Tastes
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Just a bit over zealous with anise or fennel. It tips the normally expected balanced profile to more heavily herbal, less savory side of the gin flavor spectrum. Totally more at home in an Aviation and a tad too bold for a dry Martini. A little hot on the back end as well so, it really sticks out in every cocktail. Very unique flavor profile and I suggest that any gin explorer to give this a go.
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Luxardo Maraschino Liqueur
Fruit Liqueurs — Veneto, Italy
Reviewed February 15, 2019 (edited June 4, 2021)Absolutely amazing spirit! Huge aromas of marzipan, cinnamon and musty-funk with sour cherries, anise and bright floral notes rounding out the bouquet. Could spend a long while analyzing the nose as it progressively opens in the glass. Wow. The flavor profile is huge and unashamed. It holds nothing back but is so refined and 100% Artisanal-Italian. Sweet, almondy-sour cherry pits with fruit bits still attached, buckwheat honey...almost Jamaican rum style funk and earth, pepper and marzipan... SO MUCH MARZIPAN!! Slight sour/bitterness with fruity,floral and herbal touches-rotating and deepening the complexity of the finish...while the lingering sweetness on the lips, keeps the wallop of flavors extending and extending and extending... INTENSE, UNIQUE & REFINED. Will need to revisit this review as I sip this more over the coming months. $28/750 ml and worth every penny. 95-96 score for me. The Luxardo family history is an amazing story of resilience as well. -
Always a solid choice and value. Easy going malty-biscuit, vanilla with faint woody and grassy aromas. The flavor profile, although not overly complex, is friendly, straightforward and balanced with a little sweetness. Unripe red pear, vanilla, pepper and herbal tea. Nothing earth shattering here, just friendly and approachable. It’s usually on sale and is a great stocker and crowd pleaser. Sláinte!!
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I’m a little torn on this one. Maybe confusion attributed to what the eyes see and what the tongue and palate feels. First off, it has a very creamy and robust nose with much deeper and boozy molasses notes than a typical silver/light rum. Distant aged wood grain and earthiness follow in with sharp alcohol fumes, more expressive of a young spirit. In the mouth, it starts off with faint sweetness with brown sugar, almond, warming spices and strangely; a little sticky herbaceousness and papery,tongue depressor type woodiness. The finish is surprisingly hot and dry considering the spirit’s initial mild sweetness. It’s not smooth and refined like an aged rum, but has mild woodiness and richer flavors, however muted, like one. This isn’t a sipper, just like most silver rums, but isn’t something I like to use in cocktails with a lot of competing ingredients either. This does make great daiquiris and will keep experimenting. Probably not a selection I’d spend the extra couple $ on again.
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Del Maguey Crema de Mezcal
Mezcal Joven — Oaxaca, Mexico
Reviewed February 1, 2019 (edited December 23, 2020)Very smoky with citrus and herbaceous notes and is lightly sweetened by the agave syrup. The “smoke” is much more dark,resinous and pronounced in the Crema than in the Del Maguey Vida. I’ll sip this in a 5 oz. small, shallow prep dish with a large chunk of ice or make margaritas. Both the Crema and Vida make great cocktails. After several back-to-back comparisons, the Crema just makes a much more robust and flavorful margaritas plus, you don’t have to add any sweetener either. My recipe: 2 oz Crema de Mezcal, 1/4 oz Cointreau, 3/4-1 oz Lime juice. Skip the salt rim. Shake with ice, strain and be blown away by this smooth, flavor bomb. -
Siete Leguas Blanco Tequila
Tequila Blanco — Los Altos, Jalisco, Mexico
Reviewed January 26, 2019 (edited August 27, 2020)There is just something overly salty and briny about this that immediately dismisses it as a top Blanco in my collection. Pop the cork and a wallop of truffle butter and ripe olive snack me in the face. So, yes...it has a strong aroma but its also very narrow. No sweetness to be found on the palate until the very end of the short finish and even then, it’s competing with the heavy salinity left on the lips. The baked agave flavor is flat and muted by the heavily mineral notes with no sweetness or fruitiness. It’s really disappointing. I don’t know if it’s the batch I got but it’s a 100% savory profile. Ok spirit but not great, and certainly not outstanding for the price in the premium Blanco category. Very salty with heavy mineral notes, no complexity and has a rather thin body. Very forgettable... -
I’ll start by saying, Cedilla is one of my all time favorite liqueurs. I bought one bottle and finished it rather quickly and then bought two more. It has a very deep and dark purple appearance and the aroma is very pronounced even at the the first pop of the cork. The nose is huge and intoxicating and starts with a robust, mega dose of juicy açaí berries and grape, followed by fresh cut honey melon with floral touches and hints of earthy-spiciness. Really could pick out things in this all day. The palate follows closely, but the sweet açaí just explodes on the tongue and the finish is refreshing and long with the blueberry, grape, spice and grassy notes sneaking in. It is sweet but not cloying or syrupy and has a medium-light body similar to a cream sherry or port wine. This has to be one of the most underrated liqueurs out there and every review I’ve read has given it extremely high scores. Cedilla makes great cocktails, because it’s refined and has pronounced and natural açaí berry flavor. It’s a finely crafted offering that can be enjoyed straight, over ice, or in numerous cocktails like the Açaí Caipirinha, Amazoni, South of Bahia and Manaus Mule. 98-99 score for me.
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Flor De Caña Centenario 12 Rum
Aged Rum — Nicaragua
Reviewed October 29, 2018 (edited September 7, 2019)This is exactly what I love in a fantastic rum. It’s rich and bold without being a cloying sugar bomb. Just the perfect amount sweetness lingers on the lips with a nice long and clean finish. A lot of the usual suspects on the nose but refined and so much more complex with additional notes of whipped butter, buckwheat honey and white grape. The palate follows with the addition of warming spices, butterscotch and slightest hint of citrus peel. Not overly woody but terrifically aged with absolutely no dustiness or graininess from the casks. There’s no need to mask anything here. One of the most balanced rums I’ve had. Medium-light body with no syrupiness. This is a rum and not a bottled rum cocktail like so many others.
Results 21-30 of 41 Reviews