MISHAWAKA — Vodka is funny stuff. Purity is the catch word, and vodka is pretty much supposed to be pure alcohol (diluted with water), with the final product being, according to the U.S. Alcohol and Tobacco Trade and Taxation Bureau, "without distinctive character, aroma, or taste."
And vodka is just that, on paper. But if that's true, why is a person given so many choices at the store? What's the difference?
The difference is the human factor, according to Steve Ross. Ross, a former 2nd District St. Joseph County commissioner, says it's that human factor that sets what he's cooking behind Framer's Workshop in Mishawaka apart from other vodkas.
Ross operates Virtuoso Distillers, which makes 18 Vodka, and is one of only three distillers in Indiana (the other two are a Seagram distillery in Lawrenceburg and Heartland Distillers in Indianapolis, which makes vodka from corn).
Ross says he got the idea to begin distilling a few years ago, when he read a New York Times article about people making vodka in Kansas.
"So I said, If they can do that in Kansas, why not Indiana?" Ross said.
He eventually found his way to a distilling class in Gloucester, Mass.
"I went to the class and saw the still and I said, I gotta have one of those," said Ross, a self-professed "toolaholic."
So he got one of those, a German copper-and-steel still with a pronounced Steampunk vibe, and installed it in a space behind the Framer's Workshop.
Brewing, winemaking, distilling always involves tinkering, adjusting, tweaking, but eventually, Ross settled on rye as his grain of choice.
The vodka is made from 100 percent rye, a grain most people have eaten in bread, Rye has been enjoying renewed interest among beer brewers and whiskey drinkers.
This vodka derives its name from the number of times it is distilled. And although that certainly can help the quality of the vodka, Ross says, the real secret is in "the cuts."
That refers to the separation of the types of alcohol and other substances produced from distilling, which Ross calls the heads (as in first out of the still), the hearts (the purest alcohol, and the one Ross ends up bottling) and the tails (again, more types of alcohol and congeners, which give some spirits their color, aromas, flavors and hangover-inducing power).
And it is true that the taste-testing is key. Over the course of a couple of hours, the character of the alcohol that is distilled changes, from thick, sweet and burny, to clean and cool, then back to burny with notes of caramel.
Each batch of fermented grain Ross runs through his still yields about 7 gallons of hearts. When he collects 90 gallons of hearts, he mixes that with 90 gallons of water to dilute it to the required 80 proof (40 percent alcohol) final product.
Historically, vodka was first made from grain. Although most people associate potatoes with vodka, it wasn't until after the 18th century that Polish distillers began to use potatoes.
On a recent afternoon, Ross was actually distilling a batch of potatoes, just to see. He said he prefers the rye and will stick with that for his retail product.
And he also prefers smaller batches, producing only about 1,000 bottles a month, which are distributed to local restaurants and liquor stores.
"I'm not looking to mass-produce some alcohol," Ross said.
So will there be more spirits from Virtuoso? Maybe. Vodka is the most popular spirit in the United States today, accounting for 27 percent of the spirits market with nearly $4.5 billion in gross revenue in 2008, according to the Distilled Spirits Council of the United States. So the market is a friendly one. 18 Vodka sells for $26.99 per bottle, which prices it below many comparable brands.
"When people tell you we're a dying community, there is some industry trying to start here," Ross says, adding later, "I'm hoping that this product takes off and I can employ a couple people in our county."
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