Crystal Head Vodka Onyx

Crystal Head was founded by actor Dan Aykroyd and artist John Alexander, inspired by the legend of thirteen ancient crystal skulls, and the Onyx edition takes its name and its black bottle from onyx, the gemstone held in Greek myth to guard against negativity. What sets this bottling apart is the base: rather than the usual grain, it is distilled from Blue Weber agave grown on a Mexican farm, the same plant behind tequila, which here is taken to a neutral vodka style. The result is additive-free and Kosher-certified, distilled and filtered to a clear, clean spirit while keeping a faint vegetal softness the grain vodkas do not carry.

The nose opens with freshly cut grass, white pepper and citrus. The palate is soft and smooth with gentle spice, more pepper and a citrus lift, running to a long finish. Because the agave base brings a quiet character of its own, treat it like a savoury sipper and build a clean Vodka Martini: stir 60ml over ice with 10ml dry vermouth, strain into a chilled glass and garnish with a twist of grapefruit, whose pith picks up the white-pepper note without burying the spirit.