John D. Taylor's Velvet Falernum

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.

I'm experimenting with more tiki style drinks and thought this would boost my cocktail game. Its sweet but not overbearingly sweet. There's some citrus in there along with some spiciness on the finish. These two flavors help balance the sweetness of this liqueur. So far I've tried it with rum in a simple Corn 'n Oil cocktail, a variation of the same cocktail with some lime juice, and with some rye whiskey. I liked the simple Corn 'n Oil recipe of 1/2 oz Falernum, 2 oz of dark rum. I used Doorly's 12. I enjoyed the bit of citrus and spice the Falernum added to this drink. Afterwards, I tried the same drink with some Angostura bitters. Usually I add two dashes of bitters when making cocktails, but I think this drink is better with just one dash. Two dashes of bitters overpowered the rum and Falernum. Later, I tried it with some lime juice. This is when the cocktails really started to shine! The fresh lime juice accents the lime flavors in the Falernum and its delicious! Lastly, I created a Manhattan variance subbing Falernum for sweet vermouth. It was good, but once again, this drink really started to shine with a 1/2 oz of lime juice. Overall, I look forward to experimenting with this in other cocktails. So far, I really enjoy this with lime juice as a second mixer.

Sweet syrupy, rum and brown sugar. Boosts tropical cocktails.