This might be seen as in bad taste by a number of people out there but if there is one thing that I have learned about Vietnamese people in the years that I have spent here they don't really hold any sort of grudge or really even pride about their military achievements in the past. There is no social objective with this beverage, it is just something that is eye-catching and since it is vodka it tastes like vodka, which in my opinion always tastes terrible no matter how much the bottle costs.
If you are buying the gift box, it comes with a hefty price tag - well in my stingy-ass opinion anyway - of around $40 but a lot of this has to do with the elaborate packaging that is meant to look like something that some armaments would come in for the military.
Decorated in the quintessential green and red that is so common with Vietnam, the memories of military times make this vodka impossible to miss if it is on a shelf at a bar. That was the only reason why we ever tried it anyway.
We don't get very inventive with our vodka drinks but there some Russians at the same bar that also noticed the packaging and ordered it chilled with no mixer. Their reaction was one of that this is very average vodka but I don't think that anyone who buys vodka made in Vietnam (or any other beverage for that matter) has terribly high expectations.
The thing that sets this one apart is their marketing and the display box on the counter shows that this is their entire schtick. They are in it just for the presentation side of things.
The interior of the box is hand-packed with straw, just like armaments would be I guess. I don't know for sure, I was never in the military but it does seem like an effective way to pack things while using very minimalist materials.
Our drinks were vodka mixed with soda water and lime and I do this because I find that the fresh-squeezed lime overpowers the disgusting taste of vodka.
You can buy this bottle without the packaging for something like $8 but honestly, I don't see this very small distillery winning any awards on taste and they aren't really even aiming to try to do so. If you do see it in a bar while you are visiting here though, I do encourage you to have a try of it. The bar themselves only buy one or two display boxes so they are paying very little for the actual bottle that is in the rack. Therefore you can get a drink for just a few dollars and bypass the premium price that is associated with the designer display bottle.
That was the only reason why I tried it. Most marketing is a waste of time when it is used on me, but his actually worked and I am glad I tried it. I only had one of them but my friend had 2. She drinks far more spirits than I do so I guess this means that it passed the test. You could do worse!
By the way "cadre" according to the internet means "A tightly knit group of zealots who are active in advancing the interests of a revolutionary party." Zealots could be perceived to mean a bad thing but it is vodka after all, and that can be a bad thing as well. We all know what Comrade means. I suppose the Western equivalent could be "Band of Brothers" or something like that.