Cîroc: 6 Best Flavors & 3 Alternatives + Recipes - Domestic Fits (2024)

Diana Barkley(Senior Editor)

Cîroc may only have been around in the US for a little over 20 years, but in that time the popular vodka has convinced many a co*cktail aficionado of its superior quality. In this article we’ll delve into the best Cîroc flavors, the worst flavors, and how to enjoy their top vodkas for maximum deliciousness.

It’s unique because it’s made of grapes, which gives Cîroc a unique flavor profile that’s unlike any of its grain- or potato-based competitors. But that’s not all that makes Cîroc a top choice for vodka fans.

Cîroc have a luxury-focused marketing strategy that always aims to put them at the top-tier level when it comes to high quality, well-crafted spirits. They’ve added flavored varieties over the years, which have increased their market appeal and widened their fanbase.

Interesting Facts about Cîroc

Despite Cîroc being a relatively new vodka brand, there are plenty of fun facts about it: for a start, you’ll already know that Cîroc is made from French grapes, unlike other vodkas which tend to use distilled potatoes, sugar beets, or grain.

Cîroc is made using what’s called a ‘cold fermentation process.

It’s distilled five times before being cold-fermented in order to preserve the natural character of the delicious, juicy grapes. This is partly why Cîroc tastes so different from other vodkas.

The brand was heavily endorsed and marketed by Sean “Diddy” Combs. He became a brand ambassador for Cîroc in 2007, which is one of the reasons the brand was boosted to such a huge level of popularity so quickly.

Cîroc lives in part off its luxury image, targeting upscale consumers who appreciate a more premium, well-crafted spirit. It’s associated with celebrity culture, and the sleek, high-quality packaging ensures that people immediately know this.

Diageo, the overarching brand behind Cîroc, continually makes efforts to improve its company’s environmental sustainability. They have initiatives to reduce their water usage and carbon emissions.

Nowadays, Cîroc is a global brand that is available in many countries all over the world. It continues to be one of the most successful premium vodka brands, and is much loved by fans everywhere.

Lastly, Cîroc is apparently naturally flavored throughout, so if you dislike artificial flavoring, it’s a great choice.

What Cîroc Is

Cîroc is considered an especially premium type of vodka, which is entirely gluten-free and unique in the way it is produced. This is down to the produce the vodka is distilled from: Cîroc uses grapes rather than traditional grain.

It was inspired by the makers’ craftsmanship and expertise in winemaking using only the best French grapes. For this reason, Cîroc has a unique flavor which is reminiscent of fresh citrus fruits.

Cîroc vodka is distilled five times to make it especially pure. The process starts by making wine, which is then re-distilled a further four times. The final distillation takes place in an old-fashioned copper pot still in the sunny South of France.

Origin of Cîroc

Cîroc is a French brand of delicious, grape-based plain and flavored vodkas that’s been around since 2003.

The company is owned by multinational beverage giant Diageo. Nowadays, they make a selection of vodkas, flavored vodka-based drinks, and, surprisingly, brandy.

The popular vodka brand is the brain-child of Jean-Sébastien Robicquet, who created Cîroc off the basis of his skills as a wine-maker.

Robicquet was just 37 when he decided to create Cîroc, but had already founded EuroWineGate (now Maison Villevert) in 2001, and also invented G’Vine, a French gin made using grape liquor as well as vine flowers in 2006.

He’s since created more unique, high-quality beverages with wine at their base and is well-known for his genius and creativity.

Cîroc is essentially just made up of alcohol and water, just like other vodkas. The key difference here is that the brand use French grapes for their distillations, while ‘regular’ vodkas use potatoes, grain, or sometimes sugar beets.

What Cîroc Drinks Taste Like

Cîroc has fragrant notes of juicy, fresh citrus, tropical fruits, and hibiscus blooms. It’s a vodka you can certainly enjoy straight or on the rocks, but it pairs beautifully mixed into your favorite co*cktails as well.

Alcohol In Cîroc Drinks

Standard Cîroc vodka contains 40% alcohol by volume, putting it on par with similar vodkas such as Absolut or Grey Goose. The ingredients and distillation process are different for Cîroc, but the end-product doesn’t contain more or less alcohol than other spirits of its kind.

The Best Cîroc Flavors Ranked

Cîroc make nearly a dozen unusual flavors, including fruity varieties and others. They’ve also created a French brandy known as Cîroc VS. Here we look into the top flavors that Cîroc fans keep coming back to, plus the best ways to drink each one.

Cîroc Original

Flavored vodkas are great when it comes to mixing co*cktails, but there’s nothing so satisfying as a straight, clean-tasting vodka.

The original is good as is or served on the rocks. It also makes for a decent mixer in vodka-based co*cktails, though we prefer the flavored varieties when it comes to those.

Cîroc is so neutral and smooth, it almost doesn’t register in some mixed drinks.

Cîroc Peach

Peach Cîroc is a strange flavor: many, many fans really love this one, others rate it as one of the worst.

It’s quite a strong flavor that some say is syrupy and fairly sweet.

It’s perhaps not the most natural flavored vodka, but if you like peach-infused co*cktails or hard iced teas, then this one’s for you.

Cîroc Coconut

Coconut flavors are, again, divisive, and people either enjoy them or run a mile at the sight of them. Cîroc Coconut is quite good actually, it’s not overpowering and offers a nice, kind of woodsy flavor that lends itself well to co*cktails. Try this ice cold in a delicious Piña Colada.

Cîroc Pomegranate

The pomegranate-flavored Cîroc vodka is one of the more popular varieties. It comes in a beautiful deep red bottle that makes a great gift, too. It’s infused with a variety of natural flavors, including pomegranate, and is especially tasty paired with seasonal co*cktails.

Cîroc Red Berry

Just about everyone who’s tried it loves Cîroc Red Berry. It tastes like a jammy mix of red fruits, which is ideal for fruity co*cktails like Cosmopolitans, berry Daiquiris and more.

It’s a flavor that’ll readily appeal to a wide range of vodka lovers.

Try a pomegranate Martini and garnish it with a sprig of rosemary for a special, herbal touch.

Bonus: Cîroc French Vanilla

This flavor has sadly been discontinued at time of writing, but vanilla flavor fans will absolutely love it. It’s fragrant and perfectly balanced, with a delicious vanilla sweetness and nutty, caramel and butterscotch notes.

Vanilla is one of those flavors you can always enjoy neat, over ice, or in a huge variety of mixed co*cktails.

Worst Cîroc Flavors

As we all know, the best and worst flavors are down to, well, taste. Below are two of the all-time worst flavors of Cîroc that get overarchingly poor reviews. They may still be your favorites though, so do try them if you get the chance (just look into the best flavors above first).

Cîroc White Grape

Cîroc White Grape is a weird flavor. You’d think it’d be delicious, given that Cîroc is made from grapes, and the flavor should technically work perfectly.

Yet it smells weirdly medicinal with hints of lemon and buttery pastry. The taste is akin to a little bit of natural grape, alongside citrus and licorice.

If you enjoy these flavors, it may be for you, but the licorice note in particular will be off putting to some.

Cîroc Pineapple

This is a hugely divisive flavor, as pineapple flavored things frequently are. Pineapple Cîroc seems to somehow cheapen an overall very classy vodka. It gives vibes of cheap ‘90s Tiki bar co*cktails. If that’s your thing, however, that’s entirely fine, too.

The Original Cîroc Flavors

Besides the Original ‘plain’ Cîroc , the brand only introduced two flavored varieties at first. These were well-crafted and creative, however, and both are still amongst the most popular flavored Cîroc varieties available today.

Cîroc Red Berry

The red berry flavor is wonderfully aromatic and features a taste of juicy red berries throughout. It’s no wonder this is in our list of top flavors above, even if the exact kind of red berries contained in this isn’t exactly clear.

Cîroc Coconut

Cîroc Coconut is quite a mellow flavor. It’s not overpowering and tastes delicious in Piña Coladas and other co*cktails. The futuristic-looking white bottle is pretty nice as well, making this original flavored variety a great gift for vodka lovers.

Tasty Alternatives to Cîroc

If you’re a vodka connoisseur, you may wish to taste-test a variety of other vodkas too. Here are some of our favorite alternatives to Cîroc, with one even being an American original. See which you like best, and try them in your favorite mixed drinks, too.

Belvedere Vodka

Belvedere boasts that it’s made in the oldest vodka distillery in the world. It’s made from purified water and rye, contains no additives, and offers a beautiful, smooth finish.

The original variety is known for its subtle tastes of white pepper, almond, and vanilla, making it great in co*cktails as well.

Belvedere also makes some unusual vodka ‘infusions’, which is their term for flavored varieties.

Grey Goose Vodka

Grey Goose Vodka is well-known for being a more exclusive spirit that’s popular throughout the world. It’s another French brand, featuring single-origin winter wheat from Picardie and natural spring water.

It has slightly spicy, grainy notes alongside black pepper and almond, making it a more warming vodka to enjoy.

They have some tasty herbal flavors, including Watermelon & Basil, and White Peach & Rosemary.

Middle West Distillery, OYO

OYO is self-described as an ‘American Character Vodka.’ It’s a delicious, satisfying vodka made with soft red winter wheat that’s grown locally.

It’s described as tasting like caramel, cream, vanilla, and a hint of citrus fruits. It’s not medicinal, though the finish can burn a little.

Middle West Spirits make some flavored drinks, too, including an OYO Stone Fruit Vodka. With that said, the original will do just fine here.

Delicious Drinks You Can Make Using Cîroc

Cîroc Vodka is probably best enjoyed neat or on the rocks (over ice).

With that said, the flavored varieties are great mixed into some of our most popular co*cktails.

Here we have four easy recipe hacks that’ll make the most of your favorite flavored Cîroc vodkas.

Cîroc Champagne Cosmo

Cîroc Champagne Cosmos, from Cîroc’s own website, are delightfully elegant and ever so pretty. Serve in champagne glasses with a twirl of lemon peel.

All you need to make these is some Cîroc Vodka (we like the Red Berry flavor for this), champagne, cranberry juice, and a dash of lemon or lime juice.

Cîroc-Star Martini

This clever little play on words showcases an even more clever drink. Serve in an iced martini glass alongside a small glass of champagne (around 50 ml is recommended).

Pair some French Vanilla Cîroc (or, failing that, regular Cîroc) with passionfruit syrup, rhubarb aperitif, white peach puree, and a dash of lemon juice. Serve with a slice of fresh passionfruit.

Don’t like passionfruit? This would also be delightful if you swapped the passionfruit syrup with rose syrup and garnished with organic rose petals.

Cîroc Mojito

Who doesn’t like a Mojito co*cktail? A tall glass filled with ice, some fresh sprigs of peppermint, and perhaps a twirl or two orange or lemon peel is just perfect for this.

Add a flavored Cîroc vodka of your choice (pineapple, apple, or peach are great for this), some simple syrup, and fresh lime juice.

Enjoy sipping away at this one during your next pool or beach party.

Cîroc Red Berry Punch with Rosemary Garnish

A delicious Red Berry Punch is ideal for your next holiday party (or, really, at any other time of the year).

Mix some of the popular Cîroc Red Berry with cranberry juice and tonic water. Garnish with a sprig of fresh rosemary and some sugared cranberries, and serve.

Top tip: if you’re making this co*cktail around Christmas-time, serve it alongside some delectable homemade White Chocolate and Raspberry Cookies.

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