Boyd and Blair Vodka: Finally a Vodka that is Worthy of a Brandy Snifter

had the privilege of sitting down the Barry Young, Distilling Master and Co-Owner of Pennsylvania Pure Distilleries, makers of Boyd and Blair Vodka. It is not often that you get to pick the brain of a man who not only makes the product, but who was also there when it was born. It took only a matter of seconds to see that Boyd and Blair Vodka is not only his livelihood, but also his passion.

Barry is one half of the label for Boyd and Blair Vodka(see tasting notes at bottom of page). If you have not heard of it, join the club. It is a boutique vodka that has only been on the market since August 15th 2008 and there have only been 18,000 bottles produced so far. If you are lucky enough to have one of these bottles, all you need to do to see how serious Mr. Young is about his vodka is to look on the label. Each and every bottle is approved by him personally and actually signed off on when it has finally met his standards.

Boyd and Blair Vodka is potato based vodka that has some very unique characteristics to it. I will be perfectly honest, I was very skeptical about how this product was going to taste coming from such a small company and knowing how rough potato vodka's can be. Chopin is one of the few high end Potato vodka's on the market and it is far from smooth.

As Mr. Young starts to describe the distilling process, it is extremely apparent that this is not going to be any ordinary vodka. They use only local potatoes and have a single 1,200 liter copper still. You are reading it right, they make their vodka one 1,200 liter batch at a time. There is no fancy plant and no modern machinery to make errors. The taste of the vodka is solely the responsibility of Mr. Young. He actually cuts his vodka by taste only!

If you are familiar with the distilling process, there are three basic parts to any batch: The head, the hearts and the tail. While some companies will re-circulate the tails (the harsh well tasting part of the vodka), Boyd and Blair is made solely from the hearts of the brew. This means that you get nothing but the purest and best tasting part of each and every batch.

Now as I alluded to earlier, this a family owned and operated distillery. All the potatoes are hand mashed and each batch takes about 2 ½ to 3 days to complete. The vodka is triple distilled and charcoal filtered to ensure the best flavor. When the vodka is ready for bottling, the family gets called into the distillery and put to work. "We buy them lunch, give them some coffee and they get to take a bottle of the latest batch home with them" says Mr. Young with a giggle. "Everyone gets a job, some are pourers, some put the tops on." It is proof again about how passionate and personal that this man takes his product. I just get the feeling that if he can't be overseeing the entire process, the process and the product are not worth it. Doing it the way that he does it ensures that only the best is going into each and every bottle that is produced.

When I asked Mr. Young where he sees his product going, he was adamant that "we want to remain a boutique vodka and be associated with the best. We will make about 36,000-40,000 bottles this year and we honestly do not see ourselves going past that point at this time. While we want to expand our market, we don't want it to get to the point of just 'manufacturing' our vodka like some of the other companies."

In response to how he would drink the vodka himself, "I usually drink my vodka on the rocks and that is how I would drink this. It really doesn't need anything else." He went further to explain several cocktails that they make with Boyd and Blair Vodka and all are based on pure ingredients that will allow the great flavor of this vodka to stand alone. After tasting the vodka, I could understand what he was talking about. The flavor is very unique and extremely smooth, not just for a potato vodka, but for any vodka that I have ever had.

You can only get the true nature of vodka when you drink it at room temperature. If it has a bite, it is going to show up, but more importantly, the subtle flavors that may be covered up with a slight chill will get the opportunity to peak out and let you know they are there. Have one sip of Boyd and Blair Vodka and you will soon realize that this in one of the few vodkas that can truly stand on its own.

While Boyd and Blair Vodka is currently only available in about half of the liquor stores in Pennsylvania and about 75 stores in Ohio, they do have plans to expand their market. But as stated earlier, Mr. Young wants to keep this vodka a unique vodka and they have no desire to get it past the 40,000 bottle/yr. mark. Anything over that would mean that they would have to change the way they make it and he has no intentions of doing that. He is quite happy to make his vodka one single batch at a time. When you taste it, you will happy he decided to do it that way.

Tasting notes
The bouquet is very unique. Subtle floral notes with a slightly perceptible sweetness in the air. As the vodka hits your palate, it is as though a lemon and grapefruit had been mashed together and lightly coated with sugar. It has a long, inviting finish as the grapefruit takes over and stands on its own. It will easily hold its own against any premium vodka on the market today. In fact, it is worthy of being served in a brandy snifter.

Serving recommendations
This is vodka that can truly stand on its own. If you prefer it chilled, put it in a jigger with some ice and violently shake it to open the flavor and pour into a martini glass. DO NOT add vermouth because you will be covering up the natural flavors of the vodka. It will also be perfect on the rocks to be sipped slowly. Boyd and Blair also have several drink recipes that are available for your enjoyment.