I CAN’T say for sure whether I’ve ever tried Popov vodka, but I seem to recall pouring it into a punch bowl in college. Or maybe it was Gordon’s.

Tom Smith, the spirits director at Union Square Wines in Manhattan, says he doesn’t carry Popov in his store because he associates it with his days of waiting tables, when he used it to polish silverware.

Even Diageo, the liquor conglomerate that owns the Popov brand, seems reluctant to own up to it. Popov, which can sell for less than $9 a 750-milliliter bottle, isn’t mentioned on its Web site, and when asked about the brand, a company spokeswoman kept trying to steer the conversation toward pricier spirits.

But the economic malaise has prompted consumers to trade down for all kinds of products, whether cereal, cars, sweaters or lunch fare. The same is true for booze. All of a sudden, Popov doesn’t taste so bad.