Deep Eddy Ruby Red Vodka

Deep Eddy is an Austin, TX-based distillery which makes vodka products and they recently released their Ruby Red Vodka, which is a grapefruit vodka, and is quite versatile in cocktails, especially now that it's warm out. Deep Eddy was kind enough to supply me with a sample of Ruby Red Vodka.  My thoughts in this post are entirely my own and not influenced by Deep Eddy.Ruby Red Vodka is made with real grapefruit juice, which is mixed with Deep Eddy's vodka (distilled 10 times).  The resulting vodka is 70 proof and smells deliciously like grapefruit soda.  The vodka has a hint of sweetness to balance out the tartness of the grapefruit.  I am a fan of Greyhounds and other vodka-grapefruit concoctions so this was great to try out.  And it makes some great cocktails!  I usually just end up mixing grapefruit juice and vodka together so it was interesting to see how using Ruby Red Vodka varied from my usual approach.  Deep Eddy's Ruby Red Vodka yielded similarly delicious cocktails but better melded the grapefruit flavor.  So instead of separately tasting grapefruit and vodka, it all blended together, which was nice.  If you are not a fan of grapefruit, and not everyone is, then Ruby Red Vodka is not going to be a good choice for you.  However, the vodka element was quite smooth so you may want to find a bottle of Deep Eddy's vodka.  But if you are a fan of grapefruit (like me!) then I would seek out Ruby Red Vodka and try mixing with it.

Deep Eddy was kind enough to suggest some cocktails to try out.   The one that caught my eye was the Ruby Slipper, which Deep Eddy says is 2 parts Ruby Red Vodka, 1 part elderflower liqueur, and 1 part club soda.  I took a different spin on the Ruby Slipper:

Ingredients:

1 ounce Deep Eddy Ruby Red Vodka

1 ounce grapefruit juice

1 ounce elderflower liqueur (I used St. Germain)

Club soda

Add Ruby Red Vodka, grapefruit juice, and elderflower liqueur into shaker with ice.  Shake well.  Strain into highball or mason jar over ice.  Top with club soda.  Add lime wheel as garnish.

The Ruby Slipper is very refreshing.  It would make a great BBQ or brunch drink.  I think the reduction in the amount of vodka and the addition of the grapefruit juice improved the cocktail.  It lightens it up so you can have more of them (without being sloshed) and makes the cocktail more refreshing.  After topping it off with club soda, you end up getting just a hint of sweetness and floral character from the St. Germain.  This drink can be made without Deep Eddy's Ruby Red Vodka.  I would use regular vodka and probably increase the grapefruit juice to 1 1/2 ounces.  I would also consider adding grapefruit bitters to either version to add some depth.

So there you have it.  A refreshing cocktail made with Deep Eddy's Ruby Red Vodka.  Overall, I give this vodka high praise.  If you are a grapefruit lover then give Deep Eddy's Ruby Red Vodka a whirl.  Enjoy!