Nothing's Virgin Here

The Significance Of Grey Goose Vodka’s Production Method

Major brands and craft distilleries bring out new techniques and combinations to stand out from the rest. Whereas, some brands like to rejoice the traditional processes passed down by one generation to the other. Why is the production method important? Because each step plays a significant role in deciding the outcome. When it comes to vodka it is stated as a game changer, laws have been rewritten to state that a vodka is no longer just a clear and flavorless spirit. Now the law gives more importance to the production method instead of the result. Tycoons of the vodka industry like Grey Goose Vodka deliver premium quality craft spirit to their consumers. There’s just so much to encompass but one thing that shines in their process is the ‘single distillation’ step.

‘GREY GOOSE ‘was created in 1997 by Sidney Frank and the brand’s Maître de Chai (Cellar Master), Francois Thibault. It was acquired by Bacardi in 2004.’

By Bacardi Limited

The story of Grey Goose Vodka which is marked as 100% traceable from crop to cork, started in the year 1997. Established by Sidney Frank and the Maître de Chai – Francois Thibault. The cellar master, Francois was inspired by his training and went on to create a vodka that expresses a phenomenal taste true to it’s ingredients. The concept was to deliver a vodka with each step visible to the one sipping it. 

Today, Grey Goose Vodka is produced at the gastronomy capital of the world. Wondering where that is? France. Although, this brand is popular and has a lot of things to feel proud about. The most vital character of their vodka is these two things :

  1. Two ingredients 
  2. Single distillation. 

Are you thinking how two ingredients and a production method create a spirit with such hype? To understand this, let us dig a little deeper and read about where it all starts. 

The Production method of Grey Goose Vodka 

To create something that is deemed to be so successful requires careful planning and administration. Francois believed that soft winter wheat (wheat that is sown in autumn and harvested 9 months later during mid-simmer) is deemed to be the best grain for a spirit that is balanced nutritionally as well as in flavor. The wheat for this vodka comes from the Picardie region in France. The reason behind this exact location is the perfect terroir suitable for soft winter wheat production. Picardie is also known as ‘the breadbasket of France’. 

The process starts with harvesting of the crops from the Picardie region in France. The harvest takes place in late July or early August. Moving to the next step, the process of milling the wheat is done at Grey Goose distillery in order to capture all of its flavor. Whole wheat grain is used in the process which imparts a rich flavor. After the milling is completed, the wheat encounters liquefaction and saccharification. These long terms describe the process of breaking the starch content of the wheat into glucose by using natural enzymes. Well now is the time when it enters the major steps. The wheat-mash full of glucose is transformed into ‘low-alcohol’ bread wine that has an ABV of 10%.

A specifically selected strain of yeast is used and is responsible for the flavour and aroma of the spirit. We use a custom designed ‘cascade’ system where fermentation takes place across a series of six containers, giving François greater control and tighter analysis at each stage.’

By Grey Goose Vodka

Single Distillation – After the fermentation process comes the distilling part. The distillation process used here is a 5-stage process meticulously designed by Francois. The significance of single distillation is the complete-control and transparency of their ingredients. Grey Goose doesn’t use a spirit distilled by someone else and therefore only requires single distillation. The distillation takes place in columns made of copper and steel. 

The beauty of this vodka is added after the distillation process. Natural spring water is added from the distillery’s own well – Gensac-La-Pallue. It is naturally filtered by limestones that remove any pollutants or impurities. The distillery takes it a step ahead by filtering it with double reverse osmosis i.e demineralizing the water. All of this reduces the water Ph level from 7.5 to 5 and well it’s worth it. 

‘Prior to bottling, the blended spirit is passed once through a filter of cellulose and active carbon. This is a light “polishing” designed to keep the flavour in. The spirit is then left to rest, before being bottled. While other vodkas may make use of additives, we don’t add anything in. It’s just wheat and water.’

By Grey Goose Vodka

The ABV of this spirit is 40% and is available in 50ml, 200 ml, 375 ml, 750 ml, 1 L and 1.75 L variants. 

Grey Goose Vodka is a brand that controls each and every step of its premium spirits production. Consumers can see what they are drinking and for the ones who haven’t tasted this vodka yet, this article gives you many reasons why Grey Goose Vodka is the perfect brand when it comes to vodka. Numerous tasting sessions are done throughout the process, to be exact 550 sessions as declared by the brand. 

Grey Goose Vodka is a brand with precision and dedication towards delivering the best with a transparency to the whole process and the end result speaks superiority mixed with deliciousness. 

5 1 vote
Article Rating
Subscribe
Notify of
guest

0 Comments
Inline Feedbacks
View all comments
0
Would love your thoughts, please comment.x
()
x