cherish thy mother

This is a review of Mama vodka from Denmark. I sampled it in Germany in 2013. It’s clear, 40% alcohol, and I thought it was alright.

I got this one because it looked so odd. Mama vodka – what was this name supposed to signify? It could have been anything from some marketing gag to an abbreviation or a foreign language word that I didn’t know. I decided to get a bottle.

between chic and novelty

One thing became clear right away: Mama vodka from Denmark is not meant to be a joke. They have a clean and simple website:

Overall it has the feel of a rather upscale brand.

There isn’t a whole lot of information there, but they talk a bit about the history of their company:

Their vodka is made from rye, and they distill it five times:

This reminded me of what Grey Goose had to say about multiple distillations. I am still not sure what to think about that.

As towards the the Mama part in their brand identity, they said it had to do with the founders’ STRONG TIES TO THEIR MOTHER:

I guess that’s as good a reason as any to make vodka. And it gives the brand a kind of novelty touch.

It seems as though they have recently redesigned the bottle and added an organic edition:

Good.

I found a video on YouTube where the founder Pauline Birch introduces the brand:

It’s just her speaking into the camera:

She expounds a little bit about the Mama aspect of their vodka, saying her own Mama is “the company muse”:

I liked that.

dedicated to moms

The bottle came in a box with white cotton around it, and it said that you were supposed to cherish your mother. I didn’t know what that meant in terms of vodka drinking, and so I did what I always do. I put the bottle on the kitchen table, prepared some pickles and some bread, poured a glass, and started drinking.

Mama vodka tastes alright

Review time: Mama vodka had a smooth taste. It went down easily, and I kept thinking of the word “soft” while I was drinking it. Could that have to do with the cotton packaging or the brand identity? I don’t know. The aftertaste was good, too. There was something fresh in the aroma.

All in all, this was a quality vodka. It wasn’t anything fancy, though.

I am not sure how to rate the bottle design – the cotton packaging was cool in a weird way, but the bottle itself was just okay. The price of about 27€ for 700ml was barely tolerable.

about the gimmicks

There are vodka brands that are all about quality. There are vodka brands that are all about getting drunk. And then there are vodkas that are mostly about clever branding, about gimmicks and design. I think this is one of the latter.

My recommendation is this: if your mom likes to get drunk, go get her a bottle of Mama vodka for Mother’s Day or whatever. Then get tipsy with her!