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PURE VANILLA EXTRACT
You like vanilla vodka? Prepare to have your mind blown. Infused with carefully selected Tahitian vanilla beans—the most revered (and expensive) vanilla beans around—and spiked with only a touch of sugar, North Shore Distillery’s Tahitian Vanilla Vodka tastes like the stuff from which it’s made. So if you’re used to those other vanilla vodkas, most of which taste like sickly sweet cupcakes, watch out: The aroma in this bottle is intense and floral, the flavor warm and creamy and true to the bean. In fact, it’s so intense you could momentarily mistake it for pure extract. (But trust us, this will taste far better chilled, shaken and up than in your famous coffee cake). $28.99 for a 750ml bottle at Randolph Wine Cellars (1415 W Randolph St at Ogden Ave, 312-942-1212).—David Tamarkin