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I found this recently ...

Ocean Vodka is certified 100% USDA organic and is the only vodka in the world distilled from organic sugar cane and blended with deep ocean mineral water. As a result Ocean Vodka is naturally gluten-free – perfect for those intolerant of gluten in their diet. Our fine spirit contains absolutely no GMOs (genetically modified organisms), herbicides, or pesticides all of which ensure the cleanest, purest, most refreshing martini experience.

... and wondered how many other commercial vodkas are distilled from cane sugar. I'd like to try "Ocean" just to compare it to my own neutral as sourced from WPOSW.

I realize your post is just about the cane-sugar element, but I've gotta say...sounds like a bunch of marketing gimmicks to me.

GMOs .... I always try not to get into an argument about this because the ignorance surrounding it drives me into a fury. However, I'm always happy to have an intellectual conversation about GMOs and what they are.

Gluten Free... give me a break. This is like when you see packages of bacon that say "gluten free". Does any bacon actually have gluten? And...shouldn't people that are actually gluten-intolerant already know what they can and cannot eat?

Deep ocean mineral water.... No clue what the benefit of this is. And I'd bet that 99% of their buyers don't either.

Alright, I'm done ranting. Sorry about that greggn. So, back to the sugar. Seems to me that this is neutral sugar shine, no? I mean, cane sugar is still sugar after all. And if they're pushing high gravity ferments, I bet it's got some real nasty heads in it.

Advertising hype and nothing more...

I think that every distilled spirit is gluten free - unless there's some cross contamination that takes place in the process. This could be something as simple as collecting in a container that was exposed to a wheat/barley/rye wash and not properly cleaned. Or, possibly the addition of backset to the distilled spirit as a flavor component.

My wife and daughter both have Celiac disease (gluten intolerance). Even the tiniest bit of gluten can put them in agony. To put "Gluten Free" on a label means that the product has to be certified gluten free. To them, those words on a label are a big deal. They either see those words on the label or read the ingredients and allergy warnings for any kind of processed food that we purchase. So, that vodka might be attractive to the 1 in 100 people in the world with Celiac.

BTW, the SOH won't drink mine for fear it will make her go blind.

greggn wrote:I found this recently ...

Ocean Vodka is certified 100% USDA organic and is the only vodka in the world distilled from organic sugar cane and blended with deep ocean mineral water. As a result Ocean Vodka is naturally gluten-free – perfect for those intolerant of gluten in their diet. Our fine spirit contains absolutely no GMOs (genetically modified organisms), herbicides, or pesticides all of which ensure the cleanest, purest, most refreshing martini experience.

... and wondered how many other commercial vodkas are distilled from cane sugar. I'd like to try "Ocean" just to compare it to my own neutral as sourced from WPOSW.

Had it, it's an unremarkable, generic Vodka.

When you are using a very tall column (or double column) holstein and carbon filtering it like the commercial guys do, there is virtually no taste to speak of except the aldehydes, higher alcohols etc from any leftover heads in their product, and virtually no taste at all from the tails, which barely make it through the tall columns as it is. The carbon filtering medium will impart its own character, that it somewhat like glue in smell, the water will provide mouthfeel.

A cane Vodka made from Sugar that is not carbon filtered and is run only through a modest column will be different.

> Had it, it's an unremarkable, generic Vodka.


Thanks for the heads-up ... you saved me a few bucks.

S-Cackalacky wrote: My wife and daughter both have Celiac disease (gluten intolerance). Even the tiniest bit of gluten can put them in agony. To put "Gluten Free" on a label means that the product has to be certified gluten free. To them, those words on a label are a big deal. They either see those words on the label or read the ingredients and allergy warnings for any kind of processed food that we purchase. So, that vodka might be attractive to the 1 in 100 people in the world with Celiac.

Although it may be a gimmick it is potentially an extremely profitable one. Actual documented cases of Celiac are increasing and there are many more people who worry about it or think they have gluten intolerance and are cutting down on gluten. Then there are the people trying not to eat GMO which thanks to the failures of labeling laws means the easiest way to do that is buy organic. If you think about it even if you only make $1 per bottle and even if only 1% of the population has Celiac and you manage to sell one single bottle to half of them a year you still make 1.5Million dollars. Add in the organic and anti GMO people and you have a recipe for making serious money. Gimmick or not, unremarkable or not it is a money maker.

Marketing is underated by a lot of micro-distilleries as they don't realize the importance and are more vested in making the product. It's amazing just how many bottles are sold for a fancy bottle or the label.

"deep ocean mineral water"???
What do they take a bucket down in the Mariannas trench and capture what comes out of a black smoker?
Gimme a break.

skow69 wrote:"deep ocean mineral water"???
What do they take a bucket down in the Mariannas trench and capture what comes out of a black smoker?
Gimme a break.

I think they use a really long garden hose and suck it out.

Bushman wrote:Marketing is underated by a lot of micro-distilleries as they don't realize the importance and are more vested in making the product. It's amazing just how many bottles are sold for a fancy bottle or the label.

That's true, St. Germain has one of the coolest bottles which sell empty on eBay for $5.99. How much of the full ones sell just because of the bottle, or maybe because of the special flowers hand picked by buxom french maidens who transport them by bicycle to the distillery, but it helps sell bottles. Marketing is what sells most things and in reality a small distillery only has to sell to an incredibly small percentage of the population to be successful.

And look at what hides behind the facade of our mason jars.

Here is a perfect example: Last night my family went out to dinner, we went to Buffalo Wild Wings for their wings Tuesday special. While there it was so busy and rather than wait we sat at the bar drank beer with our dinner when my son noticed the following jar behind the bar. It was bottled and served in a mason jar. It was homemade apple pie and I am guessing the abv was around 20%. My son and I each had a shot, the bill for the shot was $6.00. My calculations are that a shot is 1.5 oz. If we have 32 ounces in a quart then they were getting $128 out of each mason jar.

We should all know that marketing is key....otherwise there would be one type of great vodka, one great rum, one bourbon..., hell even one car, truck, or house. But if I convince you mine is better or just different, you'll probably try it.

People like variety, even those who drink only vodka. Making a package stand out on a shelf with 50 other similar things is at least half the battle. According to the interweb that ole smoky is $35 a bottle, and 40 proof. Mason jars is what people think of when they think moonshine (as well as bad booze), their jars used to have Mason embossed on them but now they have Ole Smoky so even when it doesn't have a label on it it continues to advertise. St Germain has the words special and liqueur embossed on theirs but is so distinctive they don't emboss their name. That brings me to the second half of what sells things and that is it must taste good or at least taste like what people expect. I've mentioned on other posts that I read a review of Junior Johnston's moonshine complained that it was too smooth and not enough like moonshine. Repeat customers are important but you have to get them to buy it once first and marketing does that. Perhaps the best bottle I've seen that sells $50-$60 a bottle vodka is crystal head vodka, that's the one with the skull bottle. If I had thought of that or the organic gluten free vodka I would have already started my own distillery.

Marketing...SO TRUE!
I read a magazine a while back that was put out for the valley wine tours or tourism or something, anyway, they had two stories on valley wines and one from N.B. All three stories had the same line "we don't want to be the biggest, we just want to be the best" and then the author wrote about how this was so obvious because it was so good, blah, blah, blah.
One was a place that just opened in June. Later in the mag I came across an add for that place....big letters "taste the history and blah, blah"...I'm thinking "HISTORY"??? YOU OPENED IN JUNE!!! YOUR 3 MONTHS OLD!!!

There are better and worse whiskys or vodka or whatever, but the marketing is the only real differentiating thing. They are ALL "hand crafted" and "steeped in history" and let's not forget "gold winner of the "whatever" awards". They all have "painstaking care and attention to detail".

GMO free and gluten free...well that's a new one. Should be "no animals harmed during the production of this alcohol" as well!

"Small foreign children did not work in sweatshops to produce this alcohol"

"fat free" vodka

It's all bullshit, pure and simple.

goinbroke2 wrote: "Small foreign children did not work in sweatshops to produce this alcohol"

If I ever open a distillery I'm using that!

goinbroke2 wrote: "fat free" vodka

You ever hear of a brand called "SkinnyGirl" ?

from their website wrote: to keep bringing you all of the cocktail options you want, without the extra calories you don’t.

"believe that their personal and detailed attention makes XXXXXXXXXX stand out from other mass produced liquors. The boutique operation produces"

"We craft our spirits with the same love of traditional methods and attention to detail."

"Distilling by hand in small batches, at XXXXXXXX we use only natural ingredients, as fresh and as local as possible, showcasing the remarkable produce of the "XXXXXX area"

"each a testament to commitment and dedication to the craft. Sip the flavour of this place by sampling spirits from traditional to XXXXX our signature XXXXXXXXX, a crisp, aromatic whisky with the unique characteristics of our cool climate."

"Because potatoes produce the smoothest vodka possible. Since we're located in XXXXXXXXXXXXXX, we’ve got access to some of the finest potatoes in the world.

"The proof is in the taste and texture. Vodka made from potatoes is noted for its lightly creamy texture. Its taste is silky and smooth. XXXXXXXXX Vodka uses world famous, locally grown XXXXXXXXXXX potatoes exclusively to craft vodka we think you’ll find exceptional."

So, if you use the "only natural ingredients, fresh and local and have a cool climate, with the finest potatoes grown exclusively for craft vodka"....you'll make the best vodka.... Nope, no marketing hype there at all...and they are all different places I googled.

I think I'd say in my best newfanese (newfy talk) "I gots me some left over grains from a farm down the road eh? An' we dumped 'er in da cooker an' den ran 'er true da still bye. Yes me son, we gots da likker flowin' der now eh? Take a smash o dat and see if it don't straighten da pubes, wha?


Hmmm, maybe this marketing thing has eluded me...

I'll take a case, goin! (I got me some serious pube straightenin' to do.)

Deep ocean mineral water...how do you desalinate water and retain the minerals? Or is it salty vodka?

Sounds like overpriced sugar shine to me.