Crystal Head Premium Canadian Vodka 40%

In September 2008 the first pallet stood ready in southern California. 5,400 cases. They vanished so fast that retailers began rationing customers to one bottle each, and the rest of the United States had to wait until the following year. Nobody had seen a bottle shaped like a head before.

Expert description

Crystal Head Vodka is a Canadian Vodka distilled four times from corn and bottled at 40%.

Behind the bottle stand actor Dan Aykroyd and artist John Alexander. The idea came from the story of the thirteen crystal skulls said to have been held by native peoples of the Americas — the Navajo, the Aztec, the Maya — and to project positive energy. The two insisted that the bottle was not a skull but a head: a symbol of life rather than of death.

Production takes place in St. John's, Newfoundland, at one of the last government owned distilleries in the world. The raw material is peaches and cream corn, distilled four times into neutral spirit before the spirit is cut with local water down to 40%. The vodka is then filtered seven times, three of those passes running over Herkimer diamonds. Nothing is added — no glycerol, no citrus oils, no sugar.

Tasting notes

Nose

Calm and grainy with a fine citrus edge. There is no spirit sting even when you go in close.

Palate

Corn sweetness settles in the middle of the tongue, soft and almost milky, with vanilla laid over the top.

Finish

Creamy and sweet, but short. It leaves neatly, without bite and without bitterness.

Specifications

Name: Crystal Head Vodka
Distillery: Crystal Head Vodka
Region/Country: Newfoundland, Canada
Type: Canadian Vodka
ABV: 40%
Size: 70 CL
Distillation method: Four times distilled
EAN no.: 0712475339485
Serving suggestion: Cold in a small glass, or in a White Russian where the corn sweetness meets the coffee liqueur.

Flavour profile

Soft · Creamy · Vanilla sweet · Neutral

Did you know?

The legend of the thirteen crystal skulls is the entire reason for the bottle's shape. The story says the skulls must be brought together again to grant humanity insight. Aykroyd and Alexander borrowed the image but reversed its meaning: their version is a head, not a skull, and is meant to read as a symbol of life.

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Frequently asked questions about Crystal Head Vodka

What is it made from?

Peaches and cream corn, a sweet American variety. It is distilled four times into neutral spirit and then blended with water from Newfoundland. The corn is the reason for the soft, slightly milky texture that sets it apart from dry wheat vodkas.

What do the seven filtrations do?

They strip out the last impurities step by step. Three of the passes run over Herkimer diamonds, quartz crystals from Herkimer County in New York State. Crystal Head admits the chemistry is debatable, but tasting panels consistently prefer the filtered result.

Is anything added to make it softer?

No. Many vodkas receive a little glycerol or sugar to round the edges off, but here there is nothing. The softness comes from the corn, from the four distillations and from the filtration alone.

How is it best served?

Cold from the fridge rather than the freezer. At around 8 degrees the vanilla and the citrus note are still alive, while deep freezing turns it into pure cold texture. Neat in a small glass or in a drink with coffee or cream, it performs equally well.

Which cocktails suit it best?

Anything with sweetness and body. A White Russian, an Espresso Martini or a Moscow Mule with plenty of lime. In a very dry Martini it is a little too soft for most palates. Browse more bottles among our Vodka brands.

Is it gluten free?

Yes. It is distilled from corn, and Crystal Head states that its whole range is gluten free. That makes it a simple answer when somebody at the table avoids wheat, barley and rye.

Why is the bottle so heavy?

Because it is moulded in lead free clear glass with a high level of detail in the form. Cheekbones, teeth and eye sockets need thick glass to hold their shape, and the result weighs noticeably more than an ordinary vodka bottle of the same size.