Month: October 2018

Bols Triple Sec

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After trying Cointreau and the realization that sometimes you just don’t like a cocktail and end up pouring it out, I decided to go lower down the shelf for orange liqueurs for experimental cocktails. This time, I left online research behind. I walked into the ABC store and asked the clerk what triple sec was a big seller. The response: Bols Triple Sec. It was a third of the price of  Cointreau at $7.95. Without hesitation, I grabbed a bottle and headed for the register,

Back at the Lair, I unscrewed the top and poured a small amount into a shot glass. I did the same with a bit of Cointreau. The Bols had more of an artificial, or candy, orange aroma. Tasting the two side-by-side surprised me at how sweet they both were. A tiny taste told a similar story, but as always, the alcohol blew away anything else.

I made a scaled down version of a cocktail from each (it could have been a Margarita, it was two years ago). Mixed in with some citrus or another, and with the primary spirit adding its burn, they were mostly identical to me.

It turns out that this would not always be the case, but for now I have learned that a cocktail did not always demand the more expensive ingredient.

Proof: 30 (15%ABV)

Paid: $8 for 750ml

Buy again: No

Cointreau

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If you start by reading posts from people who are purists, or who believe there is only one option, no matter how expensive it is, you will end up with Cointreau as your first liqueur. Cointreau is the big dog, and priced to match. As I was just starting out, I picked up the 375ml bottle, at a cost of about $23!

Cointreau is an orange liqueur, and produced “from the dried peels of bitter and sweet orange” (Wikipedia). This adds a hint of orange flavor, aroma, and sweetness to cocktails.

From my perspective, other orange liqueurs work just fine.

Proof: 80 (40% ABV)

Paid: $23 for 375ml

Buy again: Probably not.

Olmeca Altos Blanco and Reposado

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My first tequila was found through the usual means of reviews and deep data dives. I decided on Olmeca Altos Blanco (as well as the Reposado). I bought one each in the 375ml size. These are 100% Blue Agave tequila. These are my first (and so far only) tequilas.

The agave flavor really comes through. The only way I knew what agave tasted like, was that I had also purchased agave nectar and knew the smell and taste. I also know it isn’t my favorite taste, but I can tolerate cocktails made with tequila. I did like the reposado (rested, aged in barrel for a period of time) better than the blanco (white, unaged).

Proof: 80 (40% ABV)

Paid: $10 for 375ml

Buy again: Probably

Midday Sun

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Look at any list of recipes and you’ll find at least one “sunrise”. Usually a base liquor, orange juice, and grenadine for the color effect.

I was looking for something to do with limoncello, and on a whim, mixed it with orange juice. It was plenty sweet, and I decided not to add the grenadine. I playfully commented that it looked like the “midday sun”, and the name stuck (in the Lair, at least). This is a pretty mild drink, considering that the limoncello is the only alcohol at about 25-30% ABV.

If it is too sweet, adding a bit of lemon juice (or lime) should give it a bit of pucker!

1 oz Limoncello
3 oz Orange Juice
(optionally add 1/4 or 1/2 oz Lemon juice or Lime juice, if you want some tartness)

 

Evan Williams 1783 Bourbon

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This was a tough one. While making some cocktails with my son and his girlfriend, my son asked what kind of whiskey I had.

There was no whiskey in the cabinet, and until that point, I never intended to have whiskey anywhere near me. (If you haven’t read the intro page, now is a good time).

By this time, I had tried the Meyers’s rum, and it had reminded me of whiskey, but perhaps because of the presentation, had not turned me off to the taste.

So I went down the rabbit hole of reviews and a visit to the ABC store to snap pictures of the entire wall of whiskey, focusing (no pun intended) on the middle shelf. At this point, I discovered just how high-end whiskey had become. So, I also snapped away at the bottom shelf for reference.

I’m not a whiskey drinker, and my intention was to ALWAYS mix it. Even then, I didn’t want to settle for the bottom shelf. Strangely enough, there appears to be a fairly good opinion of some of the bottom shelf whiskey when it comes to mixing (and a few that are decent neat sippers).

I finally settled on Evan Williams. Then the challenge became a choice between the lower end Evan Williams products, and the lower middle shelf.

The online consensus was that even the bottom shelf Evan Williams bottles would work in a cocktail. But in the end I decided to go one step up to the Evan Williams 1783 Bourbon.

Update: Evan Williams 1783 has a caramel flavor with a slight spice.

Distiller: Heaven Hill

Proof: 86 (43% ABV)

Paid: $17 for 750ml

Buy Again: Yes

 

Pomegranate Martini

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I can’t remember the website where I saw this recipe. Maybe it was one of the smartphone apps.

  • 1 1/2 oz Vodka
  • 1/2 oz Orange Liqueur
  • 1 oz Sour Mix
  • 1/2 oz Pomegranate Juice

Note: I used POM Wonderful juice.
Fill a shaker with ice. Add the ingredients and shake. Strain into a cocktail glass.

Gosling’s Black Seal Black Rum

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Gosling’s Black Seal was my second dark rum. It actually says “black”. Rum terminology is often confusing and there is a lot of overlap. Gosling’s comes up over and over online with regard to a cocktail called a Dark and Stormy. I don’t care for ginger beer (one of the main components in the aforementioned cocktail). But after the Meyers’s, I was intrigued. The Gosling’s Black Seal had nowhere near the “punch” that the Meyers’s had and none of the “smokey” flavor.

I have tried to sip it straight. Alcohol. Some sweet or molasses bitter taste.

I have tried it with a little water or over ice. Doesn’t help, but again, did slightly bring out some subtle flavors.

Not that this meant that it was bad in a cocktail. I’d say it gets lost in heavily sweetened and fruity cocktails.

Distiller: Gosling Brothers Limited

Proof: 80 (40% ABV)

Paid: $17 for 750ml (on sale)

Buy again: Probably Not

The Naked Turtle White Rum

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I ran across The Naked Turtle White Rum in an ABC store I hadn’t visited before. It was labeled as an un-aged white rum (naked). The company advertises that they are involved in sea turtle rescue.

I bought the bottle and headed back to the Lair. Upon opening it, I was surprised by the aroma of marshmallows, and some alcohol. This carried through into cocktails, but more as an element of sweetness, than as a marshmallow flavor.

In a cocktail the Turtle doesn’t bring much burn. I’m guessing it has some level of sugar that offsets the alcohol burn.

Importer: Diageo

Proof: 80 (40% ABV)

Paid: $13 for 750ml

Buy again: Probably

Meyers’s Dark Rum

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Meyers’s Dark was my first dark rum. It was specifically called for in some cocktails, and I thought I’d give it a try. A few conflicting reviews let me apprehensive. I was about twice the price of the Cruzan Light, so not knowing if I’d like it, I picked up a 375ml bottle.

My first sniff told me that danger lurked nearby. It smelled harsh with a strong charred whiskey aroma from decades ago. The “dark” description did not disappoint.

I have tried to sip it straight. Not my best choice.

I have tried it with a little water or over ice. Doesn’t help, but did allow me to discover there was more than char in their.

No one considers Meyers’s Dark a sipper. No one. Ever.

In a cocktail, things got interesting. Most of my cocktails to this point were sweet and fruity. This added a depth that cut through the sweet and fruity with a smokey taste, and added a complex (but not overwhelming) molasses flavor.

Distiller: Sazerac

Proof: 80 (40% ABV)

Paid: $11 for 375ml

Buy again: Probably

Cruzan Light Rum

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Cruzan Light was my first light rum, or any rum for that matter. It’s choice was determined from painstakingly pouring (pun?) over reviews and YouTube videos. Of course, after I purchased it, I found other reviews that contradicted this. This brings us to rule #1:

On the Internet, an agreement on anything by one group, will be disagreed upon by another group.

I have tried to sip it straight. Don’t do that.

I have tried it with a little water or over ice. Doesn’t help.

Then again, I don’t think anyone expect Cruzan Light to be used in this manner.

I have tried other light rums, and as previously noted, in a cocktail, the differences are small or totally insignificant (to me). Middle-shelf and inexpensive.

Distiller: Cruzan Rum Distillery/Beam-Suntory

Proof: 80 (40% ABV)

Paid: $12 for 750ml

Buy again: Yes