Tastes
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Pierre Ferrand Dry Curaçao
Triple Sec/Curaçao — Cognac, France
Reviewed August 10, 2020 (edited January 11, 2021)Tasting after a little nip of $5/L triple sec for perspective. Night-and-day: a vastly different product than the sweetened orange water (juice, not peel). Certainly this is a few bucks more, but serves a different function. Complex, rich, and tannic. Sweet syrup carries a dominant bitter orange flavor throughout, but builds into a pronounced snap of nearly-astringent oak and concentrated baking spice, then mellows again into vanilla orange nirvana. That crescendo would be a delicious cookie - toasted walnut, oatmeal, raisin, ginger, clove, and molasses. The sugar level is notable, by design, but does not dominate. A deeply flavorful product for complex cocktails or pairings. Honestly, I would not consider using this in a traditional, fresh, citrus-y blanco tequila margarita (my favorite). All the baking flavors and barrel notes are begging to be used in modest proportions (0.25-0.5 oz in a cocktail) and matched with aged spirits.24.0 USD per Bottle -
John D. Taylor's Velvet Falernum
Other Liqueurs — Barbados
Reviewed August 10, 2020 (edited August 24, 2020)Certainly can't knock the O.G., but an interesting experiment to taste on its own. Very syrupy; all of the flavors present extremely mildly. Perhaps someone who'd never had it before could mistake it for a slightly funky simple syrup. I imagine competitors and homemade versions being much more assertive. Creamy on the palate and quite sweet, it's gently rounded with hints of marzipan, lime, ginger and perhaps a fleeting clove. Fresh cane is present but barely. This all sums to a characteristic flavor and nose that is readily identifiable but very hard to place due to complexity and mildness. Regardless, it's tasty, well-made, and does what is intended in a whole host of tiki drinks, flavor and texture-wise. Unlike other (semi-)obscure liqueurs, it is extremely affordable.14.5 USD per Bottle -
Domaine de Canton Ginger Liqueur
Herbal/Spice Liqueurs — France
Reviewed August 10, 2020 (edited December 21, 2020)Operation: rate the cocktail ingredients continues. Really nice ginger bite, although I’d characterize it as definitively dried/ground, rather than fresh. Think ginger snaps instead of stir fry. Might be making that up. Medium-high sweetness, very thick body.25.0 USD per Bottle -
Rothman & Winter Orchard Pear Liqueur
Fruit Liqueurs — Oberosterreich, Austria
Reviewed August 10, 2020Nice moderated sweetness as I've found in all R&M fruit liqueurs, which is a big pro. Can always add sugar to a cocktail through other means, hard to take it away. Mild nose, also common. First instinct is to say the pear taste is tragically mild, but must remind myself that applies to pears in general, so perhaps an accurate expression. Quite nice, actually, but for nuanced cocktails only. Will easily get lost in anything too bold. As always, props for use of the actual fruit eau de vie.21.0 USD per Bottle -
Tasty but somewhat reserved apricot... would like it turned up a bit. First thought is candied apricot rather than fresh, not due to overall sweetness just a "variant" of the flavor. Not syrupy, and I also appreciate the use of eau de vie from the same apricots used for the infusion, if only for the mentality of authenticity vs. its grain neutral alcohol using competition, not sure I could tell there is a net boost taste-wise.21.0 USD per Bottle
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Affordable and pleasant. Full peachy flavor; almost tangy with only a modest sweetness. Avoids the usual syrupy liqueur profile. Made with eau de vie from the same peaches used for the infusion for a big authenticity boost over its competition which generally skip the hassle and use grain neutral alcohol.21.0 USD per Bottle
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Neat. Room temp. A deep, syrupy brown. A tangy and crisp nose reveals cola, mint, orange, fennel, and chocolate. Bergamot. Herbs and barrel notes steer the mind toward American rye whiskey. Extremely sweet. Consistent with the nose - leads with orange, lemon, and cola, then molasses, coffee beans, and dark chocolate. Gentian. Oregano. Root beer. The sweetness, herbaceous chocolate, and clove/allspice linger. New to amaro but I like this. Definitely a tooth-coating sugar bomb but could see sipping from time to time - the fruit/root/herb/spice does just enough to keep it interesting. Might be better thinned out over ice. A wallop of a modifier for cocktails.31.0 USD per Bottle
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Mellow Corn Bottled in Bond Whiskey
Corn — Kentucky, USA
Reviewed August 7, 2020 (edited August 30, 2020)Tried and failed to keep this brief considering it was $12. Intentionally old-timey, hand-painted style label. I don't hate it. The liquid is medium yellow with decent weight to it. Sweet, creamy, cereal nose. Honeysuckle. Modest puff of proof spice, but not harsh. The fading memory of a peanut. A touch dusty. Pleasant, if simple. Cream, lacquer, sweet - in that order. A touch of papaya then bracing aspartame. A strong finish with a persistent drying pucker. First instinct was that it doesn't scream "corn" at me, but just having that thought = viola: kettlecorn residue lingering non-stop. A little vein of tartness. Another peanut. Extremely nice mouthfeel - creamy, thick, and viscous. Verdict on a 5-scale: nose 3.0, taste 2.5, finish 3.25, body 4.5, price 5.0. Must try at <$20. Kicks the teeth out of most whiskey at the price, but is not a conventional bourbon/rye/American whiskey and unfortunately lacking in the flavor dept. If 100% corn whiskey had bourbon's demand, this could be $40, but here were are with one of the very few examples. Thank you Heaven Hill for keeping our horizons open even though this clearly is not a money maker. Also intriguing to think of this as a "component" for home blending, alongside Bernheim wheat. Rating reflects VFM.12.0 USD per Bottle -
Neat. Glencairn. Freshly uncorked. As is typical for the brand, the packaging is attractive although the brightly-painted tropical mural motif is counterproductively informal. The netting remains iconic, if a touch kitschy - no longer a packaging justification but possibly functional in bartender's slippery hand. I appreciate Plantation's (now standard) transparency regarding the moderate 16 g/L sugar dosage. A light golden orange. Moderately oily texture and nicely spaced legs, albeit aided by the extra sucrose. Wildly aromatic even sitting outside, an arm's length away. Perhaps typical to a Fijian rum, but shares a clear kinship with assertive Jamaican rum hogo. Tropical fruit and esters plus a thread of cleaning solution. Papaya and vanilla. Cognac grape eau de vie is present as well. The funkiness avoids dominating the experience and stays "on top", allowing a surprisingly clean nosing "underneath". No ethanol whatsoever. Quite nice and memorable. On the palate it is again relatively clean. Gives the impression of a gentle Agricole Vieux. Initial sweetness transitions quickly to pineapple-laced vanilla and cavendish tobacco. Cooked carrots. A tingle of spice and aspartame dashes across the mouth before returning to sweet cane. Probably too sweet but not offensive. The closest comparable that comes immediately to mind is Denizen Merchant's Reserve. This might be its little brother - clearly the same structure and maybe 75-80% in most categories - quality, depth, assertiveness, and character. For the asking price, I think that's a very reasonable accomplishment. Ultimately, the dosage seems to limit its potential, but may also hide the warts. Regardless, it is quite tasty, if a touch too sweet. I'd have preferred somewhere around 6-9 g/L, if any at all, but can't really complain. I will enjoy the bottle, and the price was more than fair.17.0 USD per Bottle
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Kirk and Sweeney 12 Year Rum
Aged Rum — Dominican Republic
Reviewed June 30, 2020 (edited May 14, 2021)Primarily been using this as a rum varietal for cocktails and figured I'd jot some notes before killing it off. Labeled as "12 year" not "12 reserva" , so precedes the NAS change. Attractive, unique, and eye-catching bottle design. Nostalgic un-headed cork stopper is quite cute but also annoyingly tedious to grip well enough to pry out - perhaps I should channel my inner Jack Sparrow and do so with my teeth to achieve maximum levels of nonchalant swagger. Neat. Glencairn. Attractive coppery honey color. A hint of oily body and very patient, slow legs. Pungent with a full aroma, but ultimately flat and uninteresting. Extremely strong vanilla, but little accompanying sweetness = vanilla extract. More ethanol than I would have expected for the low proof and (supposedly accurate) long aging. Little to no fruit. Maybe a molecule or two that never quite became spiced pear but had aspired to as adolescents? Lots more vanilla on the palate accented by citrus peel - orange, mostly, plus some grapefruit and lemon. A modest but nice and buttery mouthfeel. Sweeter than the nose, but still pleasantly on the drier side. A touch of bitter burnt sugar. Some "used-to-be-melon" notes disappointingly overrun by the vanilla. Tart/tangy lingers in the cheeks. Can't shake the "rummy" descriptor - in this instance, not a compliment (think Bacardi silver), but perhaps unsurprising for a Spanish-style rum. It's a little rougher than it should be for the price point, but the biggest knock is the bland and somewhat disjointed flavor profile. Drinkable, but uninspired and one-note. This isn't overoaked, but honestly i think I might have preferred less barrel time to discover some of the tropical fruits that I'm sure used to be there - many younger and cheaper rums will outperform this. Try Appleton 8 for affordable aged rum goodness.24.0 USD per Bottle
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