Belvedere vodka
The First Lady of Vodka: Claire Smith of Belvedere
January 22, 2013 - 1:02am | by Daniel Priseman
I’m not generally good at interviews, as most of my conversations seem to take place over a drink or three, and I generally forget to take notes or press the record button. That being said there are a few people in the drinks industry who truly inspire me, so I’ve decided from time-to-time I should share their stories on b&t. One character whom I find remarkable is a good friend of b&t, Claire Smith, of Belvedere Vodka.
If you’ve been lucky enough to spend any time around Claire, then you’ll now that she’s a pretty disarming character; she’s personable, friendly, quick to laugh and quick to drink… basically all the qualities you’d expect from someone whose role includes, (but is not limited to) being the Brand Ambassador for one of the world’s leading super-premium vodkas. What you might not have realised at first glance, is that there’s a lot more to what she does than meets the eye.
Love it or hate it... it's vodka!
April 19, 2011 - 10:02am | by Daniel Priseman
What is it about vodka that makes it so popular? It sells by the bucket load in the UK, in fact it is the top selling spirit by a country mile. Consumers can’t seem to get enough of it and a new brand seems to launch every week. Personally I’ve never understood its popularity, dress it up any way you want (and brands find some of the most ridiculous ways to dress up a bottle of vodka these days) it still seems like pretty boring stuff to me. No colour, very little flavour, not much happening on the aroma front either. I hold it personally responsible for the bastardisation of the Martini and couldn’t tell you the last time I was even tempted to order a vodka based cocktail… It’s safe to say I’m not a huge fan of the stuff.
The bitters&twisted drinking room is fairly well stocked with most spirits, there are over 60 American whiskies, 50 or so rums, 25+ tequilas, hell I even have 25 gins to choose from, but when it comes to vodka there are currently only 5 gracing the shelves. While in the past I was quietly proud of this fact, it recently occurred to me that maybe I should at least attempt to get over this bias and see if it’s possible for me to gain an appreciation of this popular spirit.
The good, the bad and the ugly bottle!
January 20, 2011 - 6:52pm | by Daniel Priseman
I’m lucky enough to be sent bottles of spirits on a reasonably regular basis, so hearing a knock on the door, and seeing a bottle sized parcel in the delivery guys hand leads to great anticipation. Will it be a new product, or an old favourite? Something to delight my taste buds or make me scratch my head and wonder what the producer was thinking when they made this pineapple infused pisco liqueur? Opening the box to reveal the latest addition to the b&t drinks cabinet there is a moment of examination as I look at yet another gleaming gem of a bottle… or not.Often the bottle I’m faced with is great, but every now and then I’m left dumbfounded by a poorly designed, cheap looking bottle, and despite knowing that the liquid in the bottle is the most important thing, I’m left feeling disappointed. Recently I have received a lot of new products and have had an instant reaction to the packaging that has set me up for the experience of tasting the liquid inside. Most have been examples of the good, but a few have been bad, and one or two have even been downright ugly!
Belvedere dream job?...
September 21, 2010 - 8:45pm | by Daniel Priseman
The drinks industry is a pretty amazing one to work in. The pay isn’t usually great, the hours can be pretty rough and you do have to put up with being looked down on by ‘real professionals’’, but on the upside we eat and drink like rock stars, get to travel to far flung countries to visit distilleries and get to do the jobs that we love. Admittedly the burnout rate is pretty high as most people can only take being broke and over-worked for a few years before they want something more from life. The question is what to do when you’re tired of tending bar?
These days there are more options than ever, with people opening bar schools, starting consultancies or opening their own dream bar once they decide to step out from behind the one they're working at. But more and more bartenders seem to be turning to the spirit brands looking for a job as a Brand Ambassador to pay the bills and keep them in the industry they love. While these jobs are more common than they used to be, they are still few and far between, so when one comes up for grabs there is usually pretty fierce competition.
