Know your Vodka

With the crisis in the Ukraine we know that many of you want to more about what you might be drinking. Nick Griffin, CEO of The Licensees Association, has put together this info on the top selling Russian and non-Russian vodkas so that you know what’s what!

TOP SELLING RUSSIAN VODKAS

Stolichnaya Vodka is made in Latvia, and the brand is owned by a company called S.P.I. Group, that is headquartered in Luxembourg. Stolichnaya Vodka is owned by Russian billionaire Yuri Shefler who lives in Switzerland, he has publicly rowed with Russian President Vladimir Putin on a number of occasions.

Russian Standard Vodka is owned by the Roust Corporation, which is headquartered in Moscow and owned by Russian oligarch Roustam Tariko, who also owns Russian Standard Bank.

Beluga Group was founded Alexander Mechetin who is a Board Member of the Russian Union of Alcohol Producers. Beluga is made in the Mariinsk distillery in Siberia. The group is headquartered in Moscow and listed on the Moscow Exchange.

TOP SELLING NON-RUSSIAN VODKAS

Absolut was founded in 1879 by Swedish politician Lars Olsson Smith. The brand was bought in 2008 by Pernod Ricard, but is still headquartered in Åhus, in Southern Sweden.

Ketel One is made by the Nolet Distillery in Schiedam in the West Netherlands. The distillery was founded in 1691 by the Nolet family, who emigrated from the French Revolution to the Netherlands.

Grey Goose was founded in 1997 by American businessman, Sidney Frank, who made his fortune by securing import rights of Jägermeister into the US. Grey Goose’s Cellar Master was born-and-bred in Cognac, France, and stayed on after the brand was sold to Bacardi in 2004.

Smirnoff was bought by Diageo in 1997 and since then no production takes place in Russia. Pyotr Smirnov founded his vodka distillery in Moscow in 1864, but his family was forced to flee Russia during the October Revolution of 1917 and re-established the brand outside of Russia, now in Great Britain.

Eristoff Vodka was first made in Georgia for a Georgian Prince. The logo of the howling wolf is a nod to the grey wolf, which is deeply embedded in Georgian folklore. Eristoff Vodka is now produced in France.