floral grain notes, an absolutely superb texture, bit of pepperiness, but nice and full with crisp grain notes”. Moving on to vodkas with different bases, and a flight of Grain Blend bottlings were sampled next. Golds were given to Meili Vodka, with its “vanilla and white chocolate” aroma, and Short Story Grain Vodka, described as “tangy and vibrant” with “lots of lime zest and a hint of fresh basil”. Silver medal winner Pur Sang completed the flight.
Filer offered some insight into flavoured vodkas: “Some wild variation in quality in this round, with some very good examples of flavoured vodkas, and, sadly, some poorly balanced and artificial-tasting examples. More care could be taken in production in this category.” The second panel was chaired by Bryan Rodriguez-Curtis, wine and spirits buyer at Harvey Nichols, who was joined by: Antony Moss MW; Evan Prousaefs, bar manager at Sexy Fish in London; and Tatti Sukamongkol, wine and spirits specialist, and contributor to Malt Review.Meanwhile, a trio of Master medals were found in the Organic flight. The first went to Pluto Vodka, described by Rodriguez-Curtis as being “smooth, very well done, rounded, creamy and enjoyable. It would work in a killer Martini”. They set out to prove that quality produce, originating from our own farms across Lincolnshire, could create a premium single-estate potato vodka, from a simple ingredient on our doorstep that they already knew so well.
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