10 Best Orange Flavored Vodka Brands (2023 Updated)
Last Updated on December 29, 2022 by Lydia Martin
Vodka and citrus fruits have always been a famous combination in every large party or beach summer getaway. Citrus fruits have sweet natural flavors that can balance the bitterness of alcohol in vodka. As one of the main citrus fruits, orange leaves a balanced sweet and bitter fresh note to spirits.
In this article, you’ll know which orange-flavored vodka brands are best to have either on the rocks or in cocktails.
Top 10 Orange Flavored Vodkas
1. Grey Goose L’Orange
Grey Goose is a top-shelf brand, famously known for sourcing all of its raw materials and processing them all in France. However, the natural fruity essence that gives this expression’s bright and strong flavor came from Florida, making this orange vodka an exception to the company’s faithful all-French production.
Grey Goose L’Orange maintains the quality of the original vodka, which came from distilled premium French wheat and natural spring water. Opening a bottle of this vodka has an intense sweet welcoming aroma of citrus, with a bold taste that mirrors the zest flavor of the fruit.
2. Veil Orange Vodka
This flavored vodka uses a base liquor distilled five times and charcoal-filtered to obtain the purity and smoothness of the drink. It has a smooth texture with a perfect balance of bitterness and sweetness on the palate that almost masks the biting finish of the alcohol.
This vodka is cheaper than most premium spirits, and you can throw it in a combination of triple sec, cranberry, and freshly-squeezed lemon juice for a refreshing beach cocktail.
3. New Amsterdam Orange Vodka
One of the two flavors that New Amsterdam vodka launched in May 2014, this orange vodka is made from the finest grains before adding a natural flavor. It has a mouthfeel of fresh citrusy notes that leads to a mild tangerine finish.
Its smooth palate goes well with vanilla ice cream, making delightful creamsicles. Or you can fill up a pitcher and combine it with lime juice and a splash of simple syrup to create a refreshing citrus drink.
4. Smirnoff Orange
This orange vodka of Smirnoff went through three distillations and filtered ten times to ensure the purity and smoothness of the spirit. Then, the makers later infused it with a blend of six varietals of oranges, including plump Cara Cara Navel Oranges and Royal Mandarins.
The nose bursts with a fresh and fruity aroma of navel oranges, while the palate has a rich and natural fruit sweetness. It has a clean and crisp, refreshing finish without the burning aftertaste of alcohol. Like most Smirnoff products, it’s gluten-free and affordable, a perfect choice for beach parties or large gatherings as a spirits mixer.
5. Absolut Mandarin
Twenty years after the official launch of Absolut Vodka, the company released Absolut Mandrin in 1999 as its fourth flavored vodka expression. It is a versatile gluten-free refreshing vodka that mixes well with club soda, ginger ale, or cranberry juice.
It enters the mouth with complex flavors of oranges and alcohol, but it will become moderately mellow and creamy in the middle. The citrusy notes are more intense in the nose than on the palate, and it finishes with a touch of floral essence smoothly.
6. Effen Blood Orange Vodka
Effen Blood Orange vodka, bottled at 75 proof of alcohol, is one of the richest among orange-flavored spirits/varieties. The premium wheat from Holland and natural spring water went through reverse osmosis filtration five times, then another five for the active carbon filtration.
Effen vodka uses Tarocco oranges extract to achieve a balance of sweet and tart flavors while finishing drily. This vodka’s incredible and refreshing character makes it a good companion on a summer beach getaway.
7. Deep Eddy Orange Vodka
Deep Eddy is a locally made vodka from Texas, distilling spring water and sweet corn ten times. It also uses a charcoal filtration process to achieve pure spirits without a burning taste. This flavored vodka is a cross between a lemon soda and orange juice.
It contains the sweetness of sugar and corn, more evident in the middle taste. The fruity essence of this orange vodka is more tangerine than navel oranges, so mixing it with orange juice will result in an extra tangy citrus flavor.
8. Ketel One Oranje
Ketel One is another giant company that the Nolet Family established in 1691. The distillery only uses non-GMO (genetically modified foods) grains in making their spirits and infuses them with natural flavors to achieve the best quality.
After that process, they infused this flavored vodka with Valencia oranges and Italian Mandarins essential oils, resulting in wildflower notes.
The palate has a bright and fresh fruity flavor of tangerines that slowly builds up after a few more sips of the spirit. It has a long and warm finish, best enjoyed on the rocks while on the beach.
Read: Top Vodka Brands For Jello Shots
9. Hangar One Mandarin Blossom
Hangar One made their original vodka spirits with American wheat that went through an intense distillation process in small quantities.
After the makers experimented on California’s mandarin tree flowers, they discovered the ingredient that gives a satisfying citrus flavor to their flavored spirits.
This flavored spirit has a strong taste of real fruit and the aroma of an intense citrusy blossom. It has a clean and smooth finish, with no unpleasant aftertaste, and drinking it straight is always the first choice for many enthusiasts.
10. 3 Howls Blood Orange Vodka
3 Howls Distillery used state-of-the-art fermentation stainless steel tanks and distilled their spirits in a 300-gallon copper still. Their flavored vodka variety achieves its unique profile by vapor-infusion, then right after, the makers will blend special spices for more complexity.
The result is a perfect combination of bitterness from grapefruit and sweetness from real blood oranges into a single flavored vodka. This orange vodka compliments many all-time favorite beach cocktails with its bright and slightly spicy flavors.
The World Beverage Competition in Switzerland awarded its unique profile with the Gold Tasting Award in 2015 [1].
Related Posts:
Popular Orange Flavored Vodka Cocktail Recipes
Crushed Orange
Prep Time: 5 minutes
Total Time: 5 minutes
Ingredients:
- 2 ounces of orange vodka
- 2 ounces of freshly-squeezed orange juice
- 1-ounce triple sec
- 3 ounces of lemon-lime soda
- one slice of orange
Instructions:
Put the freshly-squeezed juice into a pint glass filled with crushed ice. Combine the rest of the recipes into a single mix. Stir or shake the drink to blend the ingredients. Garnish with a slice of orange, then serve.
Serving: 1
Halloween Bloody Orange Cocktail
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Total Time: 10 minutes
Ingredients:
- 2 ounces vodka
- 1-ounce triple sec
- 1 cup sparkling water
- one blood orange
- one rosemary twig
Instructions:
Start by slicing the blood orange fruit into two. Squeeze the first half of its juice, then slice the other half into round slices. Place one slice of blood orange into the bottom of the glass before putting crushed ice. Pour the rest of the recipes into the mix. Garnish the top with a rosemary twig. Enjoy.
Serving: 1
FAQs
What mixes well with orange vodka?
Orange vodkas are very versatile and refreshing that it mixes well with almost anything. The most popular mixers are triple sec, orange juice, and ginger beer. A splash of sweet vanilla can balance the citrus flavors of orange vodkas.
Why is vodka orange juice called a screwdriver?
People call the combination of vodkas and orange juice a screwdriver because it is the tool used to stir the drink decades ago. Oil workers secretly add vodka to their orange juice, but due to the lack of a spoon, they use the screwdriver instead [2].
Final Thoughts
One of the most common mixers that many people reach out for to combine with vodka is orange. Vodka is the most versatile drink among other spirits because it is colorless, and mixing it with other beverages has become common worldwide.
Fortunately, vodka companies have discovered the natural infusions of fruity flavor into their spirits over the years. The most common source for this flavored vodka is navel oranges, considered one of the world’s best tasting citrus fruits.
References:
- https://seattle.eater.com/2015/1/12/7533761/3-howls-wins-awards-cafe-barjots-new-happy-hour
- https://www.businessinsider.com/the-origin-story-of-the-screwdriver-cocktail-2015-3
Lydia Martin hails from Redmond, Washington, where you’ll find some of the best cocktail bars and distilleries that offer a great mix of local drinks. She used to work as a bar manager in Paris and is a self-taught mixologist whose passion for crafting unique cocktails led her to create Liquor Laboratory. Lydia can whip up a mean Margarita in seconds! Contact at [email protected] or learn more about us here.
