Guess which Southern Hemisphere region is manufacturing a popular vodka — so popular they’re exporting 50,000 bottles a year to Russia? Hint: region’s most famous citizen appears above. (Here’s a link to the distillery. Good luck, mates!)
The Baltimore Sun asks, “Who is Osima?” Hell if we know. But if you want to know where vodka was invented, just visit our “Legend” page. Na Zdorovye!
First, he plastered Times Square with billboards. Then he offered every New Yorker a cab ride home on New Year’s Eve. But that wasn’t enough PR for Sean (”P. Diddy”) Combs, whose Ciroc vodka is not made in Russia although some people like it anyway. Combs also asked New York City to name Ciroc as the “Official Vodka of New Year’s Eve” and paint the Times Square ball blue in its honor. Mayor Michael Bloomberg, though no doubt tempted by Combs’s invitation to assume proprietorship of an entire holiday, said no dice, and that was that.
The owner of Swedish vodka brand Absolut has launched legal proceedings against Absolute Radio, for infringement of its trademark.
A spokeswoman for Absolut said:
“The reason for this is that we consider there is a risk of confusion,” she said. “We have a well known brand and there is an obvious risk of confusion between Absolut vodka and Absolute Radio.”
In a related action, Absolut vodka has also announced a lawsuit against the International Bureau of Weights and Measures for its use of the term “absolute zero” to refer to the temperature 0 Kelvin.
“Americans wake up to cold vodka”, Houston Chronicle, Mar. 3, 2008.
Check out this groundbreaking article from L.A. Times reporter Charles Perry.
Perry cuts through the hype about what makes vodka good and how to drink it. For inspiration, he went right to the source: conoisseurs of Russian vodka.
Perry’s interviewees confirm what we’ve been saying all along:
1. Drink vodka chilled, neat, with Russian appetizers.
2. Yes, vodka does have a flavor you can taste — but it’s subtler than wine and takes practice to appreciate.
3. When choosing a vodka, go for taste, avoid “gimmicks and come-ons,” and be open to new experiences. Do you buy the same wine every single time? Why do so for vodka?
4. Don’t fall for the “distilled seven times” trick. Three times is plenty; anything more just washes away whatever flavor the spirit had in the first place.
За Здоровье! – Cheers!
Diageo, maker of Smirnoff, says buying a stake in Ketel One vodka makes for a better long-term strategy (with “greater potential for growth”) than buying absolutely all of Absolut from the Country of Sweden. (Here.) Er, yeah. It took a month to figure this out?
Restaurants are getting creative to keep vodka sophisticated and sexy. Quips one restaurateur:
“I believe a martini is the best appetizer,” Nicola says. “It washes down the day, provides some attitude adjustment, gets you ready for dinner and gives you a nice little buzz. That’s really what everybody wants from a cocktail.”
We couldn’t agree more.
If you are a people person, with poise and enthusiasm, and would like to represent our vodka at parties and promotions, White Birch Vodka is looking for you! Please contact us at whitebirchgirls@1147vodka.com. While experience as a cocktail waitress or working around closely packed, boisterous crowds is preferred, it is not a must. If you are an attractive young lady, at least 21 years of age, who has an upbeat attitude and has a desire to be part of a fun team, we are looking for you. Generous hourly rates and extras included. You will also have the opportunity to be featured as a member of the “White Birch Girls” on our website and at promotions around town. Come be part of a fun team!
Above: Julia, a member of the Russian White Birch Girls. White Birch is the fastest growing vodka brand in Russia.
More at White Birch Girls and White Birch Vodka on Facebook.
I’m a collector of miniature vodka bottles. I live in New Jersey, and I am trying to find Old Russian and White Birch vodkas in 50 ml miniature sizes. If anyone is in a state where these vodkas are sold, and can help me obtain them, please send me an e-mail at seva@ureach.com. Also, my website is http://www.geocities.com/sevatr2001/HomePage.htmlThanks very much.Sincerely,Seva T.
The federal agency which regulates alcohol in the U.S. has proposed that all containers of alcohol above a certain size feature an “Alcohol Facts” label like the above. The label would require information concerning serving size, total number of servings, alcohol content by volume, and alcohol per serving. In addition, there would have to be information about the total calories, carbohydrates, fat, and protein per serving — much like the label currently required for non-alcoholic food and beverages.
What do you think? Should the government compel liquor makers to present this information? Is the information necessary? Is the cost of doing this (which will lead to increased drink prices) worth it for the sake of the relatively few people in America who don’t know that alcohol has calories and can be intoxicating? Would you appreciate seeing this on your bottle of vodka? These are not rhetorical questions — we really want to know how you feel.
If you’d rather tell your Government your views on this matter, you can do so here before January 27, 2008. (Submit your comments by clicking on the “Add Comments” icon on the line for the main document which was posted 07/31/2007.)
Recent report that Sweden — as in “Absolut Country of Sweden” – will auction off the parent company of Absolut Vodka in 2009:
The sale of the company could fill the state’s coffers with the equivalent of about five billion euros. The government confirmed that talks have already begun with several potential buyers and have set two conditions: the group of Vin & Spirit companies must be sold together, and Absolut Vodka must continue to be produced in Swedish territory.
Among the possible buyers? Diageo, owner of the Smirnoff brand. Should make for some interesting antitrust issues. (Not to mention shelf-space scuffles!)
Diageo CFO Nick Rose isn’t having any of it, though:
Rose said that Diageo was confident it could overcome regulatory obstacles it would face to buying Absolut because of the company’s ownership of Smirnoff, the world’s best-selling vodka brand.
«We do see ways in which we could own the brand,» said Rose. «I’m not saying that there are not one or two markets where it’s quite difficult and we would have to do something structurally,» he said.