Ocean Organic Vodka

It’s good and has a cool bottle

Distinctly different on the palate. Very smooth and sweet (for vodka). Almost no burn and may be the first vodka that had a decent aftertaste. This would be my go to if I was drinking vodka neat.

Nose - dry bread, black pepper, subtle vanilla, mild to moderate ethanol burn. Taste - mild floral and grassy notes, lemon zest, black pepper, mineral water, vanilla, mild to moderate alcohol bite, finishing medium short with mineral water, black pepper, and citrus zest notes. Ocean is by far the most neutral vodka I’ve tried. Other than a general yeastiness on the nose, there’s not much else other than a hint of pepper and a whiff of vanilla. The palate adds a bit of citrus and a nice mineral water quality. This is really good vodka, particularly with the palate. If you want clean vodka, this is the one to buy. There are no off flavors at all. On the flip side, there’s not much in the way of flavor here, so I don’t think it competes at the same level as Absolut Elyx or Stoli. It comes close though. And I could see myself reaching for this instead of Jim Beam Original on some days. Thanks to @ContemplativeFox for providing the sample. So, this concludes my vodka series. It’s been a whirlwind month for sure. Thirty vodkas in twenty-eight days. I have some thoughts I’d like to share regarding the results, but without further ado, here are my top ten: 1. Nauti Spirits (sweet potato) 2. Ciroc (grape) 3. Absolut Elyx (wheat) 4. Stoli (wheat and rye) 5. Ketel One (wheat) 6. Ocean (sugarcane) 7. Chopin (wheat) 8. Beluga (wheat) 9. Russian Standard (wheat) 10. Reyka (barley and wheat) To caveat the results, I could easily see the order of some of these changing if reviewed again. Looking over my unflavored vodka reviews from the month, it’s surprising how similar they read. Don’t get me wrong, there are differences, but they’re much subtler than with other categories such as whiskey. Another caveat worth mentioning is that my top two, Nauti Spirits and Ciroc, are at the top specifically because they’re not neutral, and that makes them more interesting. While this renders them more sippable, they would likely not be good candidates to use in the standard vodka cocktails. Removing these two from the running leaves Absolut Elyx as the best vodka for mixing. However, Elyx is over $40 near me, which is too much to spend on a vodka outside of special occasions for me. This brings us to Stoli. It’s less than half the price of Elyx and only slightly less enjoyable. This will become my house vodka, unless I find something better in a similar price range. At the beginning of the month, I assumed Tito’s would at least be close to the top. In fact, it’s been my house vodka for years. Not only did it not make my top ten, it’s likely in the bottom five of unflavored vodkas I reviewed. Now that the series is finished, I have not discovered a new love for vodka, but I have gained an appreciation of it. I don’t see myself ever reaching for vodka to sip neat in the future, but I’m happy to have done a deep dive and become more informed about a category I previously knew nothing about. And at the very least, I’ll now be stocking a much better quality vodka that’s actually cheaper as well. That’s all I’ve got. I’m looking forward to jumping into some more exciting spirits starting tomorrow. And I’ve got a good one on deck to reward myself for the misery I’ve endured this month. A special shout out to Jim Beam Original. You’re not my favorite bourbon, but you didn’t deserve all the shade I threw your way. Thanks for being a good sport about it.

Like a smooth ocean breeze.