Vodka is and was always very based on marketing. The sensual differences between different brands are so subtle, that they have to be amplified by advertisement.
When I have seen on Facebook, that my old sport Ulric works on the launch of Tigre blanc, I directly needed to check, what it is all about.
And I must say - Tigre blanc surprised me… It seems, that they don't even try to explain, what the vodka is all about.
All what they do, is giving a prosaic [but very diffuse] story about "dual passions about great wines].
See the video:
Here are their marketing prose:
Truth has to be told: they even incorporated a link for the process… unfortunately [or fortunately - depending which perspective you have] the link is still inactive.
Anyway - have you heard about Tigre blanc?
Is the distillate filtered through the dried blood of rare albino Sumatran tigers? [whom am I to judge]
If you know anything - or just have something to add [I look at you, Ulric], please comment in the section below.
Update:
Ulric sent me following email - and as there is nothing controversial [at least in my opinion] I directly post it here unshortened.
It pretty much looks for me like the contemporary recipe for a usual premium vodka:
5 or more distillations [including rectification]+fancy grain or other material+made in a reputable region [even not reputable for vodka]+multiple filtration [once active carbon / charcoal]+fancy details
And I must say - Tigre blanc surprised me… It seems, that they don't even try to explain, what the vodka is all about.
All what they do, is giving a prosaic [but very diffuse] story about "dual passions about great wines].
See the video:
Here are their marketing prose:
Henri Belleville… A Frenchman raised in the hills of Champagne, was inspired to create Tigre Blanc vodka by his dual passions for great wines and spirits and the ‘Art of Love’. He wrote:
“There is a spirit...
There is a spirit of love wonderful and perfect; it might have existed before Heaven and Earth. How powerful it is! How spiritual it is! All desire comes from it. It wraps everything in its love like a cloak. I do not know its name, and so I call it Tigre Blanc, and I rejoice in its power.”
A student of history, Belleville knew that it was Eleanor of Aquitaine
A student of history, Belleville knew that 17th century French Libertinism grew out of a long French tradition of courtly love. It was Eleanor of Aquitaine who first spread the ideals of courtly love from Aquitaine throughout Europe. Courtly love was expressed by troubadours in lyric poems that spoke of the physical beauty of their ladies and desires they aroused. Francois Belleville identified courtly love as the ‘pure love’, which binds together the hearts of two lovers with every feeling of delight. He knew the source of the French art of love sprang centuries before. In essence, courtly love was a harmony between erotic desire and spiritual fulfillment. According to Belleville, it is the true secret of the French art of love. A love that is dually illicit and morally elevating, passionate and disciplined, humiliating and exalting, human and transcendent.
Belleville’s interest in ritualized love...
Belleville’s interest in ritualized love was magnified when he traveled to East Asia and discovered Taoism and the Chinese art of love. The ancient Chinese considered love to be an art form and Taoists believe that erotic energy is used to improve health, harmonize relationships and increase spiritual realization. Belleville fell in love with the “White Tiger” Taoist symbol, which represents the feminine version of erotic and spiritual fulfillment. He wanted to craft a Spirit and design that would liberate erotic energy and inner freedom. He believed that this Taoist conception of love shared many links with the courtly love of medieval France. To Belleville, Tigre Blanc was an ode to the art of love across cultures.
The Tigre Blanc recipe has been passed down...
The Tigre Blanc recipe has been passed down through Belleville’s family for generations to the current Maitre Vigneron who lives and works in Champagne. Today we are proud to celebrate the heritage and inspiration of Tigre Blanc, an outstanding premium Vodka.
Truth has to be told: they even incorporated a link for the process… unfortunately [or fortunately - depending which perspective you have] the link is still inactive.
Anyway - have you heard about Tigre blanc?
Is the distillate filtered through the dried blood of rare albino Sumatran tigers? [whom am I to judge]
If you know anything - or just have something to add [I look at you, Ulric], please comment in the section below.
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Update:
Ulric sent me following email - and as there is nothing controversial [at least in my opinion] I directly post it here unshortened.
It pretty much looks for me like the contemporary recipe for a usual premium vodka:
5 or more distillations [including rectification]+fancy grain or other material+made in a reputable region [even not reputable for vodka]+multiple filtration [once active carbon / charcoal]+fancy details
Dear Dominik,
I trust this mail finds you well, and I am glad to see that still very little escapes your RSS net! As per your request, I am sending you some details about the product, Tigre Blanc, that I have been working on for a while now. The launch took place in November 2012 in Paris. More recently, we were one of the key sponsor of the Lakme Fashion week in Mumbai, and I think - if the press is anything to go by, that the product was very well received.
I have to re-assure you, we are not using any tigers parts or any other imaginative gimmick in the production process; besides, knowing your feelings on vodka in general, I am sure I will not be able to dazzle you with an infinitely complex production method.
The rap sheet is as follow:
- French wheat vodka distilled in Cognac,
- Quintuple, continuous distillation: The first two distillations are to achieve the required ABV, third & fourth are the rectifying distillations, and the last one is through a copper, methanol-stripping column. This process has become the norm in the majority of premium vodka. We do differ a bit with the last column, but it adds this undeniable taste profile to Tigre Blanc.
- I am sorry to say that the filtration principles may not be as exotic as you would have thought; Tigre Blanc undergoes a tight cellulose filtration, followed by a charcoal one.
- The water used for the blending comes from Pinthiers, Cognac; a very old spring which goes through the the chalky soils of the cognac region, and thus have a strong part to play in the final character definition.
The result is a well-balanced vodka; the below are my personal tasting notes, so I hope that you will treat them with discretion:
Visuals:
- bright & crystal clear w/ pronounced legs.
Nose:
- Bright, vivid & fresh with a slight grain/malty opening followed by a citrus underline.
Palate:
- A warm & sharp opening with a grassy finish, almost licorice-like. The finish is comparatively long for a vodka (although still short) and sweet with very little heat & sticky-sweet licorice.
- The addition of water reveal a very pronounced sweetness - all is relative, it is still a Vodka!
Conclusion:
- Overall notes: Tigre Blanc display similar characteristics of a polish rye vodka; it has a bright character with a velvety (sensual), sweet spirituous body.
I hope you will find that the above answers all of your questions, and please do not hesitate to contact me if you would like some more info.
Best regards, and hopefully speak soon,
Ulric
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