Absolut has added another variety to its line of flavored vodkas: Mango. With its tropical taste and groovy, painterly swirls on the bottle it's a bit surprising that it took until No. 10 for Absolut to add this one to their repertoire.Or not. After I ordered a mango 'n' tonic at a bar recently, the bartender looked slightly askance and asked if I was "sure," explaining that "a lot of people don't like it."
One taste had me in agreement: As a straight-up shot or with a non-masking mixer like tonic water, Absolut Mango has a peculiar taste. It starts fruity-mango and ends fruity-mango, but there's some strange bit in the middle that sort of flops on the tongue like mango detergent.
This is especially odd since Absolut so adroitly used mango in its New Orleans flavor, but perhaps the hit of black pepper that elevated that vodka above its peers also helped disguise the troubling mango notes (not to mention its super-cool design).
Absolut Mango does work nicely when blended into a cocktail or combined with juice: She's just not a sipper.
Absolut Vodka is the number three selling brand in the world and, unlike its competition, is not owned by the type of corporation you might expect. It is owned by the Swedish government - for now, at least. The parliament just approved a plan to sell the vodka brand, as well as its parent company, V&S Vin & Sprit AB, and several less well-known brands, to the 
The Holiday Season is approaching rapidly and it seems that many makers of quality spirits will be changing their look this year, some are making permanent changes and others are changing the packaging just for the holidays. 
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