Black Cow Vodka Review
Last week I attended a press event for another matter and got to meet Rob Fawshaw, an investor for Black Cow Vodka. I was extremely interested in this unique sounding spirit. Vodka from Cow’s Milk? What will they think of next!?
The fact street for Black Cow Vodka describes it as ‘made in West Dorset on England’s south west coast, Black Cow is the world’s first pure milk vodka, made from the milk of grass grazed cows and nothing else. Black Cow is an award-winning, super premium, crystal clear vodka with a smooth and creamy character. Milk VodkaTM is the invention of West Dorset dairy farmer Jason Barber. His inspiration came from a desire to diversify the produce from his 250 strong dairy herd and his personal interest in vodka. Black Cow was founded in May 2012 by Jason and Creative, Paul Archard. Most vodka is made from grain or potato whereas Black Cow is uniquely made entirely from milk. The milk is separated into curds and whey. The whey, which contains the sugar needed to produce alcohol, is fermented, using a special yeast, into a milk beer. The milk beer is then distilled and treated to Black Cow’s secret blending process. The vodka is triple filtered and finished before being hand bottled. The vodka has no additives or flavourings, is gluten free and is suitable for those with lactose intolerance, as all the milk sugar (lactose) has been converted into alcohol’.
There is literally no waste products with this vodka as the curds are used to make Black Cow Vintage Cheddar and then the Whey is converted into vodka. With this information in mind, I was excited to try a sustainable and fascinating product.
The PR Company happily sent me a bottle of Black Cow Vodka to try and after an extremely taxing day at work, it was time for my first sample. My housemate was happy to help me out on this task. The bottle is absolutely lovely and I loved the Gold Lid. Made me feel like I was going to be drinking fancy vodka. Which I totally was. We tried Black Cow Vodka two ways. Straight and as a ‘Cranberry and Vodka’. I wanted to try out some of the recommended cocktails but didn’t have the ingredients, so that will be my next challenge.
Straight, the vodka had a lovely creamy smell to it and not that alcohol smell I usually associate vodka. It was smooth, just has advertised. While there was the warmth, one usually gets when sipping straight spirits…. There definitely wasn’t a burn and it had a creamy aftertaste. Probably not unexpected given the vodka is made from milk but it was extremely pleasant.The creamy, almost vanilla taste to the vodka didn’t taste artificial or overly sweet like some vanilla or whipped cream flavoured vodkas. It was very easy to drink… which could prove dangerous on a night out.
Our Vodka and Cranberries were just as good. The vodka in these drinks wasn’t overpowering and added that extra vanilla taste to the cranberry juice. I’m less of a vodka drinker these days and enjoy my Gin a lot more, but Black Cow Vodka is in the running to change that and has me re-converted me back to Vodka. My house mate and I loved it. I don’t think this bottle will last long, which is such a shame as it’s definitely a vodka that deserves to be savoured.
Price and stockists – Black Cow Vodka: RRP £31.75 for 70cl. ABV 40% Black Cow 50cl Gift Pack with Vintage Cheddar Cheese & Quince RRP £50.00 : 1,000 retail stores across the UK including Marks & Spencer, Sainsbury’s, Majestic, Fortnum & Mason, Selfridges, Berry Bros. & Rudd and quality independent retailers.
For more information about Black Cow Vodka visit http://www.blackcow.co.uk/ You can also book a Black Cow Distillery and Lunch Package for two which sounds absolutely divine and is on my wish list for next year.
Reporter: Tegan LeBon
Twitter and Instagram: @toogs1
Facebook: @blackcowvodka Twitter: @BlackCowVodka Instagram: @blackcowvodka
