A French vodka was awarded a Grand Gold medal and named Revelation Vodka as the Best in Class at the 2025 Concours Mondial de Bruxelles. Six additional vodkas received Gold medals—four Polish, one French, and one Russian. The competition showcased a range from rich, creamy potato vodkas to crisp, mineral-tinged wheat and spicy rye expressions. Below, you’ll find the top results, producer backgrounds, and my concise tasting notes on why these bottles stood out.
Spirits Selection by the Concours Mondial de Bruxelles is one of the world’s largest and most prestigious blind-tasted spirits competitions, judged by experts from over 50 countries under strict quality controls and capped medal rates. Many of these vodkas are challenging to find in the US, although they occasionally appear. They are generally available through UK online vendors, such as The Whisky Exchange.
Unflavored/Classic Vodka
Distillerie Saint Véran, Vodka, 40% ABV, 700ml. $45
Distillerie Saint Véran, a small French craft distillery, produces grain-based spirits in small batches. It uses French wheat as a base, employs multi-column rectification, and uses soft local water for slow proofing.
The vodka offers a fresh and clean aroma, featuring notes of fresh cereal, lemon pith, and a subtle white-flower scent. It is smooth and slightly creamy on the palate, highlighting the delicate sweetness of wheat-based mashes, along with a touch of minerality and earthy white pepper. The finish is crisp and dry, with a lingering sweetness and a faint but persistent chalky minerality.
Mikrogorzelnia Wódka Pure Potato Vodka, 40% ABV, $40
“Mikrogorzelnia” literally means micro-distillery in Polish. This small Polish producer specializes in single-ingredient vodkas. It uses potatoes as its base, distilling them in a pot still with a rectification column. Such stills are typically called hybrid or artisan stills and combine the advantages of a rectification column with a pot still.
The vodka features aromas of Cooked potatoes, light vanilla, and fresh cream. It’s smooth and round on the palate, with the viscous, oily quality typical of potato vodka, exhibiting a glyceric mouthfeel, a subtle sweetness, earthy white pepper, and a touch of almond. The finish is long and creamy, with a hint of pepperiness and drying at the end.
Wódki z Puszczy Ziemniak Vodka, 40% ABV, 750 ml. $30
“Vodkas from the Forest” is a craft label from Eastern Poland. This expression is their potato (“Ziemniak”) bottling. Their potato vodka is typically column rectified from a pot-distilled base.
The vodka has a clean nose with an earthy backdrop typical of potato vodka, along with faint herbal dill notes and a hint of sweetness. It’s rich and creamy on the palate, with a plush texture and a gentle, lactic cream note balanced by crisp pepper. The finish is medium length, clean, and slightly saline.
Busnel Vodka, 42.7% ABV, $40
Busnel, one of Normandy’s historic producers, has been distilling since 1820. It’s famous for Calvados. Their vodka is made from French wheat, produced using a multi-column still, and features exceptionally soft proofing water.
The nose features aromas of citrus zest and freshly baked baguette. It’s clean and bright on the palate, with typical wheat mash sweetness, white pepper and a faint ripe apple note. The finish is brisk, ultra-dry, and slightly peppery.
Pravda Bio Vodka, 40% ABV, 750 ml. $30
“Bio” Vodka is the organic version of the Polish luxury brand. It is made from certified organic rye grain and utilizes water from deep wells, resulting in a polished, cocktail-friendly style. It undergoes a five-time column rectification with charcoal filtration/polishing.
The vodka features aromas of soft rye bread, vanilla, and light citrus notes. It’s very smooth and silky on the palate, showcasing a touch of rye spices and a subtle sweetness. The finish is clean and crisp with lingering notes of white pepper and vanilla.
Tchaikovsky Vodka, 40% ABV, 700 ml. $30
Tchaikovsky Vodka is a Russian brand, although this bottling is produced and packaged in Eastern Europe. This premium brand is designed to be neutral and is intended for Martinis and long drinks. It uses a base of winter wheat and features multi-column distillation.
On the nose, the vodka features subtle aromas and a delicate grain sweetness. It’s very neutral on the palate, with a creamy wheat roundness, minimal burn, and a smooth, polished texture. The finish is short to medium, dry, clean, and unobtrusive.
Flavored Fruit Vodka
Wychowana w Luksusie, Cherry & Blackcurrant Vodka, 35% ABV, 700 ml. $30
This is a fruit-flavored Polish vodka, or “nalewka-style” bottling designed for sipping or mixing. It is made with neutral grain spirit, featuring macerations or essences of sour cherry and blackcurrant, and is lightly sweetened.
The vodka features jammy aromas of ripe sour cherry. (wiśnia in Polish) and cassis with a hint of clove. It’s smooth, rich, and plush on the palate, with a liqueur-like texture, bright cherry compote, and blackcurrant, balanced by a tart berry acidity. The finish is medium length with lingering notes of cassis and subtle baking spices.
The 2025 Concours Mondial de Bruxelles reaffirmed that vodka excellence isn’t about invisibility—it’s about precision and texture. Wheat-based French entries delivered crystalline clarity; Polish potato vodkas brought weight and creaminess; rye-based vodkas brought subtle spiciness, and fruit-led styles added bar-ready versatility.
For buyers and drinkers, these medals are credible signposts: if you see these vodka bottles, expect clean aromatics, polished palates, and finishes that actually linger. Keep an eye on allocations and seasonal drops—when they appear, grab them, they’re worth a spot on the backbar.