Lol, let me first apologize for my spoiled dog that can be heard a few times in the background. He could hear me through the door and was just letting me know that I was running late with the treats.
Okay, now onto the task at hand. So, I wanted to find out how much separation there was between what is regarded as “The World’s Best Vodka” - the $200 Kauffman Private Collection Luxury Vodka and some of my favorite low end and mid-range priced vodkas. To do this, I selected 5 of my favorite “Under $20” and 5 more “Under $40” vodkas to be tasted side-by-side with a bottle of the rare Kauffman Private Collection. What makes the Kauffman PC so good (and the reason it’s so hard to find) is that it’s only created in years when the crops/grains are of exceptional quality. Unfortunately, this apparently hasn’t happened much since 2009, so finding a bottle can be a real challenge. The contenders for this were split into two sides. In the “Under $20” we have the $17 Reyka from Iceland, $11 Exclusiv 1 from Moldova, $11 Sobieski from Poland, $17 Stolichnaya from Russia, $17 Tito’s from Indiana/Austin, and the $11 Monopolowa from Austria was an alternate. In the “Under $40” we have $27 Grey Goose from France, $30 Beluga “Transatlantic Racing Edition” from Russia, $40 Belvedere “Intense Unfiltered 80” Diamond Rye from Poland, $40 Chase from England, $35 Imperia from Russia, and the $30 Moscow Gold “Black Edition” from Russia was my alternate there.
In the end I hope we all have a better understanding of what the different price levels of vodka have to offer and how some educated purchases can help bridge the price gaps. I'd also like to note that while there's some amazing values in the less expensive vodka brands, you're also more likely to run into batch variance (quality) issues in the "Under $20" category than in the mid-range "Under $40." So, keep that in mind when making your purchases. As mentioned in the video, here’s the link to my “LiquorHound's Best Spirits of 2019” • LiquorHound's Best Spi...
I am a Certified Specialist of Spirits that’s also been accredited by the Tequila Regulatory Council (CRT). I've been actively collecting and learning about spirits for the last 26 years and what started as a small basic home bar has transformed (with the help and understanding of my wonderful wife) into a collection of over 2,500 bottles. I appreciate you watching my KZfaq videos and sharing in my passion and if you want even more content, please join us at my Patreon channel www.patreon.com/liquorhound. There you can become a supporter and get access to special giveaways, some secret tips, my Patreon only video library, and you'll receive a new review every Thursday. As always, thank you and please remember to drink responsibly. Cheers!