Spirit of science A bottle of Tito’s Handmade Vodka. (Courtesy: Tito's)"> Spirit of science A bottle of Tito’s Handmade Vodka. (Courtesy: Tito's)

As a freelance writer, I’m not usually one to go down rabbit holes when it comes to research funding. That changed when Physics World spotted an intriguing source of support in a paper I was covering on exotic phases in quantum materials . The study, published in Nature Materials and led by Edoardo Baldini at the University of Texas at Austin, was partially funded by Love, Tito’s – the philanthropic arm of the Texas-based distillery, Tito’s Handmade Vodka.

The link between vodka and quantum materials was a story I was eager to explore, but a quick look at the company’s website was enough to shed some light on how this connection came about.…