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On the eve of a family celebration, I decided to replenish my stock of alcohol through an online store by ordering several types of branded vodka.
And, as you may have guessed from the title, got a fake. 1 out of 4 bottles turned out to be a fake of a very good tracing paper. It can be seen that the manufacturer of the “palenka” got confused, but did not take into account some of the nuances of the packaging.
Since I have been buying this particular brand of alcohol for a long time, I immediately suspected something was wrong. However, I am sure that an inexperienced buyer would never distinguish fake vodka from the original one.
To prevent this from happening to you, I will tell you in more detail about the most forged brands of vodka and ways to distinguish low-quality goods.
How often do you find fake vodka in stores?
Unfortunately, often. And every year this figure is only increasing. In figures, the “gray” market of alcohol is 35 million deciliters. This was reported by the Union of Producers of the Alcohol Industry of Russia.
However, experts emphasize that it is mainly about online trading. In large retailers and convenience stores, the likelihood of buying counterfeit products is much lower.
The growth in the number of artisanal vodka on the shelves of virtual stores is associated with the high cost of a license and excise duty. For example, if the cost of a bottle is 230 rubles, 180 rubles will be an excise tax. If you do not pay, then the income of the manufacturer will increase significantly.
What cheap brands of vodka are most often counterfeited
Inexpensive vodka is counterfeited more often because it has a simple bottle and label design. In addition, the product is in demand among the population and quickly leaves the shelves.
So what cheap brands of vodka are counterfeited?
“Royal”, 490 rubles
The best drink in its price segment in terms of quality. The original is very difficult to distinguish from a fake. One of the signs of a fake is a crookedly glued or faded label.
The original label for vodka “Tsarskaya”
“Five Lakes”, 460 rubles
Since 2017, it has been sold only in a blue glass bottle, but the manufacturers of the “palenka” continue to sell it without a twinge of conscience in transparent containers. Also, when choosing this vodka, you should pay attention to the relief of the bottle, the quality of the label and the cork.
This is how the original Five Lakes vodka looks like in a commercial
Khortitsa Platinum, 580 rubles
Counterfeits of this Ukrainian vodka appear in stores with enviable frequency. To protect yourself, pay attention to the shape of the bottle, the embossed brand logo at the top, the presence of a metal cap and a “shirt” on the cork.
The original bottle of Ukrainian vodka “Khortytsya Platinum” with the logo
“Green Mark” Cedar, 410 rubles
This alcohol is known and loved in 30 countries of the world. Vodka has a mild taste with subtle coniferous notes. This is unusual and recognizable, as for a cheap price segment. A fake, of course, is inferior in quality and can be sold in old-design packaging.
Old and new design of vodka “Green Mark” Kedrovaya
“Winter village” malt, 480 rubles
A strong drink, the original taste and aroma of which cannot be confused with analogues. However, it is often faked, giving out a rough surrogate for a quality product. Caught mainly on the label and the relief of the bottle.
What does the original bottle of “Winter Village” malt look like?
What expensive brands of vodka are most often counterfeited
From expensive alcohol, one that is popular with most of the population is faked. Therefore, you will definitely recognize alcohol from this list. It includes brands:
“Russian Standard” Original, 700 rubles
A strong middle peasant in the world of alcohol. However, even this vodka is faked, worsening the taste of an already specific product.
This is how the original bottle of Russian Standard vodka looks like, unlike a fake
Veda, 620 rubles
The classic version is often counterfeited and few people manage to taste the real taste. But Black Ice vodka from the same brand of alcohol is rarely fake.
This is what real Veda vodka looks like
Stolichnaya, 650 rubles
Vodka is popular all over the world, so for the sake of profit it is rapidly counterfeited. Reviews about it are very different, as some taste the original, while others fall on the burnt product.
The range of Stolichnaya vodka is amazing
Absolut, 1460 rubles
The famous Scandinavian vodka at an above average price. An advertised product is often faked, which spoils its image in the market.
Flavor range of Absolut vodka
Beluga Noble, 1120 rubles
A good drink with a simple and easy to repeat packaging. Because of this, you can often find a non-original version of vodka.
This is what real Beluga vodka looks like
How to distinguish a fake drink from the original
The taste of fake vodka differs significantly from the original, so I recommend that you still study the product for quality compliance in the store. A step-by-step alcohol check looks like this:
- Inspect the liquid through the glass for cleanliness. The presence of impurities and sediment is the first “bell” that alcohol was not prepared according to technology.
- Check the tax stamp. First, its presence. Secondly, the clarity of the barcode. It should be visible and not blurry.
- The quality of the label and printing on it must also be high. Small cloudy font, uneven pasting and other “errors” are typical only for fakes.
- The cloudy color of the glass, made clearly from recycled materials, is another obvious feature of counterfeit.
- Check the bottle on the manufacturer’s website by barcode number. Now this can be done using a smartphone and Wi-Fi.
Also, to be sure, you can compare the design of the bottle and cap, the glass relief with a photograph of the original drink.
I hope you never have to taste low-quality alcohol. And if you come across burnt vodka in stores or you know other ways to distinguish a fake from the original, I invite you to tell us about it in the comments.