Tasting

Vodka made from Kama-region wheat typically tastes soft and slightly sweet on the palate. Careful filtration gives it a clean, short finish. Rye from the more northerly parts of the region, by contrast, brings a spicier, sometimes almost peppery note.

Three examples from Tatspirtprom's range show the range on offer. "Staraya Kazan", meaning "Old Kazan", nods in its name to the historic city and its distilling tradition. "Khanskaya", "the Khan's", recalls the era of the Kazan Khanate before the Russian conquest of 1552. "Goluboye Ozero", "Blue Lake", is named after the actual Blue Lakes, karst spring lakes northwest of Kazan.

In the region, vodka is traditionally tasted chilled, but not ice-cold. Too cold and it numbs the tongue, masking flaws as well as aromas. From a small, narrow glass, one first takes a brief sniff. Then comes a small sip, spread across the palate rather than swallowed straight down.

A well-made vodka barely burns the throat and leaves no bitter or oily aftertaste, either of which would signal incomplete filtration. Sweetness or smoothness alone say little, since both can also be introduced afterward through sugar or glycerin, which the GOST standard permits within certain limits.

Tasting several vodkas from the region side by side usually reveals the differences that a single glass alone rarely does. It's only the second or third vodka in the lineup that shows just how distinct wheat and rye really taste.