Category: Liquor

Gosling’s Black Seal Black Rum

  By , ,

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

  By , ,

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

  By , ,

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

  By , ,

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

Gin

  By , ,

Nope. We are done here. Move along.

I’m sure other sites will give Gin a fair shake, but not this one. Distilled pine is not my idea of something one should drink. But if that is your thing, enjoy.

I’m not insisting that you like anything I like. Please grant me the same courtesy.

Good day.

Buy again: You’re kidding, right?

Luksusowa Vodka

  By , ,

My first vodka was Luksusowa. This is a Polish potato vodka. My first smell yielded very little, My first taste was of alcohol and a slight sweetness. I have used it successfully in a number of cocktails. It is a middle-shelf vodka and quite affordable.

Distiller: Luksusowa

Proof: 80 (40% ABV)

Paid: $13 for 750ml

Buy again: Yes

Liquor: Overview

  By

A liquor is usually the primary spirit in a cocktail. Liquors are typically distilled and bottled to a higher Alcohol By Volume (ABV) than liqueurs, wine or beer. They are tightly regulated (more so in some states than in others).

Liquor can be derived from grains, fruits, or vegetables, and the resulting product may carry some of the characteristics of the source material. In the case of vodka, the product is highly filtered, or repeatedly distilled to yield a colorless, flavorless product.

Vodka is often produced from potatoes or grains. Whiskey is also distilled from grains. Tequila is commonly distilled from the agave cactus. Rum is produced from sugar cane, or molasses.

Rum changed everything for me with regard to cocktails. Vodka offered only alcohol, but rum offered TASTE.

I realized with the first Martini, that maybe strong savory drinks weren’t my thing.

Rum led to Tiki drinks. Since I have a sweet tooth, it was a good fit for my taste. It goes to reason that a spirit produced from sugar cane would have a sweet character.

Light rum is usually unaged or lightly aged. It is usually presented in the bottle as a clear or nearly clear spirit.

Aged rums have spend some time in a charred oak barrel and some of the characteristics should be in the taste of the bottled product.

Dark rums might have spent some time in a charred oak barrel, but frequently have only had some caramel coloring added.

Rums with various flavors are common.

Spiced rums are made from a rum base with a variety of spice flavors added. Rums with coconut, mango, pineapple, lemon, banana, and other tropical flavors are readily available.