Issue link: http://digital.copcomm.com/i/960891
52 / the tasting panel / april 2018 VODKA RUSSIAN STANDARD VODKA EPITOMIZES ITS HOME COUNTRY'S PROUD DISTILLING HERITAGE In Pursuit of Purity M ore than just a name, Russian Standard Vodka pays homage to a cultural phenomenon dating back more than 100 years. In the late 1800s, Dimitri Mendeleev, a chemist who formulated one of the first versions of the periodic table, discovered what many considered to be the perfect balance between alcohol and water during his studies on equilibrium. In response, Tsar Alexander III established the "Russian Empire Standard" for vodka in 1894, the benchmark by which all subsequent versions of the spirit would be measured. Just over a century later, entre- preneur Roustam Tariko founded Russian Standard Vodka, which quickly became Russia's number- one premium vodka brand. The legacy of the tsar's original decree lives on at Russian Standard Vodka's state-of-the-art distillation facility in St. Petersburg; built in 2006, the fully-automated distillery utilizes expertly-engineered equipment from around the world. The distillation units are the tallest of any in Europe, which leads to greater purity though its sophis- ticated continuous distillation process in which the vodka runs though natural birch charcoal. It then relaxes in tanks for more than 48 hours before bottling. Russia's natural resources prove equally vital to the finished prod- uct's quality: Just 25 miles north of the Russian Standard Vodka dis- tillery lies Lake Ladoga, the largest freshwater lake in Europe. Formed by 10,000-year-old glaciers, Lake Ladoga sits on a granite basin, preserving the water's softness at levels ideal for vodka production. The Gold Standard In 2010, Tariko launched Russian Standard Gold, a new expression inspired by an ancient recipe that incorporates extracts of Siberian ginseng. Also known as "the golden root," the plant has inspired belief since the 17th century that it lends increased mental alertness and greater physical endurance to those who consume it. Grown and matured in the black soils of the Russian Steppes, slowly-matured winter wheat serves as the mash base for Russian Standard Gold Vodka, producing a clean taste with a subtle grain essence. Russian birch charcoal is employed in the filtra- tion process, leaving a powerfully- flavorful yet pure vodka. "While Russian Standard Gold is great in cocktails, it's so pure and packed with character that it's a pleasure to sip neat or on the rocks," says Giulio Bertozzi, Vice President of by Matt Jackson / photos by Timothy Murray