Here’s The 411 On Cheap vs. Expensive Vodka

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You might think that expensive vodka automatically means better quality and cheap vodka means your body will hate you in the morning. It turns out that it’s not so much about expensive versus cheap, it’s all about the brand. Vodka, at a fundamental level, is supposed to be flavorless, colorless and odorless. It’s traditionally made by distilling cereal grains or potatoes that have been fermented. When it comes to grain vodkas, rye and wheat varieties are usually considered higher quality. Some vodkas are made from molasses, soybeans and rice, but other times they’re made from byproducts of oil refining or wood pulp processing.

Shitty vodka is basically a distilled product containing leftovers from the original raw materials that weren’t completely removed through the distillation process. Companies that cut corners bottle and sell their product this way. This is the main reason why cheaper vodkas tend to have a gross taste.

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Let’s eliminate the idea of cheap and expensive being indicators of quality. There are expensive name brands out there that are pricey, but their taste is on the level of something you could find at your corner bodega. The stereotype that bad vodka gives you headaches is true in some cases because it’s made with many impurities. Branding can have a huge impact on how you feel about a particular bottle of vodka.

For instance, Crystal Head vodka, founded by actor Dan Ackroyd, lures you in with its intriguing crystal clear glass skull packaging. This stuff goes for $50 a pop and it’s made with glacier water from Newfoundland Canada. It’s quadruple distilled and filtered through Herkimer diamonds. The grain-based vodka supposedly has no additives. Some say it’s one of the best vodkas and others say it’s nothing special. So, it’s really all about preference and branding.

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Another factor that plays a role in how much you love or hate a certain vodka, is the temperature it’s served at. If you have any serious vodka drinkers in your life, you’ll probably notice they opt for it chilled. If you drink it at room temperature, any underlying flavors are likely to come out. The cooler the liquor is, the more the flavors are suppressed. Vodka companies will try and sell you by announcing on their label how many times it has been distilled. This is true to some extent, but no matter how many times the vodka is distilled, you can’t mask shitty materials and impurities that are used in the process.

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It’s easy to blame the vodka, but the truth is, when something is less expensive we’re more inclined to over-consume. If you get a handle of crappy vodka for $12 at the liquor store, you won’t feel so guilty ripping shots and then you’ll end up getting a headache the next day. When we spend a significant amount on a bottle, we’re a little more modest with our drinking so there’s less of a chance of a hangover. No matter what the branding or the price, if a liquor company uses high quality and clean raw materials, distills the vodka carefully, filters it the right way and uses pure water in the process, the vodka should be a raging success.