Need further proof that vodka can be made out of anything? Misadventure Vodka, crafted in San Diego, is the self-proclaimed world’s first vodka made from excess baked goods. That’s right, all those doughnuts and croissants, instead of hitting the trash, are sent to Misadventure’s pot stills to be turned into vodka. The spirit itself is distilled 12 times (odd for a pot still, but whatever), “crafted to remove gluten,” and bottled at 40% abv. It’s a very noble and worthwhile cause, but how does it taste?

In sampling Misadventure, I wish I had better news to report. Sadly, the nose is quite off-putting, musty with notes of canned vegetables, old wool, and wet laundry left in the machine for a week. The palate sees a lot of the same characteristics, but folds in notes of day-old bread, dish soap, and grainy moonshine. At long last, the finish is pungent and skunky, continuing a theme that I needn’t beat to death, I trust.

I wish that good intentions were all it took to make a delicious spirit. Unfortunately, in the case of Misadventure Vodka, the name is, remarkably, all too accurate.

Update 12/2019: Misadventure, suggesting we might have received a bottle from a bad batch, sent a fresh bottle for reconsideration. I definitely felt the new bottle was more approachable, though the vegetal aromas of wet laundry and musty bread were still present. This is probably more attributable to the pot still than the source ingredients, mind you. On the palate, a moonshine character still endures, with a grainy, mushroomy element that’s tough to shake. It’s a clear improvement over my D- rating for the first batch, though it’s still far from “neutral,” and I can’t say it’s a vodka I’d gravitate to.

80 proof.

(updated rating) C / $22 / misadventure.co

Misadventure Vodka

$22

5

Rating

5.0/10