While other clear spirits like tequila and gin have seen their popularity soar in recent years, vodka remains America’s best-selling spirit. And it’s easy to understand why — it’s the star component in several of the world’s most popular cocktails, including the Bloody Mary, the Cosmopolitan, and, of course, the now ever-trending Espresso Martini.
To ensure your loved ones have a top-notch bottle on hand to sip neat or shake into their favorite vodka-based concoctions, we narrowed the field down to seven of the best bottles to give this December. From wine-based vodkas offering hints of sweetness to punchy, higher-proof bottlings with impressive texture, these are the seven best vodkas to gift this holiday season.
Best Budget Vodka: Thatcher’s Organic Artisan Spirits Small Batch Vodka
Best Splurge Vodka: Chopin Vodka Family Reserve
Best Vodka for Beginners: Reyka Vodka
Best Vodka for Geeks: Hinterhaus Distilling North Grove Vodka
Best Vodka for Cocktail Lovers: Hard Cut Vodka
Best Vodka to Impress: The Reid Single Malt Vodka
Best Vodka for Tequila: Crystal Head Onyx
Best Budget Vodka
Thatcher’s Organic Artisan Spirits Small Batch Vodka
Established in Temperance, Mich., in 2009, Thatcher’s produces a wide range of fruit liqueurs in addition to this impressive, budget-friendly vodka. Distilled entirely from organic Midwest corn, it has relatively neutral aromas, but delivers a pleasant, subtle sweetness on the palate. Priced under $20, this bottle is a good choice for drinks like Vodka Sodas and Vodka Gimlets.
Average Price: $18
Rating: 90
Best Splurge Vodka
Chopin Vodka Family Reserve
Poland’s Chopin Vodka is widely considered to be the world’s first super-premium vodka, and the Family Reserve bottling demonstrates why the brand is a category pioneer. It’s distilled from a rare variety of young potatoes grown at the Chopin estate before something unusual happens — it’s laid down to age. Each batch of Chopin Family Reserve is matured for two years in 50-year-old Polish oak barrels before getting hand-bottled at 40 percent ABV. Rather than imbuing the spirit with typical oak-influenced aromas and flavors, the casks function to soften the spirit’s mouthfeel, resulting in a harmonious vodka with pops of fruit and a lengthy finish.
Average Price: $130
Rating: 94
Best Vodka for Beginners
Reyka Vodka
This small-batch Icelandic vodka is clean and refreshing, an ideal option for enjoying straight from the freezer or mixed into cocktails. It’s crafted from a base of wheat and barley and distilled through a rare Carter-Head still using the country’s abundant glacial spring water. The high concentration of copper in the stills gives the spirit a smooth mouthfeel that’s further enhanced as the vodka is subsequently filtered through volcanic rock. Bottled at 40 percent ABV, Reyka Vodka is crisp and mineral-rich, offering an approachable palate for beginners at a wallet-friendly price tag.
Average Price: $19
Rating: 91
Best Vodka for Geeks
Hinterhaus Distilling North Grove Vodka
Vodka can be distilled from almost anything. If you’re looking to surprise your favorite spirits guru with something unexpected this holiday season, consider this California-made vodka distilled from local wine. Given the base ingredient, the spirit is expectedly fruit-forward, drinking more like an unaged grape distillate than it does a vodka. On the nose, aromas of candied fruits lead the charge before a bright, herbal, and mineral-rich palate takes over.
Average Price: $33
Rating: 94
Best Vodka for Cocktail Lovers
Hard Cut Vodka
Co-founded by actor Dolph Lundgren and his wife Emma Krokdal, Hard Cut Vodka comes in at a hefty 45 percent ABV, 5 percent higher than industry standard. But it’s not just its proof that makes Hard Cut an attractive pick for vodka-based cocktails. It’s also the vodka’s impressive character. Distilled from Idaho russet potatoes, Hard Cut delivers crisp and clean flavors on a creamy, viscous palate that demands use in spirit-forward cocktails like Martinis and Vespers. It packs a punch Ivan Drago could never counter.
Average Price: $30
Rating: 92
Best Vodka to Impress
The Reid Single Malt Vodka
“Single malt” is typically a distinction given to whiskies, but New Zealand’s The Reid applies the same philosophy to vodka production. The Reid Single Malt Vodka is produced from just three ingredients — New Zealand malted barley, alpine water, and yeast — and undergoes a long, 70-hour fermentation before it’s distilled through German-made column stills. Bottled at 44 percent ABV, the vodka is refined and elegant, with strong citrus and orchard fruit flavors that are best appreciated when enjoyed neat.
Average Price: $90
Rating: 94
Best Vodka for Tequila Lovers
Crystal Head Onyx
This bottling from the instantly recognizable Crystal Head brand is distilled from 100 percent blue agave, leading to a profile that meets at the crossroads of vodka and tequila. On the nose, grassy and earthy aromas lead the charge and transfer onto the palate where they’re joined by pops of peppery spice and honey. Despite the vodka’s entry-level proof, it’s a solid choice for Dirty Martinis, with the agave backbone putting a fun, vegetal spin on the classic cocktail.
Average Price: $55
Rating: 91
