Product: Absolut Apeach: Another Solid Flavored Vodka - Ahead of the Industry Producer: Absolut Approximate Retail Value: $15 per 750 ml Category: Vodka Country of Origin: Sweden Reviewer: SexHerald Staff The F Words: Flavor – Duh, peachy Feel – Soft and gentle; this is not a vodka that slaps you in the face Finish – Glides down the throat, after the sharp, Absolut-taste at the back of the tongue

Rating:

Vodka purists are set in their ways. Vodka, they feel, should not have any taste at all. Flavors, therefore, are strictly forbidden. I find such reasoning to be idiotic; people should drink what they like. If that means flavored vodka, I say pour yourself a glass and enjoy. The proliferation of flavored vodkas, even by such superpremium brands as Grey Goose, means that I am not alone.

Absolut is the grand-daddy of the flavored vodka market. Thus, when I saw the Absolut Apeach ad at a bus stop outside my favorite cigar shop, I was intrigued. Absolut had brought a new flavor to the table, and I was eager to give it a try. I had high hopes for Absolut Apeach, and I was not disappointed.

Absolut Apeach had a great scent. I knew that it was peach-flavored vodka as soon as I looked at the bottle (duh), but the smell still surprised me. I just hadn’t realized that it would smell like peaches! I have had a number of Absolut’s other flavors, and the scent was not as distinct as it was in the case of Absolut Apeach. Citron, Kurant and Mandarin all had slightly more subdued scents. Apeach was clear and distinct, which helped. Absolut wanted to craft a peach-flavored vodka, and nasally, it worked just fine.

The first sip of Absolut Apeach was consistent with the smell. At the front of my mouth, I tasted peach – lots of peach. The vodka taste didn’t arrive until the sip reached the back of my mouth.

The notion that there is no vodka “taste” is complete and total BS. There is. At the back of your mouth, regardless of the vodka, you always feel and taste a slight twinge. That is the signature that you can use to distinguish one vodka from another. Even flavored vodkas have that taste.

Absolut’s vodkas all have the exact same vodka-back-of-the-tongue-taste. I’m not crazy about Absolut’s, but I don’t find it as repulsive as others. This, ultimately, is why Absolut Apeach wound up with a four-star rating. Based on the feel and the peach, this vodka could have gone up another half star.

When you try Absolut Apeach, I want you to try something. Let a little of the vodka slip under your tongue. It’s pretty wild. You’ll feel a slightly warm, tingly sensation. The peach really comes out as well. This is what makes Absolut Apeach a great flavored vodka. The peach taste with the vodka feel (not the Absolut taste I mentioned above) is spectacular. The back-of-the-tongue taste doesn’t linger, and the swallow is incredibly smooth.

As I finished my second Absolut Apeach, I looked at my schnazzy martini glass. Etched on the inside, so I can read it as I’m about to sip, is a great insight from John Steinbeck:

“When they become delicious you’ve had too many” (from “The Short Reign of Pippin IV").

If Steinbeck is right, I had too many from the first sip! AbsolutApeach

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