Welcome back to FTW’s Beverage of the Week series. In this space, we typically detail and critique beers, although we’re quite happy to expand our range to any drink that goes well with sports. Indeed, even cookie dough whiskey.

Let me be straight, forming a viewpoint on good vodka tends to be tough.

Awful vodka, no problem. It can be likened to an acetone-like substance or perhaps, stuff you utilized to cleanse your old gaming console cartridges. However, superior vodkas have the tendency to become indistinct for an amateur like me who seldom consumes it outside of a cocktail context. So, we have smooth… and then?

Luckily, the Beattie’s potato vodkas are here to broaden my palate, whether better or worse. The Alliston, Ontario distillery produces a handful selection of root vegetable-based spirits bearing basic flavors and plain packaging. Each bottle reflects its rustic origin truthfully, and despite my lack of previous exposure, I’m quite excited to give it a go.

I’ve enjoyed Canadian beverages all my life. Out of all the large-scale lagers, the one produced by Moosehead is perhaps my favourite. The unique mix of affordability and smoothness makes Canadian whisky an ideal choice, both in my college days and now.

However, I hadn’t sampled Canadian vodka until recently. Prior to discovering Beattie’s, I wasn’t even sure if it existed. After a bit of research, I found that there is a variety of distillers in the region, from the charmingly modest to the attention-seeking ones even packing their drink in a hockey stick.

Regarding itself as an industry leader is Beattie’s. Does it live up to its own hype? I plan on testing Beattie’s by combining it with various cocktails and noting the results. I will kick things off with a craft mixer I have long wanted to try, the Q Mixer’s ginger ale.

I may have poured this traditional golf cocktail a tad too strong — the mixture consisted of roughly 40% vodka, 40% ginger ale, and 20% grape juice. Nonetheless, this should provide me a fair idea about how flawlessly Beattie’s blends with other components and holds itself when consumed straight.

Yes, the vodka taste is very apparent. It’s potent but not overwhelming, presenting a crisp, almost floral, spicy citrus essence. It’s unmistakably vodka, and it’s undeniably high-quality vodka. There’s nothing in it that could provoke an adverse reaction or make you feel the need to down it in one gulp.

Despite not being a vodka sipper or much of a martini drinker, I have had plenty of encounters with low-end potato spirits that extend from Kamchatka to Skyy to Luksusowa. This vodka definitely leans towards the higher end of that range, far surpassing brands like Smirnoff due to its smooth and gentle warmth – it doesn’t feel like a slap to the face.

Now that I’ve emptied enough of my glass to make room for the cocktail mix, let’s add some more mixer. The Q ginger ale is initially spicy, then gives way to a subdued sweetness. It doesn’t quite reach Vernor’s level of traditional ginger flavour, but it’s very close. As a bonus, it contains an abundance of rich flavours hidden amidst the carbonation of its 7.5-ounce can, which is exciting as I plan to use it for many more cocktails in the future.

When mixed appropriately, it can trick you; it’s a 12-ounce drink that contains the equivalent of two shots of alcohol but doesn’t taste like it. The Beattie’s vodka has demonstrated its foolproof nature, especially helpful if you tend to get sizes and measures mixed up while preparing drinks.

Uncapping the bottle, you’re hit with an overwhelming aroma of succulent strawberries. It’s clear this isn’t a fleeting hint, but a full-on fruit explosion that could be sipped over ice for a novel cocktail experience.

A small taste confirms this. It’s a delightfully sweet, martini-like concoction which, once chilled, could be a simple refreshment. Let’s add some tonic and a squeeze of lime and see how it fares.

Wow, it’s practically perfect. It’s fruity but not excessively sugary, with just the right combination of tartness and fizz to create a dry finish. The strawberry flavor isn’t a synthetic sugary confectionery but more of a subtle aftertaste of a fresh fruit handpicked from a cardboard crate.

The tonic successfully enhances the lightness, creating a digestible cocktail. Flavored vodka cocktails are a considerable departure from my preferred whiskey-on-the-rocks mix, but I must admit, it tastes absolutely delicious.

I’ll be forthright. I was uncertain about how to use sweet potato vodka. There are probably quite a few exciting cocktail recipes it would enhance, but I believe the best way to appreciate this unique spirit is to consume it straight, prior to mixing it with drinks like … cream soda? I honestly don’t know.

The sweet potato flavor seems mildly vanilla at first, before the Thanksgiving pie ambiance becomes clear. There’s a nuanced burn from the 60 proof alcohol involved, yet every mouthful has a nearly creamy quality. It’s somewhat surprisingly pleasant, frankly.

The creaminess adds a layer of mystery. This could make for a highly fascinating martini, and serves as more evidence of Beattie’s dedication to authenticity in their flavored vodka offerings.

Absolutely, particularly during the summer months. Beattie’s vodkas are bound to create some powerful seasonal cocktails.

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