Meet Merridale’s Frizz: The Island’s Newest Local Spirit

Frizz is not your typical vodka. It’s fizzy, it’s distilled (not infused) with a blend of BC fruit, and it’s delicious. With virtually all other vodkas coming from potato or grain and then filtered with charcoal to remove the harsh taste, it is no wonder that the Frizz experience is effortless in comparison.

Why make a fizzy fruit based vodka? Well, the idea came to Rick Pipes, co-owner and cider maker at Merridale, while driving down the Coquihalla after acquiring an entire inventory of high quality still and equipment from an Okanagan craft distiller. Hoping to create a spirit mainstream enough to appeal to the community, yet unique enough to fit Merridale’s existing list of craft ciders and spirits, Pipes took on the challenge of fizzy fruit based vodka.

Costing ten times as much as conventional potato or grain based products, it is no surprise that only a handful of fruit vodkas exist internationally. “Even fewer carbonated vodkas exist,” says Pipes, solidifying Frizz’s position in a category of its own.

Frizz bubbles gently in your glass without overwhelming. Though it took a few failures, Pipes now creates the lovely frizzante in Frizz by pressurizing small batches of vodka in sub zero temperatures for 20 days. Frizz is then bottled in clear French champagne bottles, specially ordered to highlight the purity while holding in the bubbles.

How does the fizz affect the flavor?  “…It’s kind of like S&M for your mouth…” says Pipes, explaining further “…the carbonation gets your pain receptors to respond which changes the way your taste buds experience the flavour…and when it goes flat it is still vodka.”

Frizz can be enjoyed just as you would any other vodka but Pipes suggest trying Frizz in a champagne flute to best maintain carbonation. The fave Frizz cocktail of the moment is the “fizzy martini” made simply by pouring Frizz over cracked ice in a champagne flute and adding a splash of vermouth (or cranberry for a “fizzy crantini”).

Currently, Frizz is sold exclusively at Merridale, but watch for it soon on the shelves of your favorite spirit purveyor. Picking up a bottle of Frizz is a great excuse to visit Merridale’s authentic cider house, bakery, bistro, distillery, and spa.

By: Candice Suchocki Weir

www.merridalecider.com

Merridale Ciderworks Corp.

1230 Merridale Road

Cobble Hill, B.C.

1-800-998-9908