Grey Goose French Ultra Premium Vodka 300 cl 40%

Three litres is no longer a bottle you pass across a table. It stays where it is set down, and the rest of the evening moves around it. At that size the geese on the side are drawn at close to full scale.

Please note: The image is a model photo.

Expert description

Grey Goose is a French Vodka made from soft winter wheat from Picardie, bottled at 40% in a 300 cl bottle.

The chain behind the bottle is shorter than you might assume. The wheat is harvested in Picardie and milled and distilled there before the spirit travels south to Cognac. There it is blended with spring water and bottled. From crop to cork none of it leaves France, and that is the founding story of the house: control over every link rather than bought-in neutral spirit.

The winter wheat is chosen for starch and softness. It is sown in autumn, sits in the northern French soil all winter and is only cut the following summer, which gives a grain with more to work with. The single pass through a continuous column is set high enough to clean the spirit without shaving the wheat off it.

At three litres the bottle is as much furniture as it is spirit. The glass is thick and frosted, and because it scatters light rather than mirroring it, you can set a light source behind it and make the landscape draw itself through. Behind a bar it is hard to miss, which is rather the point.

Tasting notes

Nose

Baked wheat bread and almond, with a fine floral edge and a hint of green lemon.

Palate

Rich and smooth in the mouth. The grain gives mild sweetness, the nuttiness sits underneath, and the pepper only arrives right at the end.

Finish

Long and soft. The sweetness ebbs away slowly and leaves a dry, mineral coolness standing.

Specifications

Name: Grey Goose
Producer: Grey Goose
Region/Country: Picardie and Cognac, France
Type: French Vodka
ABV: 40%
Size: 300 CL
Distillation method: Single distilled in a continuous column
Serving suggestion: Pour over crushed ice with tonic and a cucumber spear when serving many people at once.

Flavour profile

Soft · Full · Nutty · Long

Did you know?

Bacardi bought Grey Goose in 2004, only seven years after the brand launched. The deal was at the time the largest ever done for a single spirits brand, and François Thibault stayed on in charge of production.

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Frequently asked questions about Grey Goose 300 cl

Is it the same vodka as in the smaller bottles?

Yes. The same winter wheat from Picardie, the same spring water from Cognac, the same single distillation and the same 40%. Only the volume and the dimensions of the glass differ.

Is a bottle this size worth going after?

If it is going to be on display, yes. Grey Goose is built on soft winter wheat grown in Picardie and water from the house well at Gensac-la-Pallue, and the entire production from milling to bottling happens in France under one management. On top of that, three litres in a single piece of frosted glass is a rare sight — most brands stop at a litre and a half, and the format is only made in limited quantities.

How many servings does 300 cl give?

At 4 cl per glass you are looking at around seventy-five servings. Behind a home bar that stretches across many evenings, and in a professional bar it amounts to a couple of busy shifts.

How do you handle a three litre bottle?

Leave it standing and transfer a portion into a smaller decanter at a time. Full, it is too heavy to lift repeatedly with one hand, and if you are pouring directly, take hold of the shoulder with both hands and rest the base against the edge of the counter.

Why only one distillation when other brands run ten?

Because more passes would remove the wheat. Each distillation cleans the spirit and pulls character out of it at the same time, and Grey Goose deliberately stops after one long run through the column. Vodkas distilled ten times are cleaner, but they also have less left to taste.

Which drinks work best behind a bar?

Long builds, where the soft wheat can carry without disappearing. Vodka tonic with cucumber, a Le Grand Fizz with elderflower or a simple grapefruit drink all hold up in volume. See more bottles for the bar among our Vodka brands.

Can the bottle be used for display afterwards?

Yes, and plenty of people do. The glass is thick and heavy, the frosted print does not fade, and with a light behind it the bottle works as a lamp. Rinse it with hot water and no soap, then leave it to dry upside down.

How should it be stored before opening?

Upright, cool and out of direct sunlight. Light is the only thing that can really affect an unopened bottle, and long spells in the sun can take the contrast out of the frosted print. The vodka itself does not develop in glass.