Tastes
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Chareau Aloe Liqueur
Other Liqueurs — California, USA
Reviewed March 30, 2022 (edited March 31, 2022)Per the rep: Grape alcohol (I can't remember if wine or first run off a still) is steeped separately with each cucumber, lemon, mint, and melon, then redistilled to ~140° proof. Then cut with aloe juice and water. ^From memory, take with a grain of salt. 10% Brix according to rep. Reads as 18% on a refractometer, perhaps due to other organic compounds. 3.30.22 Bottle Open: Unknown (Rep visit) Served: Neat, Flute Aroma: Balanced cucumber and mint, with a hit of lemon peel. Flavor: Noticeable sweetness, needs chilling or a splash of club soda to enjoy any more than an ounce on its own. Cucumber and mint dominate up front, with a definitive melon aftertaste. Has a very cooling, refreshing effect. Stellar cocktail ingredient. I have a variant of the Naked and Famous called the Naked and Sunburnt, which uses equal parts mezcal, lime, Ancho Reyes, and Aperol, garnished with Aloe. I tried switching out the Aperol for this liqueur, and the results were stellar and refreshing. I'm calling it Spread Eagle, for the position one assumes on a hotel bed after wayyyyy too much sun exposure. Dan Carlson's Spread Eagle: 1oz Lime Juice 1oz Mezcal 1oz Ancho Reyes Chile Liqueur 1oz Chareau Aloe Liqueur Garnish with Aloe or Lime Optional additions: 1/4oz simple syrup for extra sweetness and body, and/or a dash of jalapeño tincture for extra heat. -
Kōloa Single Barrel Kaua'i Reserve 5 Year
Aged Rum — Kaua’i, Hawaii, USA
Reviewed March 30, 2022 (edited February 24, 2024)This product is Single Barrel and Barrel Strength, Varying in final proof from 110-124 (55%-62% ABV) END Koloa Tasting with distiller Bob Gunter (Tasted 8th and last) Per the Distiller: Made from sugarcane juice and distilled in twice. Once each in two different copper hybrid stills. Barrel #B-078, bottled at 59.98% ABV 3.23.22 Served: Neat, Flute Bottle Open: Same Day Last intake: Coconut Rum A: Heavy Oak. Much like Bourbon, but more gentle. F: Heavy Oak. Very gentle on the wood tannins and char due to the second-use nature of the barrel. Most of the character of the base distillate is lost, but not undully. It still tastes like rum, but this is the rum I would use to introduce a bourbon drinkeker to rum or vice versa. -
Continuing Koloa Tasting with distiller Bob Gunter (Tasted 7th) Per the Distiller: Their standard white rum flavored with coconut extract sourced from a pharmaceutical company. Using fresh coconut was too inconsistent due to variance from fruit to fruit. 3.23.22 Served: Neat, Flute Bottle Open: Same Day Last intake: Coffee Rum Aroma: Coconut, reminiscent of suntan lotion. Flavor: Coconut, dairy butter. The suntan lotion aroma throws me off a bit, but the flavor is delightful. Neither desirable nor offensive on its own. Interested in mixing to see if the coconut persists. This is the only coconut rum I've tried, so there may be better options, but this one is passable as far as I'm concerned.
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Continuing Koloa Tasting with distiller Bob Gunter (Tasted 6th) Per the Distiller: Their standard white rum infused with cold brew coffee. 3.23.22 Served: Neat, Flute Bottle Open: Same Day Last intake: Cacao Rum Aroma: Cold Brew and chocolate. Flavor: Old coffee, baking cocoa. Very cocoa forward coffee flavor, but unfortunately has the aftertaste of day-old hotel coffee. Worth trying in a mixed drink, but not pleasant on its own.
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Continuing Koloa Tasting with distiller Bob Gunter (Tasted 5th) Per the Distiller: Their standard white rum infused with cacao and sugar. 3.23.22 Served: Neat, Flute Bottle Open: Same Day Last intake: Spiced Rum Aroma: Baked chocolate, medicinal cocoa extract. Near identical aroma to Tempus Fugit Creme de Cacao. Flavor: Chocolate chips, brownies, a light touch of hersheys syrup (unpleasant acidity and salinity). Authentic cocoa flavor. Has a stronger and deeper cocoa flavor than creme de cacao. This, along with its lower sweetness make it a suitable candidate for mixing.
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Continuing Koloa Tasting with distiller Bob Gunter (Tasted 4th) Per the Distiller: Their standard white rum infused with cinnamon, nutmeg, and white peppercorn. 3.23.22 Served: Neat, Flute Bottle Open: Same Day Last intake: Dark Rum Aroma: Much like root beer, vanilla, honey, and nutmeg notes. Flavor: Vanilla, cinnamon, snickerdoodle cookie. Some sweetness balances out the heat. I could drink this all day. My favorite spiced rum that I've tried so far. Not cloying, not artificial. Would do well in christmas cocktails, but I would choose to drink this neat.
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Continuing Koloa Tasting with distiller Bob Gunter (Tasted 2nd) Per the Distiller: Made from sugarcane juice and distilled in 2 copper hybrid stills. Aged for 90 days in ex-bourbon barrels. 3.23.22 Served: Neat, Flute Bottle Open: Same Day Last intake: White Rum A: Very little charcter. Though we are tasting through 8 rums, so I don't have as much time as I would like to dwell on it. F: Some caramel character from the barrel. Very thin bodied. Entirely unoffensive, but uninteresting as well. 2.5/5 Would mix in cocktails that don't rely on rum character, but would not spend money on it.
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Continuing Koloa Tasting with distiller Bob Gunter (Tasted 1st) Per the Distiller: Made from sugarcane juice and distilled in 2 copper hybrid stills. 3.23.22 Served: Neat, Flute Bottle Open: Same Day Last intake: Water A: Clean, almost chracterless. The column strips away all discernable character that would be typical of an agricultural rum. F: Has presence and body that make it far more pleasant to sip than vodka. There are faint notes of banana and coconut. Otherwise, very clean, which, in a way, comes as both a virtue and a flaw. Would universally drink this over vodka, but would choose a rum with character if I wanted to make a true rum cocktail. The Rum Equivalent of white bread. Has the advantage of not having the cloying candy-like aroma of Bacardi white or Captain Morgan white.
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Macallan Fine Oak 15 Year
Single Malt — Highlands, Scotland
Reviewed March 27, 2022 (edited April 14, 2022)3.27.22 Served: Highball (Chilled Glass, 2:1 Ratio, Prismal Ice Cube) Bottle Open 3 Years Incredibly pleasant to drink. Lightly Oaky, light sherry character, light bitterness in the finish. The first Scotch highball I've had that was worth drinking. Either the club soda choice (Top Note) made the difference, or Monkey Shoulder and St. George's Baller were not suited for higballs. -
START of Koloa Tasting with distiller Bob Gunter (Tasted 3rd) Per the Distiller: Infused with Tahitian Vanilla and caramelized Sugar. 3.23.22 Served: Neat, Flute Bottle Open: Same Day Last intake: More rum Aroma: Strong baking Vanilla Flavor: Burnt sugar and strong vanilla. The vanilla has a wonderful authenticity and lingers on the tongue. The vanilla character is almost too strong to sip on it's own, but would be well suited to a chocolate chip cookie cocktail. Will have to try butter-washed.
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