Belvedere Vodka 101: Infusion

HOMEWARD BOUND

As I mentioned before, I do love London and certainly consider it as my second home. That being said, I will always be an American girl and New York will always be my first love. I’ve spent the past week in the lovely NY Summer heat catching up on odds and ends with ICS while looking forward to my impending vacation which starts…right…NOW!

So now I bid you all a happy August holiday full of sun, sand, relaxation, and of course, Belvedere. I’ll be back after Labor Day, hope you don’t miss me too much. I’ll leave you with a tune by the great Tom Petty, I think you know the one.

MAGICAL MACERATION LAND

As I discussed in a previous post, Belvedere comes from the birthplace of vodka, Poland. But what about Belvedere Macerations, our wonderful range of all-natural flavors? This is where things can get a bit confusing, well not really, just stick with me…

At Belvedere Vodka we are committed to doing things right and in accordance with tradition. Just as we went to Poland, a country with over 600 years of vodka distilling expertise, to produce our mother brand, we went to the South of France, a place where they’ve been producing flavored spirit, eau-du-vie, and cognac for hundreds of years, when we wanted to branch out into the world of flavored vodka. You see, Poland doesn’t have a history of flavoring spirit the way that France does, so we felt that it would be best to bring in the experts to help us achieve the very best flavored vodka available.

Sooooooo, in the tiny medieval town of Turenne, just a couple hours south of Limoges (yes, yes, the place where they make all the porcelain plates) is our picturesque distillery, Distillerie des Terres Rouges. It is here that the incomparable Claire Smith (ICS as she will heretofore be referred) works with Axel and the gang to create latest and greatest Belvedere Macerations. 

The best part about all of this is that every year we take a select few lucky bartenders to visit this great place that ICS and I affectionately refer to as Magical Maceration Land. Our first trip was full of London’s greatest, Rachel from Whistling Shop, James from LCC and Thomas from Callooh Callay just to name a few. There was a blend-your-own Belvedere session, a tour of the mustard museum, and even a medieval dress-up session (see pictures below for proof!). Special thanks to Max and James from MHUK for being the team chaperones…now has anyone seen Max’s shoe?

TOTC

For those of you in the know, the letters T O T C can only stand for one thing, Tales of the Cocktail. Every July thousands of bartenders and drink enthusiasts descend upon New Orleans for what can only be described as industry Christmas. It’s the one time of the year when all the brands and brand ambassadors alike come together at the Hotel Monteleone to celebrate and give thanks for the creation of the first cocktail without which none of us would have jobs, or social lives for that matter! There are seminars about bitters and ice, there are costume balls, theme parties and even awards ceremonies, but most of all Tales is a great place to network, meet new friends and catch up with old ones; the friends you never get to see because they all do the same crazy job that you do and are always in some far flung corner of the globe.

This year was my first Tales and all I can say is, I’m glad I survived. See you kids at Alibi next year. This means you John Gakuru, Jake Burger, Nick Van Tiel, and the list goes on…

BELVEDERE ALL OVER THE WORLD

Just back from yet another great company meeting, this time in Cognac, with the good folks from Latin America, South America, Middle East, Africa and Canada. All I can say is WOW, do these guys know how to party! These yearly meetings are a great chance for everyone from all over the world to get together and share all the global Belvedere highlights, as well as put faces to names we often only see in email. Plus, let me just say, Team Belvedere is full of lots of cool people!

IMBIBE LIVE!

As most of you reading this blog probably know, Imbibe is a trade magazine that provides us bar geeks with all the latest info about drink trends, recipes, who’s who, etc. It’s also a useful tool for those of you not in the business who may want to throw a very impressive cocktail party and wow all of your friends.

This year was the 2^nd Annual Imbibe Live trade show at Earl’s Court in London where over 7,000 trade buyers visited and more than 1000 brands exhibited. Of course Belvedere was there to represent, and quite stylishly if I do say so myself. Check out some pictures from the event and gawk over the beautiful stand designed with the help of the visionary Nick Ambridge, Senior UK Brand Manager.

TO INFINITY AND BEYOND

I’m exhausted. It’s been a long couple of weeks on the road. This one’s going to be short and sweet because let’s be honest, pictures speak louder than words.

But before I go, thanks to everyone at RMM Europe, it feels great to be part of such a cool company that we have yearly marketing meetings in Champagne! Thanks once again to the awesome staff at the Belvedere Hotel in Mykonos for once again hosting me and allowing me to “entertain” your patient guests enjoying their Nobu sushi. And a huge thank you to Malu and team Netherlands for showing me parts of the country I never knew existed. Finally, thanks to Pieter Van Veldhoven in Maastricht for being the most awesome barback a girl could ask for. By the way, my boyfriend loved the Vespa keyring so thanks for the suggestion Pieter ;)

Enjoy the photos everyone!

SO MUCH TO EXPLORE

For those skeptics out there who assume I am some kind of homeless nomad hopping around the globe, jumping from one hotel and bar to the next, I would like to clear up the rumors by stating that I do have a home base, London. Yes it’s true that I see my flat mate 5 days a month if I’m lucky (Hi Harry!) and he has accused me of being some kind of international super spy (shhhhhhh don’t tell), but since March, when I left my dearest love on the other side of the Atlantic (New York City you’ll always be my #1), I am pleased to say that I quite like calling London my (second) home.

And while London may be the cocktail epicenter for the UK and according to some, the whole of Europe, I am happy to report that the rest of this Great United Kingdom (of Britain…switched it around on you there!) is not far behind. Earlier this year I visited the South of the country, from Brighton to Bristol, Cambridge to Cardiff and even Cornwall, and was blown away by the level of cocktail expertise I witnessed. The guys and gals over at Above Audio in Brighton wowed me with their use of Belvedere’s Macerations + mystery ingredients, while the dudes at 8 Bar down in Cornwall were so knowledgeable about Belvedere they could have trained me!

Just last week I got the opportunity to explore the North when I checked out Edinburgh, Glasgow, Manchester, Leeds and Birmingham. Scotland was nothing short of beautiful and the cocktails I enjoyed at the Blythswood Hotel in Glasgow were nothing short of amazing. Back in England, I judged an incredible team competition at Epernay in Manchester (huge props to Nate Booker for all the hard work!), with the boys from Socio Rehab taking home the grand prize and visited the newest venue from bartender/bar owner extraordinaire, Jake Burger in Leeds. And I can’t forget to give a shout out to the boys in Birmingham.

Peace, Love, and Belvedere.

A FAR AWAY LAND…

Some of you may be wondering, where does this Belvedere Vodka she keeps talking about come from? And what’s it all about? I mean sure it’s delicious and comes in a beautiful bottle, but who makes the stuff and what can I do with it?

Well, here are some fast facts and quick tips about the vodka we all know and love:

BIRTHPLACE: Zyrardow, Poland

RAW MATERIAL: 100% Dankowskie Rye

BUILDING ON THE BOTTLE: The Presidential Belweder Palace in Warsaw

HOW SHOULD I ENJOY IT: There are many ways to enjoy Belvedere, but why not shake up a twist on the classic Cosmopolitan, the Belvedere Pink Cosmo. After all, it was good enough for Carrie and the girls! 

Belvedere Pink Cosmo

1.5 oz Belvedere Pink Grapefruit
¼ oz Triple Sec (orange liqueur)
¼ oz lime juice
½ oz Cranberry juice

Shake all ingredients with ice and strain into a chilled martini glass. 
Garnish with a pink grapefruit twist.

Oh right, so who does make the stuff? Alongside my boss, the incomparable Claire Smith (she’ll be mentioned a lot in this blog so may as well introduce her now), the good folks over at our distillery, Polmos Zyrardow, are the ones to thank for producing such an unsurpassed and remarkable libation.

I recently went to visit the crew over in Poland to teach them how to make a few simple cocktails and was pleasantly surprised to find that these guys knew a bit more than they were letting on! Check out the snaps below to see Agnieszka and the gang mixing up the aforementioned Belvedere Pink Cosmo as well as a few other simple serves.

THE HILLS ARE ALIVE!

From sunny Greece to just as sunny and picturesque Austria!

With Gesa and the rest of MH Austria (what an awesome team!) as my hosts, I enjoyed traditional Austrian cuisine in Salzburg, as well as gorgeous views of those hills made famous by Maria and the gang. I also had the pleasure of checking out a bit of Vienna’s cocktail scene, (Halbestadt Bar anyone?!) before venturing over to owner, Erich Wassicek’s, private supper club inside Vienna’s very first speakeasy. His gracious wife cooked a delicious five-course dinner while Erich shook up a different Belvedere cocktail, of his own creation no less, to pair with each course. The food, drinks, and the hospitality made for one unforgettable experience.

Oh! And I was even lucky enough to shake a cocktail beside Erich himself. Thanks for the memories.