Review: VuQo Vodka

Review: VuQo Vodka

Review: VuQo Vodka

VuQo is distilled from coconut nectar.

It is not coconut flavored vodka.

Distilled in the Philippines (that’s two firsts!) using updated methods used to make a sort of Filipino coconut tequila, this vodka is quite neutral and, unfortunately, a bit less exciting than the story behind it.

The nose hints at sweetness, perhaps with tropical overtones. But a sip reveals a vodka that still carries a lot of Old World medicinality in it. This astringency grows as you drink it, masking any of island notes it might have had on the nose. The finish offers a bit of relief from this onslaught, though. It turns back to sugar and, for the first time, offers a hint of the spirit’s coconutty origins.

Overall it’s a perfectly credible vodka, but probably one better served as a mixer than neat.

80 proof.

B / $25 / vuqo.com

VuQo Vodka

$25
8

Rating

8.0/10

A veteran journalist, the author of four books, a published poet, and an award-winning winemaker, Christopher Null has more than 25 years of experience writing about wine and spirits. He founded Drinkhacker in 2007. He also writes regularly about the science of booze for WIRED and is an occasional contributor to ADI's Distiller magazine. He has been a judge for both the American Distilling Institute Judging of Craft Spirits and Whiskies of the World spirits competitions and often works as a consultant, developing formal tasting notes for spirits brands around the world.

3 Comments

  1. Correction on March 9, 2013 at 2:19 pm

    where did you get tequila from? the philippine name for this variety of alcohol is called, lambanog.

    tequila is a completely different alcohol made from cacti. dude, your credibility just went out the door –

  2. Correction on March 9, 2013 at 2:26 pm

    oh, p.s. – equally galling – the blue agave plant (from which tequila is derived) is from another part of the world – particularly the southwest americas. this type of alcohol, the lambanog, is derived from one of two largest coconut producers in the world located in southeast asia. get it right if you’re going to post a review.

  3. Christopher Null on March 9, 2013 at 4:59 pm

    “Tequila” is used as a euphemism here — “a sort of Filipino coconut tequila” — meant as a reference to the production process. I was not remotely trying to imply that this was made from agave but rather that it is distilled from a regional plant. Sorry if you didn’t get my prose.

Leave a Comment





This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.