Eastern Idaho Distillers Bottle Spud Vodka

Looking for a new way to enjoy Idaho’s chief farm product? Try it with a little vermouth.

Potato vodka is the latest twist in cocktails. It’s made by Silver Creek Distillers in the eastern Idaho town of Grant, outside Rigby.

Teton Glacier Potato Vodka was released last summer, distributed by New Jersey’s World Wide Wine and Spirits. It is available at Idaho state liquor stores for $17.95 for a 750 milliliter decanter bottle.

“We’re the only distillery west of the Mississippi that produces alcohol from scratch, and we’re the only one in the U.S. making vodka from potatoes,” said Adam Ackerman, Silver Creek’s general manager.

Some European countries, such as Poland and Norway, also make vodka from potatoes, Ackerman said. The bulk of vodkas sold in the United States are made from grain - wheat, rye or corn.

Ackerman said people who have tried Teton Glacier vodka praise its smoothness. “You don’t feel that big lump in your throat” as with drinking grain vodka, he said.

It does not taste or smell remotely like potatoes, or anything else. In short, Ackerman said, it is the ideal vodka.

“By definition, vodka is a clear, colorless, odorless, tasteless liquid,” he said.

Silver Creek has been making potato vodka and selling it in small quantities locally since 1990. When World Wide came on board, the company designed the bottle, named it Teton Glacier, and as started selling it around the country.

The distillery produces 1,200 cases a day. It takes about 1.2 pounds of potatoes to make a bottle of the spirit.