When Chopin Vodka from Poland became widely available in the US, it was the first time I’d had a potato vodka I liked.
Because it had been some years since I’d really considered Chopin, I was interested when I heard they had a created a tasting kit which offered not only their traditional potato vodka, but also their wheat vodka and their rye. Each one is very smooth, but with marked differences in aromas and flavors.
Chopin’s black-topped potato vodka is the most neutral, with a slowly evolving flavor tinged with sweat pear and honey – on the whole a rounder flavor – with a mildly forceful alcohol finish.
The gold-capped Chopin wheat vodka was the least appealing at first, with a faint bitter aroma I identify more with chemicals than with spices. Toffee appears on the palate, and a bit of caraway infuses the finish.
The red-capped Chopin is actually rye, with a faint floral aroma. There’s a nice jelly-on-buttered toast element that deepens on the palate, into a very smooth version of rye whiskey.
AND if you’re in Poland, you can visit the distillery!