Arbikie Haar Wheat Vodka

This Haar Vodka made from wheat grown on the Arbikie Distillery’s Highland Estate in Scotland tastes creamily smooth.

I’ve only recently had chance to taste some of Arbikie’s spirits, but immediately became a fan, both of the spirits and how they produce them. You can read more about Arbikie’s philosophy and working practices in my reviews of their wonderful Strawberry Vodka and Chipotle Chili Vodka.

Arbikie Haar Wheat Vodka

In addition to their flavored vodkas, Arbikie produces some special releases and also has two regular vodkas. One is the vodka that got them into distilling in the first place, their potato vodka, and the other is this Haar Wheat Vodka.

The vodka’s name, Haar, is a Scottish word for the low mist that comes rolling in off the North Sea and covers the Arbikie estate from time to time. The distillery is only a couple of miles from the coast.

Haar Vodka is made from a type of wheat known as Zulu wheat, a winter wheat which grows well in Scotland and the north of England, and is especially good for distilling. It’s what’s known as a biscuit wheat, the type of wheat that makes flour for biscuit-making, as opposed to a bread wheat. Biscuit wheats are softer and finer than bread wheats.

Stills in the Arbikie Distillery in Scotland — The Arbikie Distillery

Tasting Vodkas

Tasting vodkas made from different grains and other things, like potatoes, grapes or apples, is one way to prove that not all vodkas taste the same. I think most people would accept that a bottle of vodka that sells for a few pounds or dollars is not going to taste as good as one that sells for ten times the price. There’s a reason that premium vodkas sell at premium prices, as more work and better ingredients go into the making of them.

Yet people seem reluctant to believe that a potato vodka tastes differently than a vodka made from wheat, like this one. As Arbikie makes both a potato and this wheat vodka, why would they bother doing them separately if the results weren’t different? They could save themselves time and costs by just bunging everything in together and producing one vodka.

Tasting Arbikie Haar Wheat Vodka

Smelling the vodka first, I had a similar reaction to when smelling the wonderful Stray Dog Wild Gin recently. The vodka smelled warm, if you can believe such a thing, and it was more than just warm, it was like walking by a wheat field on a warm sunny day. There’s a vanilla creaminess too, and no sign of any alcohol roughness, just a pure and clean aroma with hints of apple and caramel.

On the palate, everything comes across in a similar way – vanilla, cream, wheat, apple, caramel – but now there’s some peppery spice popping up from somewhere, and the alcohol starts to show its strength: it’s 43% ABV. The finish is beautifully smooth too.

Dog and tractor at Arbikie Distillery in Scotland — Farming the Old-Fashioned Way

Arbikie Haar Wheat Vodka

With a crisp Q Tonic, this added plenty of flavour to a simple vodka and tonic, but I wouldn’t mix it in anything with a strong flavour, like a Moscow Mule, as you would lose the subtlety of this impressive vodka.