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The top 10 best value for money vodka brands

From super-premium serves to limited-edition flavours, there is a wide variety of vodkas to suit every budget. We round up the best value for money brands on the market.

Here is our list of the top 10 best value for money vodkas on the market

Last month, The Spirits Business held its annual Vodka Masters, where an experienced panel of judges put some of the category’s finest offerings through their paces.

Looking across multiple categories, from standard to super-premium, organic to smooth, with entrants from producers of all scales, the competition saw a number of vodka brands awarded Master medals for their superior quality.

While the individual scores of each entrant are not disclosed, these are 10 of the highest ranking medalists recognised in the competition, listed in no particular order.

While some expressions are not standard priced, our judges have given each vodka listed here the seal of approval for offering excellent quality within their respective price categories.

Click through the following pages to view the top 10 best value for money vodkas of 2017.

Polar Ice 90° North

Price: CND$26.25

Owned by Corby Spirit & Wine, Polar Ice 90° North was awarded the first Master medal of the day. One judge said: “I think this is a perfect sipping vodka, and it offers amazing value for money.” Another added: “It has a fantastic nose.”

Vodka Kremlin Award Classic

Price: £35

Described as having a “great texture”, judges happily bestowed a Master medal on Vodka Kremlin Award Classic. The judges were impressed by its “smooth and pure” flavour. Vodka Kremlin Award Classic was created in Russia “specifically for high-end events”.

Pur Vodka

Price: US$43

Pur Vodka received a Master medal in the microdistillery category after judges highlighted its “flinty” profile, noting that it also had a “lovely” balance. According to its website, the Québécois vodka uses local “premium-quality spring water and first-rate raw materials”.

Purity Vodka 51

Price: £40

Purity Vodka 51 was, surely, the darling of the competition, picking up Masters medals in several categories, including ultra-premium, microdistillery, organic, smooth and Europe. Judges noted its “abundance of character” and “feisty” aroma. The panel also said that its creaminess meant it could serve as “the perfect base of a White Russian”.

The Clumsy Bear Vodka

Price: £25

Clumsy Bear Vodka won a Master medal in the European category, after impressing the judges with its “unusual” flavour. One member of the panel said: “You can tell the distiller wants to make something different. There are so many different flavours that make it really memorable.”

AMG Frozen Mild

Price: £9

While there was said to be a “high standard” across the Russia flight, AMG Frozen Mild stood out and was one of the two vodkas in the category to bag a Master medal. Judges gave the award for its “soft texture” and “fresh style”.

Gustav Dill Vodka

Price: £27.90

Gustav Dill Vodka impressed the judges sufficiently to win a Master medal in the flavoured flight. Made in the Finnish city of Kuopio, brand owner Lignell & Piispanen says that as well as using Finnish dill, “its secret lies in aroma distillation”.

Smirnoff Peppermint Twist

Price: US$15.99

A Master medal went to Diageo’s Smirnoff Peppermint Twist, too. The limited-edition vodka has a “cool and sweet candied peppermint aroma”, and is best applied to Christmas cocktails or served as a shot. Don’t forget the candy cane garnish! Other vodka flavours in the Smirnoff portfolio include Grape, Ruby Red Grapefruit, Coconut and Cranberry.

Syabry Chistaya

Price: £4

A Gold medal awarded was also awarded to Syabry Chistaya in the Standard vodka flight. Judges described it as having a “pleasant spike on the nose” and a “clean, creamy” palate. The company says that the vodka has been designed to be shared with friends in relaxed atmospheres; the word Syabry is in fact the Belarusian word for “friends”.

J. J. Whitley Rhubarb Vodka

Price: £17.99

In the flavoured flight, there was also a lot of praise piled on J. J. Whitley Rhubarb Vodka. One judge said of the expression: “I enjoyed the flavour from beginning to end. It was perfectly balanced.” While the topic of flavoured vodka was on the table, another judge noted: “People talk about a ‘flavour fallout’ in vodka, but I don’t think flavoured vodka ever went away – producers just got better.”

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