LIVERMORE, CA — Whether you’re into fluffy shoes, high-end athleisure, or world-renowned haute couture, you’ll find something to get excited about at San Francisco Premium Outlets, which is opening three new stores this month at its South Entrance:

HEYDUDE (now open): This rapidly expanding shoe brand is already worth over $2.5 billion. Hey Dudes, now owned by Crocs, are a slip-in shoe that advertises themselves as the “lightest shoes on Earth” that are “so light, a butterfly could steal them.” They offer a variety of different options for men, women, and children, including sneakers, sandals, platform shoes, and much more.

Vuori (opening May 17): Vuori is another rapidly growing brand currently valued over $4 billion, with 35 stores across the U.S., including one in San Francisco. Vuori specializes in high-end athleisure, offering t-shirts, shorts, yoga pants, leggings, skirts, outerwear, and more.

Alexander McQueen (opens May 24): This international haute couture brand is opening the only location in Northern California, following the closure of the San Francisco store. This British design house is known for daring, outrageous, yet elegant handbags, shoes, and ready-to-wear collections.

Even though vodka is the world’s most popular spirit, it takes a backseat to its flashier cocktail cousins like whiskey, tequila, and gin for many drinkers. That’s understandable, especially when you look back over the last several decades when low-quality and flavored vodkas flooded the marketplace. Drinkers could be forgiven if their definition of vodka was a flavorless spirit best mixed into drinks.

But that would be a mistake. Dating back to the tenth century, vodka has a long and distinguished history as a spirit famed for its subtle and distinctive flavorings. From its origins in Eastern Europe, it became the foundation upon which today’s modern spirit landscape was formed.

These days, for every bubble-gum flavored vodka on the market, there are numerous high-quality bottles that highlight the skills that today’s distillers exhibit when making vodka. In the hands of the correct distiller, vodka can exhibit a whole host of subtle flavors that can elevate a martini or make sipping the spirit neat a memorable experience.

The San Francisco World Spirits Competition (SFWSC) just released its 2024 Best in Class Vodka awards finalists. Each bottle perfectly illuminates the subtle nuances of modern vodka. As one of the biggest annual spirits competitions in the world, its judges have access to the best bottles for their blind taste-testing format. This year, more than 5,000 products were entered into the event across the entire spectrum of the liquor world. The competition is fierce, and any of these finalists would be a worthy bottle to pick up.

Here are the finalists in no order; all are double gold medal winners, and the Best Vodka champion will be announced in October.

Sobieski Clear Vodka

Straight from the heartland of vodka, Poland, Sobieski Vodka is a spirit steeped in history named after Poland’s greatest leader, King Jan III Sobieski, from the seventeenth century. First founded in 1846, Sobieski Vodka has survived the test of time and these days produces a wide variety of vodkas from their distillery in the heart of Poland. Their Sobieski Clear Vodka, which made the finalist list, is distilled with Polish rye and spring waters to produce a spirit with a hint of berries and healthy aromatic qualities.

Aspen Vodka

Less than a year old, Aspen Vodka is a poster child for what a modern ecologically responsible distillery can achieve. Nestled in the heart of the Rocky Mountains and operating out of a carbon-neutral facility, the team at Aspen Distilling uses fresh mountain spring water known for its purity and clarity to produce exceptionally crisp and clean vodka.

Amundsen Vodka

The second of two Polish vodkas to make the finalist list, Amundsen Vodka honors the legendary leader of the 1911 South Pole Expedition, Roald Amundsen. Made from a blend of barley for sweetness and rye for roundness, it aims to deliver a subtle yet smooth experience with each sip. By running the liquid through a six-distillation process, Amundsen Vodka delivers a spirit with a spicy flavor and a dry finish.

Verità Vodka

If you are looking for a testament to vodka’s global appeal, look no further. Verità Vodka is an Italian vodka crafted in the heart of the Italian Alps from 100% Italian wheat and mountain spring water. Made by an Italian family with a long history of distilling grappa, aperitive, and digestives, it undergoes a triple distillation to create a smooth sipper. Ideal on the rocks or straight, it perfectly spotlights the delicate beauty that a well-crafted vodka can deliver.

House Wheat Vodka

Every year, competitions like the SFWSC and others unearth new and exciting bottles for consumers to try, often from smaller brands that would have been overlooked. This year is no different. Hailing from Tree House Distilling, an offshoot of Tree House Brewing Company in Charlton, Massachusetts, House Wheat Vodka leaped ahead of many eminent brands to land at the top of the vodka category. Made with locally sourced ingredients, it is an unfiltered vodka that allows its local terroir to shine through with each sip.

The co-owner of a San Francisco marijuana dispensary says it’s a challenge to draw in customers lately.

Nate Haas operates Moe Greens Dispensary & Lounge in San Francisco as co-owner and CEO.

“We’re charging our customers way too much. As a dispensary, it’s tough for us to compete with the illicit market,” said Nate Haas of Moe Greens Dispensary & Lounge.  

That black market includes illegal grow operations, distribution, and unlicensed dispensaries. California Governor Gavin Newsom touted California as the largest legal cannabis market in the world, but licensed cannabis dispensaries are struggling to compete with the black market. 

Meanwhile, a team of law enforcement officers are cracking down on illegal operators. It’s one part of the state’s efforts to even the playing field and cultivate a legal marketplace. 

Kevin McInearny is a commander with the California Unified Cannabis Enforcement Task Force.  

“We exist to specifically deal with the illicit market,” said McInearny. 

UCETF officers raided what they say is an uncommon unlicensed dispensary in downtown San Rafael, serving a warrant, detaining two individuals, and seizing all products. 

“Instead of single dispensaries, our focus is on organized crime. The more significant violations associated with the cannabis market, including labor trafficking tax evasion the weapons charges,” said McInearney.  

The state task force has seized more than $53 million in illegal cannabis in the first quarter of this calendar year and shut down several indoor operations in the Bay Area. 

“It starts with the cultivators.  There is a lot of indoor cultivation in the area, especially in the East Bay mostly run by Chinese organized crime,” said McInerarney.   

Legal dispensary owners like Haas are skeptical law enforcement can make enough of a dent in the illegal market. They believe the only way to survive is if lawmakers slash taxes on cannabis products and more.  

“If you tax them out of existence which has happened to a lot of our growers, manufacturers and distributors, it’s going to be difficult for a lot of people to continue,” said Haas.  

A national survey conducted in 2022 by Whitney Economics, a cannabis industry research firm, found that fewer than one in four cannabis businesses were profitable. 

“We want them to be successful. So in essence everything we do is either to protect the public or to support the legal market and generally those are the same thing at the same time,” said McIneraney.  

“We keep cutting and cutting and cutting. With all those cuts, it’s just a tougher environment,” said Haas.  

Haas is optimistic despite the hurdles and challenges, and that everything won’t go up in smoke just yet.

Newsom created the Unified Cannabis Enforcement Task Force in 2022. Since inception, UCETF has seized $371,199,431 in unlicensed cannabis through 236 search warrants.