A name like Iceberg comes loaded with connotation: The sea, salt air, the Titanic. Lots of maritime ideas in that word.

Funny then that Iceberg Vodka tastes nothing like the ocean from whence it literally came. No, seriously: Iceberg Vodka is called that because the water it’s made with comes from icebergs. (The company says the water, trapped in icebergs for 12,000 years, is ultra pure, 7,000 times more pure than tap water.) That’s the advantage of being made in Canada, I suppose.

It’s actually unclear what the distillate is created from — one presumes mixed, bulk grains — but the end result is a surprisingly clean and — inside the bottle — gimmick-free spirit. [Update – I stand corrected, it’s distilled from Ontario corn.] The nose is mild and indistinct, but that changes on the tongue. Here, strong vanilla notes carry the day, offering caramelized sugar character and a long, semi-sweet finish. There’s little sense of vodka’s traditional medicinal or herbal character here at all; this is a modern spirit with the funk wholly washed out of it. Take that as you’d care to… and go lick an iceberg.

80 proof. New packaging (shown above) as of 2012.

B+ / $18 / iceberg.ca [BUY IT NOW FROM THE WHISKY EXCHANGE]

Iceberg Vodka

$18

8.5

Rating

8.5/10

BUY IT NOW