Joined in 2023 
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The brand’s flagship Original vodka is distilled seven times using English winter wheat and the purest mineral water. The 2023 ADI winners highlighted an impressive class of up-and-coming distillers. Some winners are well-known craft distillers, while others are relatively new with limited national distribution. Elyx is made with grain taken exclusively from the Råbelöf estate in Sweden and is manually distilled in a 1921 copper rectification. A fuller style vodka with pleasant tropical notes, including faint shredded coconut. Nuanced grapefruit and lemon rind complement the silky texture and smooth descending finish on the palate.
The brand’s Alphonso Mango-flavoured vodka was judged the best UK Flavoured Vodka at the World Drinks Awards, moving on to compete for the title of World’s Best Flavoured Vodka against other country winners. Also taking home the top award was 8 Mile Vodka, which Perez Terrado said offered: “Clean, grapefruit aroma, great body and mouthfeel around the tongue, followed by delightful peppery heat balance with light bitter astringency.” Nine Golds were also discovered, including one for Pravda, which offered “floral grain notes, an absolutely superb texture, bit of pepperiness, but nice and full with crisp grain notes”.The competition progressed to Vodka – Grain, in which a Silver medal was awarded to Pur Sang Select, with “earthy cereal” notes. In the following flight, Vodka – Wheat, two more Silvers were celebrated: “classic, creamy” Skyy Vodka, and Altamura Distilleries Vodka, with its “waxy body”. Sparvoli said: “Overall I was impressed. There were some extremely nice flavoured vodkas in here – I especially liked the grapefruit.” Mohit Singh, the founder of Desi Daru, expressed his enthusiasm, stating: “We are incredibly excited to partner with Harvey Nichols and offer our award-winning vodka range to their discerning customer base. We believe our premium spirits will resonate with those who appreciate quality and innovation.”
The first panel comprised chair David T Smith, spirits consultant, writer and co‐founder of the Craft Distilling Expo; Claire Filer of The Filer Files; Anne Jones, drinks expert at Waitrose; and Marie Cheong-Thong of The Larder at 36, while the second panel was chaired by Bryan Rodriguez-Curtis, wine and spirits buyer at Harvey Nichols, who was joined by Antony Moss MW; Evan Prousaefs, bar manager at Sexy Fish in London; and Tatti Sukamongkol, wine and spirits specialist, and contributor to Malt Review. In the Eastern Europe round two medals were awarded: a Gold award went to “vibrant, fresh” Kreskova Vodka, while a Silver was given to Von Est Sangaste Rye Organic Estonian Vodka. Koskenkorva Vodka Original showed all the qualities needed to bag a Master medal in the Scandinavia segment. Carruthers said the vodka was “extremely drinkable”, and detected notes of “lemon, pine and sweetness – very smooth”. Chambers added: “Compared with the rest, it’s very classy and elegant.”Referred to as ‘the King of Mangos’ in India, the fruit is described as ‘the sun-yellow jewel in the crown of Desi Daru’s flavoured vodka’, and offers a taste of the tropical. Commending excellence in the vodka industry, the awards (part of the World Drink Awards) judges spirits in four categories: Pure Neutral, Infused and Botanical, Varietal and Flavoured. Completing the Master line-up was Ewe Whey Vodka, with Filer calling its “rich, nutty, malty nose, like a sweet beer ferment. On the palate – similar notes, nutty malt, some caramel sweetness, hints of milk chocolate, some balancing citrus and pepper. Warming texture.” Desi Daru is already served at other London bars including Benares, Pahli Hill Bandra Bhai and the Coburg Bar at the Connaught hotel.
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