Vodka Gets Its Time In The Spotlight With New Book

By Paul Leddy in Food on Mar 4, 2013 7:20PM

Vodka is the Rodney Dangerfield of the spirits world. Despite being the number one consumed spirit in the United States, it still gets little respect from most craft-cocktail bartenders. Of course, it has not helped that various flavored vodkas like “S’Mores,” “Gummy Bear,” and “Cotton Candy”, have overwhelmed the market. It’s hard to be taken seriously when you have flavors that are similar to the schnapps that you had when you were younger.

In fact, as I learned in the new book by Tony Abou-Ganim, Vodka Distilled: The Modern Mixologist on Vodka and Vodka Cocktails, vodka started in the United States getting little respect. It wasn’t until an accidental cork labeling at the Smirnoff distillery and subsequent marketing campaign called it “Smirnoff Whiskey” did it receive a little boost. One clever marketing campaign in the early 1940’s using an invented cocktail called the Moscow Mule and the success of vodka was never a concern again.

Abou-Ganim is a giant in the cocktail world. His book, The Modern Mixologist: Contemporary Classic Cocktails (2010) is considered a classic for the craft-cocktail movement. He admits, in the introduction, that in earlier versions of Modern Mixologist, he wanted to have a chapter for each of the main spirit categories, including vodka. That idea was scrapped and became the impetus to write this book (he has hinted that a similar book on American Whiskey could be coming soon).

Tackling one of the spirit world’s most maligned liquors was purposeful by Abou-Ganim. “Vodka suffers from a misplaced lack of respect,” he writes, “Vodka’s heritage and flavor nuances…deserve a place alongside its spirituous cousins, whisky, gin, tequila, and so on.”

Indeed, as he illustrates in the book, the choices the distiller makes (grain, water source, etc.) can have a direct impact on the finished product. Vodka can be made from any starch, but typically is made from rye, wheat, potato, or corn. Old World vodkas produced in countries in the “Vodka Belt” (including Poland, Sweden, Russia, and Finland) tend to retain the characteristic of the base ingredient. They are typically more bold and assertive versus their New World counterparts. New World vodka’s tend to be lighter and can be made with other starches like oats, rice, and maple sap. Abou-Ganim’s book tackles these differences by providing a historical background to the production of vodka. He also discusses the various production techniques for distilling and the importance of distiller’s removal of congeers (impurities) during the purification process.

At the heart of the book is its exploration of how to enjoy and understand the differences between different vodkas. He goes into detail on how to do a proper tasting (a very similar process, it should be noted, that industry tasting panels follow). This “Tasting 101” provides an excellent primer to discovering the different and unique flavors that this “flavorless” liquor has to offer.

Feel you are not up to snuff in your critical analysis of different vodkas? Let the professionals help. At the end of the book, he has assembled an impressive tasting panel to “review” 58 different vodkas in the marketplace (it should be noted that not a flavored vodka was reviewed or discussed in the book). The panel doesn’t provide scores but instead include their tasting notes and recommendations for use for each of the vodkas. The tasting notes are separated by grain and it is interesting to see the differences seen within the category and also between different starches.

There are various Chicago connections to the book. Tim Turner is no stranger to the Chicago culinary community. He has produced photographs for cookbooks by Charlie Trotter (Turner won the 1999 Beard Award for his work on Charlie Trotter’s Desserts) and with Rick Tramonto’s (from Tru fame) Amuse Bouche (2002). On the aforementioned tasting panel, sitting alongside industry heavy hitters Dale DeGroff and Steve Olson is Bridget Albert. Her classes held at the Academy of Sprits and Fine Services has helped educate bartenders in Chicago and beyond on all things cocktail.

If you have ever wondered why a bartender uses a certain producer when they are making a cocktail, it is because there are slight differences in the flavor profile compared to its “competitors” that help balance or bring out a different flavor in the finished cocktail. With vodka, Abou-Ganim offers suggestions for what vodka to use when making various cocktails. The book contains twenty-five cocktail recipes and the suggestions are well thought out. For instance, in the recipe for the “Ruby” cocktail that I include below, he suggests a vodka that has a potato base since it is “ideal to soften and moderate the drink’s bitter and floral elements.” A vodka made with a rye base, for instance, can add a spicy element that may end up throwing off the balance of the finished cocktail.

It is interesting to discover that a “flavorless and odorless” spirit like vodka can exhibit so many different nuances and flavor profiles. With this book as a guide, perhaps you can explore those differences and find a couple bottles worthy of your liquor shelf.

The Ruby Cocktail...Apologies to Tim Turner for my photography.

Ruby
1.5oz vodka
.50oz Aperol
.75oz St-Germain Elderflower liqueur
.75oz freshly squeezed grapefruit juice
.75oz freshly squeezed lemon juice
1 tablespoon (heavy .25oz) egg white

In a mixing glass add vodka, Aperol, St-Germain, fresh grapefruit and lemon juices, and egg whites; shake with ice until well mixed and egg whites are emulsified. Strain into a chilled champagne saucer. Garnish with the oils of a grapefruit twist.
Reprinted with permission from Vodka Distilled: The Modern Mixologist on Vodka and Vodka cocktails, by Tony Abou-Ganim and Mary Elizabeth Faulkner, Agate Surrey, February 2013.