Stir in one part candy store, one part alcohol and a splash of cocktail risk-taking. For many vodka producers, this is a recipe for success, as they seek to capture the American consumer and draw attention to their brands through creative new flavors.

Flavored vodka accounts for approximately 27 percent of leading brand vodka volume, and continues to grow in popularity as total vodka sales also increase, according to market research firm Technomic.

In 2011, David Ozgo, senior vice president of economic and strategic analysis at the industry’s trade group, the Distilled Spirits Council, counted 115 different flavors in the vodka market.

“They included everything from the basics, like orange, vanilla, and lime, to the more exotic: ginger, pepper, horseradish, bacon, and wasabi,” Ozgo said. “Such flavors allow trained mixologists and at-home bartenders alike to develop new and interesting cocktails.”

Brand marketers use new flavors to drum up press coverage for their companies and to keep their brands top-of-mind for bartenders when they’re mixing up new cocktails, said Donna Hood Crecca, Technomic’s senior director in the adult beverage resource group.

“There are some really wild new flavors coming out, and a lot of them relate to very sweet flavor profiles, which is different from a few years ago,” Crecca said. Before, the focus was on more savory flavors.

Today’s top three best-selling vodkas are all sweet: Pinnacle Whipped Cream, Absolut Citron, and Smirnoff Raspberry, Crecca said.

Click ahead to read about some of the most unusual vodka flavors on the shelves.

By Katie Little
Posted 17 April 2012

Company: Bakon Vodka
Suggested Price: $29.95

Bacon lovers hankering for a taste of the farm may go hog-wild for this vodka flavor. While Sven Liden, co-founder of Black Rock Spirits, which produces Bakon Vodka, acknowledged that this pork-inspired liquor does not pair well with everything, he said it does complement savory combinations and chocolate and cream-based drinks well.

“There were so many fruit/candy flavors on the market, and we really like more of the savory options,” he said in an email. “We were at first joking about adding cooked bacon to a drink, but once we thought of the Bloody Mary and tried it out, we were hooked (and) decided we should produce it commercially.”

The brand has grown quickly since its launch two-and-a-half years ago and is now distributed in 43 states.

Cocktail Recipe:
“The Bakon Mary”
1.5 oz. Bakon Vodka in a pint glass filled with ice.
Fill glass with tomato juice
1 dash each of celery, salt and ground black pepper
2 to 4 dashes each of Worcestershire sauce and Tabasco

Shake and pour into a salt-rimmed pint glass. Garnish with a celery stalk and your favorite pickled vegetables, or even a slice of bacon.

Company: Cupcake Vodka
Suggested Price: $17.99

Cupcake’s Frosting flavor, which launched last summer, is one example of what Donna Hood Crecca, senior director of the adult beverage resource group at Technomic, sees as the emergence of flavored vodka’s “candy profile,” which is different from savory profiles that were more popular several years ago.

The company’s other flavors include Devil’s Food and Ginger Snap.

Cocktail Recipe:
“Kiss & Tell”
0.75 oz. Cupcake Frosting Vodka
2 oz. vanilla chai tea
0.75 oz. hazelnut liqueur
0.5 oz. chocolate syrup

Combine ingredients into shaker with ice. Line martini glass with chocolate syrup and strain ingredients into glass.

Company: Alaska Distillery
Suggested Price: $35.99

Smoked Salmon Vodka is one of Alaska Distillery’s top-selling flavors, said Bella Coley, its chief operating officer. The flavor can be used in a Bloody Mary and also works well with fish and pasta dishes, Coley said.

On April 20, a date that is often identified with the cannabis plant, the company plans to release its Purgatory Hemp Seed flavor. Although the spirit has not been officially released yet, Coley said the company already has received more orders for it than for any of its other products.

Cocktail Recipe:
“Bloody Mary”
2 oz. Smoked Salmon Vodka
2 oz. Clamato
4 splashes Tabasco sauce
1 dash Worcestershire sauce

Combine ingredients and shake or stir.

Company: Absolut Vodka
Suggested Price: Varies

Ronald Regan was president and the Bloody Marys were flowing when Absolut launched Peppar Vodka in 1986 to capitalize on the cocktail’s popularity. Since then, the company has added several other adventurous flavors to the mix, including Kurant, Pears, and Wild Tea.

Cocktail Recipe:
“Bloody Caesar”
1 part Absolut Peppar
2 dashes Worcestershire sauce
1 dash lemon juice
2 dashes hot sauce
Clamato Juice
1 stick celery

Fill a highball glass with ice cubes. Add Absolut Peppar, hot sauce, lemon juice, and Worcestershire sauce. Fill with Clamato. Garnish with celery.

Company: Smirnoff Vodka
Suggested Price: $12.99 per 750 ml

Smirnoff continues to see growth in its confectionary line, which includes Fluffed Marshmallow and Whipped Cream, said David Tapscott, the company’s brand director.

“We feel that the confectionary trend is so special because it taps into the nostalgic side of our adult consumers, and allows them to indulge in a bit of sweet decadence,” Tapscott said.

While Smirnoff did not mention any upcoming flavored vodkas by name, Tapscott said the company looks forward to expanding its confectionary vodka line and plans to announce additional flavors to its portfolio later this year.

Cocktail Recipe:
“Campfire Cola”
1.5 oz. Smirnoff Fluffed Marshmallow Vodka
0.5 oz. maraschino cherry juice
3 oz. cola

Combine and pour over ice, and garnish with a lemon wedge.

Company: Skorppio Vodka
Suggested Price: $24.95 to $29.95

Wondering how to serve scorpion-flavored vodka? Either on the rocks or in a martini, says Rodrigo Rodriguez, who distills and bottles Skorppio Vodka.

The company, which produces and bottles the product in England, is in the process of importing the flavor into the U.S. and expects it to become available by this summer.

Cocktail Recipe:
“Dry Skorppio Martini”

The company’s website doesn’t specify the vodka to vermouth ratio in this martini, but cocktail historian David Wonderich has recommended an 18-to-one ratio, or about 3 ounces of vodka to a teaspoon of vermouth. Strain into a cocktail glass, garnish with a scorpion (sold separately) and serve.

Company: Square One Organic Spirits 
Suggested Price: $35

It took Square One’s founder and CEO Allison Evanow two years before she was able to nail down the brand’s cucumber flavor and avoid the spirit taking on a picklish hint.

Now the brand’s best-selling spirit, the Cucumber vodka has been joined by other garden-inspired spirits, including basil and botanical flavors.

Cocktail Recipe:
“Cucumber Yuzu Collins”
By H. Joseph Ehrmann, Square One Brand Mixologist

1.5 oz. Square One Cucumber Vodka
0.75 oz. fresh lemon juice
0.25 oz. Yuzu juice
1 oz. agave nectar or simple syrup
2 oz. club soda
Asian-pickled cucumber or a cucumber slice

Shake all ingredients except club soda with ice. Strain into a Collins glass filled with ice, and top with club soda. Garnish with the Asian-pickled cucumber or cucumber slice.

Company: Pinnacle VodkaSuggested Price: $14.99

Eating raw cookie dough is called a health hazard. Drinking cookie dough vodka straight is called a shot.

This vodka follows in the sweetly flavored footsteps of the brand’s Whipped flavor, which launched in March 2010 and was the original whipped cream vodka.

“At the time, the vodka category was crowded and many of the flavors available were more mainstream and fruity,” said Marguerite Allolding, the marketing director at White Rock Distilleries, which owns Pinnacle. “We saw a huge trend starting in the non-alcohol category with desserts and sweet treats, and thought it would be interesting to see if this trend could succeed in the vodka category. Interesting enough it has, and we inspired many other vodka brands to explore the desserts, candies, etc., for their vodkas.”

Allolding added that the company recently added two news flavors, blackberry and cucumber watermelon.

Cocktail recipe:
“Maple Chip”

2 parts Pinnacle Cookie Dough
1 part milk
Splash maple syrup
One cherry

Shake with ice and strain into a chilled martini glass. Garnish with a cherry.

Company: Van Gogh Vodka
Suggested Price: $27.99 for 750 ml

Craving a cool drink in addition to the comforts of childhood?

Enter Van Gogh’s Peanut Butter and Jelly flavored vodka. Norman Bonchick, the company’s chairman and CEO, said the flavor, which began selling in mid-March, is already the company’s most popular flavor introduction to date.

“Peanut butter and jelly is one of the most iconic American flavors that enjoys enduring popularity with adults,” he said. “With our PB&J vodka, we have translated that beloved flavor pairing into a smooth and refined spirit, featuring peanut and raspberry flavors. We believe PB&J will appeal to anyone who loves a good cocktail."

The company sells several other unusual flavors, such as banana, espresso, and rich dark chocolate.

Cocktail Recipe:
“Nuts & Berries”
By Jonathan Pogash, The Cocktail Guru

1.5 oz. Van Gogh PB&J Vodka
0.75 oz. berry liqueur
0.75 oz. milk or cream

Shake well with ice and strain into a chilled martini glass.

Company: Sputnik Vodka
Suggested Price: $25.75

Garden meets liquor cabinet in this floral-inspired flavor. Sputnik infused the liquor with natural rose oils, taken from petals that have been handpicked from the Black Sea in Russia and Ukraine. The company’s website suggests that partakers enjoyed this variety “in Asian cocktails with lychee, green tea, or pear, or in a cordial glass for your grandma.”

For those who like their vodka a bit more savory, Sputnik also sells horseradish and basil flavors.

Cocktail Recipe:
“Rose and Lychee Martini”
By Bartender Matteo Belkeziz, The Donovan Bar at Browne’s Hotel, London

60 ml Sputnik Vodka Rose
15 ml lycheee liquor
10 ml lemon juice 
30 ml lychee juice
Dash rose syrup
2 drops peychaud bitters

Combine ingredients and muddle, shake, and strain.