VOX, Vodka from the Netherlands

The packaging is stunning: A towering cut crystal bottle with a pattern of ovals makes this vodka from the Netherlands a smashing gift for the new year. What really counts, though, is what’s inside, and that’s a crystal-clear, astonishingly drinkable vodka, high praise from someone who almost always prefers wine to spirits, unless the spirit in question is an old Armagnac or a mirabelle eau-de-vie. After tasting this a few times, I’m beginning to think maybe I could get into vodka. This one is quite a sophisticated drink, one that should beguile both the generation that came of age in the hard-drinking ‘40s and the younger generation bent on sipping ever more bizarrely flavored martinis.

About $30. Available at well-stocked liquor stores.