Small batch British vodkas: a guide to the best.
Climate positive vodka.
Those of you who have been paying attention will know that sustainability is much more than a ‘nice-to-have’ for all of us at Sapling Spirits: it’s the core of our brand and our reason for being. After all, we started this business as we couldn’t find a premium British vodka with sustainability at its heart. We also felt that the ‘gin explosion’, which brought lots of great artisanal British gin brands to the surface, hadn’t really crossed over to the world of British premium vodka.
Our mission? Less emission.
This presented an opportunity that wouldn’t just benefit us at Sapling Spirits. We knew that creating a world-class sustainable British vodka would prove that importing vodka from overseas—which creates a massive carbon footprint—was totally unnecessary. There is no reason why premium vodka can’t be made here. By choosing to buy British vodka, you’re simultaneously supporting our economy and helping our planet. Which is a long way of saying that homegrown vodka is the way to go for environmentally conscious types who appreciate the finer things in life.
Made in the UK.
Unsurprisingly, we’d prefer everyone to choose Sapling vegan vodka every time, but we’d certainly settle for being the first rather than the only choice. As far as we’re concerned, British vodka becoming the UK connoisseur’s preference can only be a good thing. It’s also worth noting that the horrible situation in Ukraine means that retailers and consumers alike are shunning Russian vodka, so some of you might be looking for more ethical vodka alternatives. The good news is that you’ve come to the right place.
In this blog, we’ll take a look at a couple of fantastic British small batch vodka brands. We’ll dig a little bit into what makes them tick and explore a few of the things that differentiate us from them, and them from each other.
Chase.
Any discussion about small batch British vodka brands has to include Chase. And with good reason: there is so much to admire about their product, their brand and their entrepreneurial flair. The company was founded by William Chase, a potato farmer who’d made his fortune by turning his humble spuds into crisps. When William sold his crisp brand, Tyrrell’s, he decided to have another crack at turning potatoes into something far more exciting, and Chase Distillery was the result. Chase use potatoes to make a vegan vodka that was named the world’s best in the 2010 San Francisco World Spirits Competition. To be fair, we weren’t around then (our founders weren’t even of drinking age), but that’s still an amazing achievement for a British vodka.
The thrill of the chase.
We love Chase and we consider them something of a benchmark. But we are very different. Obviously, there is the ‘potato vs grain’ debate, but the main contrast between us and them is that our brand was born out a desire to do something about the climate crisis. Much as Chase showed the way for premium British vodka brands to compete on the world stage, we hope to become the benchmark for an altogether more climate-positive approach to international drinks manufacturing.
Black Cow.
Black Cow is another example of a great small batch British vodka. These artisan premium vodka producers started out in 2012 and take pride in the fact that they created the ‘world’s first pure milk vodka’. We’re big fans. As well as creating a fine quality, smooth vodka that’s been warmly received by all those in the know, they should also be given credit for their sustainability. From their base in West Dorset countryside, the folks over at Black Cow create premium British vodka using the milk that’s left over after the cheesemaking process. This is a by-product that would otherwise go to waste, so turning it into a fab spirit seems an excellent plan. The unique, smooth taste of Black Cow makes it a popular choice for chefs, as the flavour profile pairs well with all sorts of terrific dishes.
Dairy? Dairy? Quite contrary.
Once again, though, we do have a major point of difference. Not only is Sapling vodka—in our (entirely unbiased) opinion—just as delicious, we have another important feather in our cap. All of us at Sapling Spirits are proud of the fact that our premium vodka and artisan gin is 100% vegan. We’ve always known that, for us, our brand and our customers, vegan vodka is the way to go.
You can have everything.
Well that wraps up our hat-tip to our fellow British small batch vodka aficionados. We envisage a bright future for Sapling and for the wider UK vodka market in which consumers have a wide choice of excellent British spirits options. But, if you’re looking for a perfect tipple, a beautiful bottle, a climate positive impact and an entirely vegan British small batch vodka, there’s really only one brand that ticks all those boxes.
And we all know which one that is.
Love
The Sapling Team
