Review: Tru Organic Vodkas

7Jul/080

Organic spirits continue to swing as a trend: Tru was the first USDA-certified organic brand of vodka in the U.S. Made by Modern Spirits in Monrovia, California, these high-end spirits don't just pay lip service to social consciousness. The bottle uses 25% less glass, the label's made from corn fiber and soy-based ink, and even the shrinkwrap is recyclable. Buy a Tru cocktail at a bar and you'll likely be given a card noting that Modern Spirits has planted a tree on your behalf. They'll do the same thing if you buy a bottle at retail.

Good news: These vodkas -- one standard, two infused, all three totally organic -- are all pretty good. Some tasting notes follow.

Tru Organic Vodka is an 80-proof vodka distilled from American wheat. It's clearly a wheat-based spirit, with a crisp medicinal character, but one that fades quickly from the palate. A very traditional and largely neutral vodka, it's extremely clean and works fine in a variety of cocktails or straight. A-

Tru Organic Lemon - This 70-proof infusion (with hand zested organic California lemons) offers very bright lemon flavor, one that almost tastes of orange-like Meyer lemon. Splendid in a Cosmo or other citrus/juice-based cocktail. A-

Tru Organic Vanilla - Considerably complex, this 70-proof vodka is infused with "hand scraped organic Bourbon vanilla beans." The vanilla flavor is powerful, almost too much so. I got a bit of bitterness from this one alongside the sweetness, but it wouldn't be readily noticeable in a complex cocktail or a coffee drink. As good a vanilla vodka as you're likely to find. B+

$33 each / truvodka.com