Ketel One Vodka

Two years ago, while living in Boston, a friend brought me a bottle of Ketel One Vodka, which he excitingly described as tasting better than Grey Goose but not being as expensive. I had heard about Ketel One and seen it at certain bars in the States, but was not too familiar with the product.

Last night I attended a vodka taste test at Kultura in Toronto, where I was informed that Ketel One is quite popular in America, extremely popular in London, England, but has only entered the Canadian market recently.

Since I"m the type to only drink vodka with Red Bull, I have never been able to distinguish between different vodkas and usually just buy Absolut, Smirnoff or Iceberg because they're all reasonably priced. So, I was very excited to attend a vodka taste test, especially since it was at the beautiful Kultura where the food looks and tastes even more outstanding than the gorgeous 2nd floor room in which we were seated.

We were told to smell each of the three vodkas presented in front of us before tasting them. The first one was Ketel One and it smelled like alcohol and had a slight burn.

The second vodka was Grey Goose which had an even stronger smell and stronger burn. Strange, I thought, since Grey Goose has always been marketed as an expensive, uber-premium vodka for the high rolling set.

Finally we tried Absolut, which didn't really smell like alcohol at all, but had a wretched taste accompanied by an intense burn that I needed to wash down with my complimentary Cosmo.

Once I could think clearly again, four important thoughts surfaced:

1) Thank God I had a chaser nearby

2) Never drinking Absolut again - it tastes like poison

3) Grey Goose has a genius marketing department

4) I'd like another Ketel One Cosmo, please

It's funny to think of all the extra money big spenders throw away on premium names like Grey Goose when they really aren't getting the best bang for their buck. That's not to say that Ketel One is cheap. It's still pricey but less expensive than Grey Goose and much better tasting.

Settling for nothing less than perfection, a member of the Nolet family (the family that started brand over 300 years ago) always tastes each batch of vodka to approve its release and its right to bear the Ketel One name.

As someone who cares about health and well being, its nice to know that what I'm putting into my body has been tried before and is regulated to meet high quality standards. Hopefully this equates to less of a hangover the following morning.

It would've been interesting to have been able to compare Ketel One with other high class vodkas like Belvedere, Pravda and organic labels. Until I do, I highly recommend drinking Ketel One, especially if you enjoy the finer things in life.

Matchstick Marketing, the company responsible for the vodka tasting event, is looking for feedback from anyone who may have seen my posting about Ketel One Vodka. If you click on the link below and complete the survey, you will be helping them by donating $2.00 to the Redwood Women's Shelter. Please click here to take their short feedback survey.

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