Imperial Collection

Vodka can be criminally underrated in this day and age. With so many countries now handing themselves the opportunity to fill the market with their own ‘unique’ creation, it’s hard to really stand out to the true and ultimately create a vodka worthy of quality.

Perhaps Imperial Collection can be one of them?

It’s alleged that in 1721, when Peter The Great was crowned Emperor of Russia, a one-of-a-kind vodka was created to celebrate, resulting in the Imperial Collection. Imperial Collection uses home-grown natural wheat that’s distilled and blended with water from Lake Ladoga, just below the Arctic Circle. There’s also a 12 stage filtration process, with a final ‘polish’ using golden membrane filters.

Four expressions are available overall, with three having the pleasure of being featured here –

Imperial Collection Golden Snow – 40%

Four times distilled with 24-carat gold decoration on the bottle and 23-carat gold leaf fakes within. Very clean on the nose, with a slight wheat aromas coming through. Very smooth upon the palate, with a slight spice kick creating a long, dry finish.

Imperial Collection Gold – 40%

Four times distilled. Clean, smooth with a soft wheat aroma and flavour creating a long finish.

Imperial Collection Czar’s Original – 40%

Four times distilled, eight times filtered and the official vodka of the 300th anniversary of Saint Petersburg in Russia. Soft wheat on the nose, with a rich, lively grain flavour on the palate that offers a lingering finish with a slight spice.

Great for sipping, but how about one of these?

The Royal Russian

Glass – 

Martini

Ingredients –

60 ml Imperial Collection Gold
30 ml Simple Syrup
15 ml Fresh Lemon Juice
3 Strawberries
Champagne

Method – 

Muddle the sugar and strawberries together in a shaker. Add the vodka and lemon juice and shake well over ice Strain into a Martini glass and top with Champagne.

Imperial Collection hits the premium mark on the head. The stylish bottles, the marketing of royalty, it all fits the model. The lack of detail in production does nod itself to a simple brand, but that doesn’t take away the fact that they use Russian wheat, fresh water and a hefty filtration process. Give it a go for something a little different in the vodka category.

© David Marsland and Drinks Enthusiast 2015. Unauthorized use and/or duplication of this material without express and written permission from this blog/sites author and owner is strictly prohibited. Excerpts and links may be used, provided that full and clear credit is given to David Marsland and Drinks Enthusiast with appropriate and specific direction to the original content.