Notes: Well, we finally got around to reviewing the vodka a lot of people have been waiting for us to do.

This vodka is produced in the Cognac using French wheat. The creation of the late Sydney Frank, a marketing genius who took a otherwise unremarkable vodka and recast and branded it as the best vodka ever. Using and continuing to trumpet a review and rating from a well respected review panel well after the brand had been surpassed in reviews by numerous others by the same panel, and using his usual savvy and bales of money on advertising, Mr Frank made Grey Goose into the dominant vodka brand through a number of shrewd moves.

Subsequently he sold the brand to Bacardi for 2.2 BILLION dollars, handed out some staggering bonus’s to his staff, donated money to a number of charities, retired (at age 86) and since he was too old to play the game of golf he so dearly enjoyed, hired three golf pros to play golf so he could watch. The man had class.

Bacardi has since continued to market the brand, which continues to dominate the market – mostly because of hype and an emperors clothes mentality among the general public. So many of them believe that it must be the greatest because everyone believes it so it must be so – a closed loop of stupidity and blindness. While Grey Goose was decent in its day, there is a general feeling/consensus among vodka reviewers and others who have not bought into the hype that Grey Goose has declined over the years. I remember it being OK but not remarkable in it’s day. Now with this review I have to agree with its’ other nonfans – it seems to have declined from a overpriced if decent vodka to a even more overpriced vodka of lesser quality than it was.

There has been a huge explosion of brands since the Grey Goose review and rating they used in their marketing. “The worlds best tasting vodka” is not a truth, but a trademarked slogan used by Grey Goose in their advertising.

Appearance: Crystal clear, no sediment whatsoever. On swirling, it leaves a thin clear coat on the inside of the glass with a scalloped edge developing, then long thin legs.

First Impression: Alcohol, rather thin, characterless, food grade ethanol with little bouquet to it, touch of vanilla, that’s about it. Lacking nuance or much of anything else.

Taste: Touch of sweetness and vanilla, cheap alcohol taste, slightly oily but thin body .

Drinks: Grim. Doesn’t add anything I would consider a positive to a drink. Not much flavor, (even for a vodka), body, or much else. Odorless, tasteless and bland. Perfect for the fear of flavor Vodka Bots.

Bottle: Tall cylindrical frosted glass ( the look almost everyone else has since copied) with a blue cap with synthetic cork. If you can’t recognize it at a distance you must have been living under a rock or in jail for the last 25 years or so.

Final Thoughts: Just do some blind taste tastes of vodka of different vodkas at room temperature and think for yourself. While Grey Goose was not a bad vodka per se, as I remember it when it first came out , it was over priced and overhyped at that time. Now it has fallen even further in my opinion. It is at best a bland, cheap tasting, vodka. There are many other vodkas out there that are far better and more interesting for less money. Stick a fork in that Avian Fashion Victim Vodka – it’s done.

Website: http://www.geygoose.com  

Ridiculously long (and pointless) intro, lots of flash and hype. Plenty of drink recipes (vodka, add flavors, etc.,) but not a lot of solid information on production or distillery- just blanket statements. Fairly pointless. Points for having a accessible version (one of the very few companies to do so)!