Green Mark

Russia

Green Mark vodka

the legend

This is a review of Green Mark vodka from Russia. I sampled it in Germany in 2010. It’s clear, 38% alcohol, and I think it’s still awesome

This one is the famous Green Mark vodka (Зелёная Марка). It’s from Russia. It has accompanied many a good man through Socialism [thanks to Vadim’s comment I have learned that this is actually a post-Soviet brand], and it seems to be here to stay.

Green Mark remains one of the most popular brands in Russia. It’s affordable, reliable, and you can find it virtually everywhere.

old fame

I have talked to quite a few Russians who told me that Green Mark vodka has declined in quality over the last few decades, so I’ve been very excited to try this. Would it live up to its old fame? Or would it just be one of those “meh” kind of vodka brands?

So I got myself a bottle, and I have to tell you: this is some good stuff.

one company to own them all?

It’s 2021 now, and it took me a while to find an official website for Green Mark vodka. After a little digging I found a vkontakte-page that had a link to the domain roust.com at the bottom:

Green Mark vodka vkontakte page
from vk.com/greenmarkvodka on September 26th 2021

What the hell is Roust? I thought.

Turns out Roust is a huge company that owns a bunch of Russian vodka brands like Russian Standard, Parliament, Kauffman – even the iconic Ĺ»ubrĂłwka Bison Grass from Poland! And they own Green Mark as well:

Roust Green Mark vodka page
from roust.com/brands/green-mark on September 26th 2021

Impressive roster. And according to this site Green Mark vodka has been around since 2003. So I wonder what those Russians were talking about in 2010 when they told me Green Mark had gotten worse over the past decades.

Oh, and I wonder about something else: what does all of this mean for the quality of the individual brands? I’ve been getting some comments about how both Russian Standard and Ĺ»ubrĂłwka Bison Grass don’t taste like they used to. Might have to do some digging.

in 2010, Green Mark vodka still got it

Anyway this review is from 2010. Maybe Green Mark vodka has changed since then, so I guess I’ll give it a try next time I get a chance. But for now I can only tell you what it was like back then.

So here are my notes: the taste is so smooth, and the aroma is so voluminous – this vodka takes you directly to a Russian dinner table and puts a slice of good, dark bread in your hand. Perfect.

The bottle has a sort of retro design that is charming in its own way. And the price is just plain awesome (around 11€ for 700ml).

To me, this is still one of the best vodka brands out there.