42 Below Vodka Premium New Zealand Vodka 40%

The 42nd parallel south cuts straight through New Zealand. You cannot get much further from everything else in the inhabited world, and that is exactly the point the whole bottle rests on: clean water, clean air, no neighbours to worry about.

Expert description

42 Below Vodka is a New Zealand Vodka made from wheat and bottled at 40%.

The story starts in 1999 in a garage in Wellington. Geoff Ross had a thought that a country as clean as New Zealand ought to be able to make one of the purest vodkas in the world, and set about it on his own. First he sold to friends, then to bars, and eventually the whole country wanted the bottle. Today it sits on shelves across most of the globe.

The name points at the latitude, and the water is part of the argument: it is drawn from an aquifer beneath old volcanic rock. The wheat is New Zealand grown, and the spirit is cleaned so far that the grain is barely sensed. That makes it one of the most obliging bases behind a bar — it settles underneath the other ingredients instead of fighting them.

Tasting notes

Nose

Clean and cool with a faint citrus trace. The grain sits well back and makes no fuss.

Palate

Soft and almost oily in texture. A mild sweetness from the wheat, with no sharp alcoholic edge.

Finish

Fresh and full in the mouth, but short. A clean, lightly mineral impression is what stays.

Specifications

Name: 42 Below Vodka
Producer: 42 Below
Region/Country: New Zealand
Type: New Zealand Vodka
ABV: 40%
Size: 70 CL
Serving suggestion: Neat, on the rocks or in a cocktail where the base should keep a low profile.

Flavour profile

Clean · Soft · Lightly grain sweet · Fresh

Did you know?

Less than ten years after the first bottle was filled in a Wellington garage, Bacardi bought the whole brand. Geoff Ross and Justine Troy later wrote a book about the trip from homemade to world market.

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Frequently asked questions about 42 Below Vodka

What does the name 42 Below mean?

It refers to the 42nd parallel south of the equator, which runs straight through New Zealand. The number is a location, then, not a strength or a temperature, although it is often misread as one.

What is it made from?

New Zealand wheat and water drawn from an aquifer beneath volcanic rock. The wheat supplies the soft, faintly sweet character while the water forms part of the brand's whole story about purity. The combination is deliberately kept neutral.

How is it best drunk?

Properly cold, neat or on the rocks. Texture is the most interesting part of it, and that shows most clearly when the vodka is chilled without being frozen. In a wide glass you lose a good deal of it.

Which cocktails suit it?

Almost all of them. The neutral profile makes it a workhorse behind the bar, where it neither pulls a Cosmopolitan out of shape nor drowns fruit and spice. See more options in our range of Vodka.

Does 42 Below make anything besides plain vodka?

Yes, the brand is just as well known for its flavoured releases. Manuka Honey is the most talked about, and there have also been versions with feijoa, kiwifruit and passionfruit, all built on New Zealand produce.

Why did it become known so quickly?

Because Geoff Ross entered it into virtually every major spirits competition in the world shortly after production left the garage. The medals came home, and an unknown brand from New Zealand suddenly had something to hang the conversation on.

Does it make a good gift?

Yes, particularly for someone with a connection to New Zealand or a taste for travel stories. The bottle is easy to recognise, and the tale of the Wellington garage tells itself over the first glass.