Everybody's going green these days. The Post-Gazette is trying to reduce its carbon footprint, for example, by recycling the same news week after week. So it should come as no big surprise that it's now possible to get environmentally friendly booze. Sure, the hangover might be just as intense, but your conscience will be free the next morning. Unlike your heathen friends, you're saving the Earth, one vodka tonic at a time.

Heretofore, the realm of organic alcohol has been dominated by wine, then after that, beer. Some organic spirits remain available only in Europe, where organic growing and processing is more popular than it is in America. But more and more distillers, both European and American, are waking up to the possibility of the U.S. market, which seemingly has an endless thirst for novel, high-end, clever-by-half niche spirits.

As a result, organic spirits have been hitting the American market regularly since 2006, after the organic trend had more fully penetrated the mainstream consciousness, with U.S. sales of organic foods surpassing $40 billion that year. Most of the organic spirits come from smaller distillers, partly because the supply of certified organic ingredients isn't yet big enough to feed the major distilleries.

Of the organic spirits, vodkas are the most populous by far, and that makes sense, since you can't go two minutes without another brand of vodka hitting the market. But it's also because making an organic vodka, which has one main ingredient, is easier than making an organic gin, with its added botanicals, or any of the browns.

Whiskey presents a variety of problems because of its many aging and barrel requirements. Obviously, you won't see many 18-year-old organic whiskeys on the market -- the distiller would have needed to be extra-prescient.

Like the foodstuffs that are dubbed to be organic, spirits must be made of ingredients grown on certified organic farms, without the use of pesticides and fertilizers, and the distillation and manufacturing process also must be organic. The liquors listed below have received organic certification through the U.S. Department of Agriculture's vetting process, use organic ingredients, or have gone through another certification system:

Rain Organics Vodka (PLCB No. 005391, $32.99 for 1.75 liters) is available through Pennsylvania's state store system, and has a reputation for being one of the better organic vodkas around. It's made from organic white corn at Kentucky's Buffalo Trace distillery, which is known for its bourbon but has been pumping out some really great rye lately, under the Sazarec brand name (not to be confused with the famed cocktail). Visit www.rainvodka.com for more details.

Square One Organic Vodka (PLCB No. 051696, $38.39 for 750 ml), meanwhile, has a rye base. "We were not the first organic vodka company," said Allison Evanow, founder of Square One Organic Spirits. "But I think I can safely say we were the brand that put organic spirits on the map."

The first bottle of Square One (made by a custom distillery in Idaho) was sold in spring 2006. In 2007, sales doubled, and by the end of this year, despite the slumping consumer economy, vodka sales are expected to be up 150 percent.

The market for such an offering obviously exists, Ms. Evanow said. "Twenty-eight percent of all spirits sold is vodka. It's a big category, and there's room for little niche brands."

Since the brand debuted, Square One has come out with a cucumber-flavored vodka, and expects a new white spirit to hit the market in early 2009.

Read more at squareonevodka.com.

Prairie Organic Vodka (PLCB No. 050324, $22.89 for 750 ml) gets its organic street cred from the Oregon Tilth research organization. Prairie Vodka earned several awards at the 2008 Los Angeles International Wine and Spirits competition. Visit prairievodka.com.

Highly rated Purus Vodka, made in Italy, and Tru organic vodka are popular elsewhere in America but aren't yet available through the PLCB. Crop Organic Vodka, which is USDA-certified and one of the newest entries in the market, is expected to hit Pennsylvania shelves in 2009, and soon will be available through the PLCB's online stores (cropvodka.com).

• UK5 Organic Vodka (PLCB No. 068993, $26.99) is available through special order.

Pennsylvania offers Papagayo Organic White Rum (PLCB No. 068996, $26.99), made from organically grown sugar cane, which means it tastes as much like cachaca (the Brazilian spirit made of sugar cane) as it does rum. It's certified by the USDA. The PLCB also sells an organic spiced rum (PLCB No. 069009, $26.99). Both the light and dark rum are available only through special ordering.

Makers of Juniper Green Organic Gin (PLCB No. 068988, $26.99) say it's the first organic London Dry gin in the world, available in the U.K. since 1999, and here since 2000. Papagayo rum and Juniper gin are now imported by Maison Jomere LTD, which imports all of its organic spirits through The Organic Spirits Co. (maisonjomere.com).

Paul Davis, president of Maison Jomere, said the organic spirits market is growing through the company's relationships with hotels, bars and restaurants. Most spirits stores don't have organic spirits sections, so consumers don't know yet to look for it. But "when they see organic spirits on the menu, they realize it exists."

The Organic Spirits Co. makes a Highland Harvest Scotch Whisky (PLCB No. 69024, $46.99 for 750 ml), available only in limited batches, sold via special order at Pennsylvania's state stores. But you'll have to drive across state lines (not that the PG condones this) for the well-regarded Benromach Organic, made at a Speyside (northern Scotland) distillery "using pure spring water from the nearby Romach Hills and the finest Scottish organic barley and organic yeast." The American oak casks even come from "environmentally managed" forests -- meaning what, I'm not sure, but it sounds super (benromach.com). The Benromach Organic Scotch has won several prizes from the Scottish Food & Drink Awards and the Organic Soil Association. Benromach Organic was approved for U.S. distribution in June 2007.

4 Copas Organic Tequila. Available in New York. Another organic tequila is rumored to be hitting American markets sometime in 2009.