Dukes makes a variety of interesting sweet vodkas. Dukes Sweet vodka is vodka infused with sugar. At 40% alcohol by volume, this vodka makes no compromises for the flavor.

The Shot

Dukes Sweet vodka is of course sweet. I don’t mean sweet like subtle vodka sweet. I mean screamingly sweet. After sitting in the freezer, the vodka is syrupy due to the amount of sugar. In fact, there is very little vodka flavor at all. There is a very mild bitter flavor when swallowing, but the sugar left over covers everything up. Dukes Sweet vodka is like drinking a mix drink without having to worry about the mixer.

The Mixed Drink

With flavored vodkas, the key is finding the right mixture to create a synergy. Dukes Sweet vodka is unique because the flavor is sugar, rather than a particular flavor. So, I tried several different mixers at a 1 to 1 mixture.

My first thought was that greyhound (Dukes Sweet with Simply Grapefruit juice in this case) would be great because the bitters would counter the sweet, making an interesting middle ground. Instead, it tasted only slightly less bitter than a normal greyhound. It was good if you enjoy greyhounds, but they aren’t my favorite.

The second round was Simply Lemonade. Simply Lemonade is very sweet. Dukes Sweet vodka blended very well with the mixer, creating something very palatable and different than my normal mixed drinks. If you like really sweet mixed drinks, this is a really good combination.

Next, I tried a Simply Orange screw driver. The mix was interesting. The orange juice actually came off bitter compared to the vodka. When I get past the odd bitter flavors, it’s manageable. Orange juice isn’t the best mixer, but it’ll get you by in a scratch.

Finally, I tried Sugar Free Amp. The mix was very bitter. If you’re going for an energy drink, a Red Bull might be better choice and is more than likely more readily available.

Fortunately, the Dukes website has a ton of mixed drinks that you may enjoy. Given that Dukes Sweet vodka is so unique, you may be better off tailoring your mixers to the vodka than trying to tailor the vodka to to the mixers.

Opinions

Erin had both the Simply Lemonade and the Simply Grapefruit. She liked the greyhound the best. The Simply Lemonade mix came across too sweet for her. She said Dukes Sweet helped tone down the bitterness of the juice and made for a good cocktail.

Daniel said it was good. He noticed the sweet flavor first, which is different from the norm. He thought there wasn’t much burn, and the aftertaste covered everything up. He said it was tasty, but he didn’t know if he could drink a great deal of it since it was like drinking a “coke vodka.” It’d be great, he said, as a random shot, but he wouldn’t want to drink it all night.

Dukes Sweet vodka is a different take on flavored vodka. After spending some time with the vodka, I think there’s no point in fooling around with mixers. With such an palatable flavor right out of the bottle, Dukes Sweet vodka straight up in a glass is wonderful for sipping. Mixing it just takes away from the naturally enjoyable flavor.