Tastes
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Plantation is making and blending great rums. Butterscotch and cane sugar all over the nose, with pinapple and tropical fruits underneath. Cane sugar, banana, pineapple, fruity and creamy vanilla in the mouth. Creme Burle is an apt tasting note description. Sweet alcohol burst through a compact finish. Medium body and mouthfeel. Translucent orange-rose in color. Overarching taste is sweet--too sweet? Maybe so, but...
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Another in my mini bottle tasting series: Tang on the nose--the powdered kind that went to space with our astronauts. OK, Tang and floral orange soda. Childhood sensory memories. First sip. Hey, someone didn't put enough Tang powder in the water! But then I always liked my Tang 2:1, supercharged, so you drank and chewed the undissolved crystals. My dirty little secret. Point being, it's thin orange water. Sweet, "juicy," hint of alcohol, there and then GONE. Imagine one of those orange ice pops in the clear cellophane sleeves, cut off the top and push up from the bottom. Now imagine it without enough citric acid, so it's just floral orange. Bingo. But then... not really. Who or what is this for? Gulping out of an ice filled cup, maybe with sparking water or soda (unnecessary but...), on a boat in the middle of a lake on a hot sunny day. That's likely WHERE the idea for Orange Beam originated. Easier than hauling coolers full of beer. Less pee in the water. Win-win. But then again... not really. Go ahead, try it. You know you want to--there's that Tang memory to revisit.
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Another in my mini bottle tasting series: Tang on the nose--the powdered kind that went to space with our astronauts. OK, Tang and floral orange soda. Childhood sensory memories. First sip. Hey, someone didn't put enough Tang powder in the water! But then I always liked my Tang 2:1, supercharged, so you drank and chewed the undissolved crystals. My dirty little secret. Point being, it's thin orange water. Sweet, "juicy," hint of alcohol, there and then GONE. Imagine one of those orange ice pops in the clear cellophane sleeves, cut off the top and push up from the bottom. Now imagine it without enough citric acid, so it's just floral orange. Bingo. But then... not really. Who or what is this for? Gulping out of an ice filled cup, maybe with sparking water or soda (unnecessary but...), on a boat in the middle of a lake on a hot sunny day. That's likely WHERE the idea for Orange Beam originated. Easier than hauling coolers full of beer. Less pee in the water. Win-win. But then again... not really. Go ahead, try it. You know you want to--there's that Tang memory to revisit.
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Remus Repeal Reserve Series V (2021 Medley)
Bourbon — Indiana , USA
Reviewed November 21, 2021 (edited June 7, 2023)Rich auburn color and glass coating liquid. Sweet corn, vanilla, and light grassy spice on the nose. Sweet grain, caramel corn, and then lots a rye spice explodes, building to vanilla oak and ethanol in the mouth. Creamy full mouthfeel. Finish is long and a little sour underneath a spicy, grassy, and mint tingle. A classic MGP blend, heavy on the rye, three or four flavor notes, crisp and earthy, good all the way down. Shows the MGP distilling skills. I'm glad they're bottling their own juice now, keep the others honest about what they're selling as their own, and that's good. 6/2023. A year and a half after I first reviewed this, and this bourbon still holds up as an impressive balanced drink. Bumped this up from 4.25 to a 4.5, and added it to my Top Shelf list. Only one more glass left after this. Cheers. -
Temple Distilling Woodcut Barrel Rested Gin
Barrel-Aged Gin — Washington, USA
Reviewed November 10, 2021Beautiful golden straw color, medium legs in the glass. Fragrant juniper, grapefruit, and lime peel on the nose. Big flavors explode in the mouth. Oak and bitter spices. Juniper is there along with citrus and grape sweetness, but it's a dry coating mouthfeel. Long finish is dry oak, bitters, citrus peel, and tingling herbal nettle. Interesting straight up--that's a positive assessment. It's not as sweet and tame as some other barrel aged gins, but it has that forest floor character of the Pacific NW. Really impressed by the gins Temple Distilling is producing. More people need to discover this craft gem. This gin works great in a Tom Collins--the sugar and lemon rounds out the spice and dry oak, making for a more interesting version. Also works well with tonic, like a woodsy, double tonic G&T. -
Farmer's Botanical Organic Gin (Discontinued)
Modern Gin — Minnesota, USA
Reviewed November 2, 2021 (edited September 30, 2023)Lightly yellowed color. Grapes, apples, floral, and grain ethanol, with earthy spice notes on the nose. Juniper followed by lemongrass, coriander, citrus, and a little ethanol in the mouth to give it umph. Creamy soft mouthfeel with a finish that is long, spicy dry, and yet lemony. Leaves a real tingle. I love the story of this gin and the company commitment to organic and local. But distilling kinda obviates the essence of organic materials (not totally, but the act itself alters them fundamentally), and not all non-GMO/organic-based distillates are necessarily great, but this one... wow! The distilling choices on, and the balances between, these ingredients is magnificent. Neat, with ice, mixed as a cocktail... you can't go wrong. This is up there with my favorites: Plymouth, Fords, Barr Hill, Sipsmith, Ransom, and Haymans. -
Flor de Caña Gran Reserva 7 Rum
Gold Rum — Nicaragua
Reviewed October 26, 2021 (edited November 1, 2021)Beautiful auburn color and average legs in the glass. Light nose, sugar and oak. I can see what the Distiller Pro calls a cola smell. In the mouth, this is dry dusty oak, chocolate, and some ethanol. The vanilla and brown sugar sweetness (light) appears towards the finish, but there are little floral or grassy flavors. It's an interesting rum, not what I remember about the 12 or 18 year versions that I quite liked (oak, but more floral). Wish I could taste these all together. Mixes really well in an aged version of a Canchanchara (Cuban: honey, Limon, Aguardiente, ice). The dry qualities moderate the honey and citrus, giving this otherwise bright drink a deeper earthy flavor. Quite nice. Bet it would mix well in general for those who don't want or like a sweeter rum. -
Seagram's 7 Crown American Blended Whiskey
Blended American Whiskey — USA
Reviewed October 26, 2021 (edited November 1, 2021)Mini bottle tasting series. So I waited tables and bartended at a couple of bordertown resto bars in Idaho in the late 1970s while going to school in another state. The staff drank dry Martinis, but the clientele made it easy for us: CC & Coke, Jack and anything, and 7&7. I've avoided that until this moment. This had to be better when it was all Canadian (he said wistfully), but... probably not. 25% whiskey, 75% neutral spirits. It is what it is. Nice rich color, thin legs in the glass. Smells like whiskey. Sweet. Heat. Bon appétit! Thin, industrial chemicals, dry vanilla oak. And then it's gone...which is a blessing in this case. Cries for 7Up, ice, and two reds: a red Maraschino cherry and a Marlboro Red. At least that's how they made it work in Idaho.
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