Vodka Has Entered the Chat: A Toast to National Vodka Day
Four bottles, a few cocktails, and a reminder that vodka is a whole lot more interesting than its reputation suggests.
Let's be honest: vodka has a bit of an image problem. Whiskey gets to talk about barrels, aging and mash bills. Tequila has agave. Gin has botanicals. Rum has sugarcane and tropical vacations practically baked into its personality. And vodka? Vodka gets mixed with orange juice, cranberry juice, tonic, soda, espresso... pretty much anything within reach.
For years, vodka has been the reliable plus-one at the cocktail party. Useful. Versatile. Rarely the center of attention. But maybe we've been doing vodka a disservice.
Behind that reputation for being "neutral" is a category with plenty of personality. The ingredients matter. The distillation matters. Filtration matters. And perhaps most importantly, what you do with it matters. October 4 is National Vodka Day, which seems like as good an excuse as any to give vodka its moment.
So we pulled four bottles from very different corners of the vodka world and decided to have a little fun with them. Not to crown a winner. Not to tell you that one of these bottles is the vodka you need to buy. Instead, consider this a reminder that vodka can be a lot more interesting than its reputation suggests. And if we're going to celebrate it, we might as well have a few cocktails while we're at it.
First Things First: What Exactly Makes a Vodka a Vodka?
One of the things that makes vodka so interesting is also the thing that makes it difficult to talk about: neutrality. Vodka is generally intended to be a clean, relatively neutral spirit, which is precisely why it works so well in cocktails. It doesn't necessarily demand the attention that a heavily peated Scotch or barrel-aged bourbon does.
But "neutral" doesn't mean "flavorless."
The raw material, fermentation, distillation, filtration and water used to bring a spirit to its final proof can all contribute to its character. Put a grain vodka next to a potato vodka and taste them side by side. Then try a flavored expression. Suddenly, that supposedly boring category gets a little more interesting.
That's exactly what happened when we put these four bottles on the table.
Bols Vodka: Sometimes Classic Is Exactly What You Want
Let's start with a bottle that makes a pretty compelling case for vodka's role as the ultimate cocktail team player. Bols Vodka comes from Lucas Bols, the Amsterdam spirits company with roots dating to 1575. The vodka is made from wheat and filtered through copper and charcoal, resulting in the clean, pure profile the brand is after. At around $18 a bottle, it also makes a pretty convincing argument that you don't need to spend a fortune to stock a good cocktail bar.
This is where vodka's versatility becomes a strength rather than a weakness. A vodka Martini doesn't necessarily need a spirit screaming for attention. Neither does a Moscow Mule, Cosmopolitan or Espresso Martini. Sometimes you want the vodka to provide the backbone while letting the other ingredients do some of the talking.
That's what makes a bottle like Bols useful. It's clean, approachable and cocktail-friendly. Sometimes, that's exactly what you want.
Try it in: A Pornstar Martini.
Muff Irish Vodka: Potatoes? Absolutely.
If the first bottle represents the traditional role of vodka, Muff Irish Vodka gives us a chance to challenge another vodka assumption: vodka doesn't have to start with grain.
Muff is handcrafted in Ireland from locally grown potatoes and distilled six times. The result is described as having a creamy, velvety mouthfeel with subtle vanilla and earthy notes. And that's where things get interesting.
Potato vodka can bring a different texture and character to the glass, and Muff leans into that. It's clean and crisp, but there's also something soft and almost savory underneath it. In other words, this isn't necessarily vodka that you want to disappear into the background.
Pour it neat. Chill it. Put it in a Martini. Or take a cue from the brand and pair it with grapefruit. Muff's signature serve combines the vodka with botanical tonic and a slice of red grapefruit, a simple combination that makes a lot of sense given the spirit's creamy, earthy character.
There's another reason this bottle is fun to have in the lineup: Muff brings its Donegal roots and potato-based spirits to a category where grain-based vodka still dominates. It's a good reminder that vodka doesn't have to come from the usual places—or taste exactly the way you expect it to.
Try it in: Strawberry Basil Crunch
Ingredients:
1.5 oz Muff Irish Vodka
1 oz Fresh Lemon Juice
0.5 oz Honey
3 Strawberries (To Muddle)
4 Basil Leaves (To Muddle)
Top with Sparkling Water
Garnish: Strawberry slice and basil leaf
Directions: Muddle fresh strawberries and basil leaves together in a highball glass. Add fresh lemon juice, honey, vodka and ice. Stir and top with sparkling water. Garnish with a strawberry slice and a basil leaf.
OYO Honey Vanilla Bean Vodka: Vodka Gets a Little Sweet
Now we're going to take a pretty significant turn.
OYO Honey Vanilla Bean Vodka from Columbus, Ohio's Middle West Spirits starts with the distillery's American Character Vodka, made from Ohio soft red winter wheat. It's then infused with local wildflower honey and organic, single-source, fair-trade vanilla beans that are processed at the distillery.
The result is a vodka that doesn't exactly apologize for having personality. Honey, vanilla bean, marshmallow, praline, butterscotch and cinnamon are all part of the profile. This isn't the bottle you're reaching for because you want vodka to disappear.
And that's okay.
Flavored vodka has sometimes gotten a bad reputation because of the overly sweet, artificially flavored expressions that have populated liquor-store shelves over the years. But when the flavors are thoughtfully chosen—and used in the right drink—they can make for a pretty compelling cocktail ingredient.
In fact, this is where vodka's versatility really shines. You could pour OYO Honey Vanilla Bean over ice and let it stand on its own, or you could use those flavors as a starting point for something more elaborate.
The DTB Honey Vanilla Espresso Martini
- 1½ oz. OYO Honey Vanilla Bean Vodka
- 1 oz. fresh espresso or quality cold-brew concentrate
- ½ oz. coffee liqueur
- ¼ oz. simple syrup, or to taste
- Garnish: coffee beans
Add everything to a shaker with plenty of ice and shake hard. Strain into a chilled coupe or Martini glass and garnish with five coffee beans.
The honey and vanilla bring a little extra dimension to an already indulgent cocktail without requiring a refrigerator full of ingredients. And isn't that part of the fun?
Broken Shed: Vodka From a Completely Different Place
Then there's Broken Shed Vodka, which might be the bottle that most directly challenges the idea that vodka is simply a neutral grain spirit.
Broken Shed is made in New Zealand using three primary ingredients: mineral-rich water from a South Island aquifer, spring water from the North Island and a spirit made from whey. The whey spirit is distilled three times before being blended with the two waters. The company says the vodka contains no additives, sweeteners or GMOs.
Yes, whey. As in the liquid byproduct of cheesemaking and dairy production.
It's an unusual starting point, but there's a reason for it beyond simply being different. Broken Shed says its producers chose whey after testing different starch sources, finding that it delivered the silky texture and flavor profile they wanted. Whey is also a plentiful byproduct of New Zealand's dairy industry.
And then there's the water. Two different waters from two different parts of New Zealand become part of the finished spirit. That's a pretty good story for a category that's supposedly all about having no story.
Broken Shed also makes a compelling case for trying vodka neat. The brand recommends tasting it neat and not overly cold, allowing its texture and character to come through. And that's something worth trying with any vodka you find interesting.
Don't automatically bury it under ice and mixers. Pour a little into a glass, let it warm slightly and take a sip. You might be surprised.
Try it in: A Bedtime Story
Ingredients:
- 1.5 oz chamomile tea-infused Broken Shed Vodka
- 0.5 oz bergamot liqueur
- 0.75 oz fresh lemon juice
- .05 oz simple syrup
- 1 egg white
- Garnish: 1 edible flower
- 15 chamomile tea bags
- 750mL bottle of Broken Shed Vodka
The Cocktail May Be Vodka's Superpower
Here's where we come back to the reason vodka has remained such a fixture behind the bar: versatility.
Vodka can be crisp and clean, creamy and earthy, sweet and aromatic, silky and textured. And because it doesn't necessarily dominate a cocktail, it can work with an almost ridiculous number of flavors. Citrus, coffee, ginger, grapefruit, berries, herbs, honey, vanilla, tomato and chocolate all have a place alongside vodka.
That's not boring. That's useful.
A great vodka cocktail isn't necessarily about showing off the vodka. Sometimes it's about creating harmony between everything in the glass. That's why we wouldn't necessarily tell you to drink these four bottles the same way.
Bols might make perfect sense in a classic Martini. Muff can bring some interesting texture to a grapefruit-forward cocktail. OYO's honey and vanilla practically beg to be paired with coffee or dessert flavors. And Broken Shed gives you a reason to slow down and actually pay attention to the spirit itself.
Four bottles. Four very different experiences. And that's the point.
So, What's the Best Vodka?
We're not going to tell you. Not because we don't have opinions—we certainly do—but because "best" depends on what you're trying to do.
Want a great cocktail for a Saturday night with friends? That's one question. Looking for something to sip slowly? That's another. Making Martinis? Espresso Martinis? Moscow Mules? Different drinks call for different things.
Instead of asking which vodka is best, maybe the better question is: What are you in the mood for? That's one of the things we love about spirits in the first place. There's always another bottle, another cocktail and another way to experience it. And vodka might be one of the best examples of that.
Raise a Glass
Maybe National Vodka Day doesn't need to be complicated. You don't need a rare bottle. You don't need a $200 cocktail. You don't even need to agree on whether a Martini should have vodka or gin.
Just grab a bottle. Invite some friends over. Make something good to eat. Shake a few cocktails. Put on some music. Open the vodka. Because at the end of the day, that's what we've always loved about a good bottle at Drink The Bottles. It's not just what's in the bottle. It's everything that happens after you open it.
So on October 4th, raise a glass because vodka has entered the chat. And we're glad it did.
