Drink of the Week: Verità Vodka Italiana

In my nine years of contributing to this column, I realized I have recommended a bottle of vodka just once. That’s not to say that I don’t keep vodka on hand, and plenty of bartenders espouse the merits of a vodka Martini. So when a bottle of Verità Vodka Italiana crossed my desk, my interest was piqued, not least because Italy isn’t exactly the first country you associate with vodka.

Produced exclusively for wine importer Dalla Terra, the Verità Vodka is made by Distilleria dell’Alpe, a family-run distillery in the eastern Italian Alps. The vodka is made using 100-percent Italian wheat and triple distilled. It then undergoes a fourth distillation in their wood-fired bain-marie still. The distillery avoids any chill filtration to better preserve the flavor profile and texture of the vodka. The resulting spirit is crisp and clean with subtle notes of cracked pepper and vanilla and an almost silky texture.

The second thing that caught my attention was the spirit’s impressive accolades: Verità Vodka not only took Double Gold at this year’s San Francisco World Spirits Competition, it was also named Best-in-Class among nearly 300 vodka entries. The final intriguing detail was the price tag—less than $25 for a liter. A delicious craft vodka at a very reasonable price? You better believe I’m about to make a big batch of freezer Martinis. $21.96, astorwines.com