Drink of the Week: Airem Organic Vodka

There were times when I would have rather been seen with gum in my hair than vodka in my drink. In the aughts, when I moved to New York, the craft cocktail revolution was in full swing. Rye was ascendant, and many of the city’s most discerning bartenders scoffed at vodka.

Thankfully, pendulums swing, times change, and cocktail culture has matured. (I’d like to believe I have as well.) These days, the best bar pros and cocktail enthusiasts encourage everyone to enjoy well-crafted versions of whatever they like, be it a classic Manhattan, a mezcal Old Fashioned, or bubbly vodka soda. To me, it all serves as a wonderful reminder that you can be devoted to quality drinks without taking yourself too seriously.  

Besides, there are some seriously great vodkas out there. Recently, I was particularly struck by Airem Organic Vodka, a wheat-based spirit from Spain. Distilled in copper stills with Sierra Nevada mountain spring water, it has a citrusy nose and finish, plus a light body that still holds up in drinks. I love to highlight its vegetal notes in savory cocktails like Bloody Marys, an herbaceous Vodka Collins, or, when I’m feeling especially iconoclastic, an ice-cold Dirty Martini. $29.99, missionliquor.com