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Vodka Vodka Vodka Vodka Vodka

More than a little liquor in Binjiang One & D&G's Martini Bar - By Caroline Rowe, Sep 25, 06

Anyone who has read more than one of my newsletters or articles is probably aware that I have somewhat of a fetish for the perfect spirit, vodka. Frankly I blame my Polish half, but that may just be a convenient excuse. Anyway, having vastly enjoyed the Smirnoff Experiences, the 42 Below Cocktail World Cup, and multiple Solid parties, I decided to try out a new bar I got wind of, over the other side ... in Pudong ...

Having packed my bags and my passport, I boarded the ferry to Pudong, which I found to be exceeding convenient, because my destination, Binjiang One, is right next to the ferry stop. If it weren't for the boat ride dodging oil tankers, it would be like we'd never even left Puxi.

This converted old house, owned by the Paulaner Group, is the location of the fabled 'vodka bar' and 'ice bar' which voices have been whispering about for some time now. I'm happy to confirm that the legend is true! While the top floor of the house is a fine looking restaurant with a killer view, downstairs has various bars, lounges, nooks and crannies, one of which is an ice bar filled with vodka. Don your parkas and head into the freezer for your choice of a selection of a massive 103 vodkas. All the regulars are there - the full selection of Absolut flavours, both Grey Geese, the icky van Gogh's and lots of other flavoured concoctions. Wanting to be a purist, I stuck to straight, unflavoured vodka, sipped, Russian style. Turi Vodka from Estonia was first up and all I can say is yuck. This stuff would have almost made me drink baijui instead. Moving swiftly on, I tried Level, the new baby from Absolut. Now this stuff I could really come to love. It's very smooth, very clean, and has just a little less character than Grey Goose. It's also the most expensive vodka in the bar at a steep 90rmb a shot. Next I went for Nemiroff Lex, which is apparently a top-class version of the Ukraine's favourite vodka, and I'm thinking that they know their vodka there, because this stuff is pretty good; perfectly drinkable, but nothing to knock your socks off. Next up was the full and flavoursome Polish Potato vodka, Chopin, named after that piano player from the same town as my grandfather, so this one obviously gets full marks in the taste test. Big surprise of the night though, was another Polish vodka, brand new to China (I think we were enjoying the first bottle) called Zubrowka (pronounced zoo-brov-ka) which is slightly infused with the extracts a herb found in the forests of Northern Poland, which European Bison are particularly fond of munching on. This will be the one that I order straight up on my next visit, and I'll have Level or Grey Goose for my martini, with Smirnoff Black, Absolut and Solid getting a look in too.

From martini to Martini, as I went last night to try out the new Martini bar at D&G. My feelings are pretty much the same as at the launch party - the place is too bright, too shiny, too echoed, and generally not very comfortable to be in. I guess if it's filled with beautiful people it might look a little less forbidding, but at the moment the place doesn't exact scream welcome, which is a shame because it's certainly pretty stylish and painfully convenient for my office. The bar staff, Steven, was absolutely lovely given the fact that the bartender wasn't in yesterday, and he still had a pretty good shot at making a martini (he's a waiter!) and in a place this small it's the staff that count. With a few more bodies and a little less glare, this could become a nice spot for a daytime coffee and panini, or an after-work martini. The bar closes at 10:30pm, but then, it

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