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Review: George Dickel No. 12 Tennessee Sour Mash Whisky

Posted by Arctic Wolf on May 24, 2016

George Dickel No. 12George Dickel Whisky is produced at the Cascade Distillery in Cascade Hollow, Tennessee, near Tullahoma, by George A Dickel & Co. (the brand is currently owned by Diageo). As a Tennessee Whisky, George Dickel is required by state law to be not only produced in Tennessee, it must also undergo charcoal filtering through the use of what is called the Lincoln County Process (which involves maple charcoal filtering). As well, all Tennessee Whisky must meet all the requirements in place for bourbon whisky. It must have a mash bill of at least 51 % corn, it must be aged in new charred oak barrels with limits on the alcohol concentration for distillation, aging, and bottling).

The No. 12 brand is therefore both a bourbon (although it is not labeled so) and a Tennessee Whisky. It is produced from a mash bill of 84% corn, 8% rye, and 8% malted barley. The twice distilled mash is matured in oak with #4 Char, and the final whisky is bottled at 45 % alcohol by volume.

Here is a link to my full review:

Review: George Dickel No. 12 Tennessee Sour Mash Whisky

“… The breezes above the glass brought me maple and corn syrup, some oak and wood sap, and a very nice impression of damp cigar tobacco. There is both honeycomb and cedar and perhaps a touch of grain spice in the air with obvious some vanilla accents and some baking spices (cinnamon, clove and nutmeg) which seem to grow as we let the glass breathe …”

Please enjoy my review!

Chimo!

Posted in American Whiskey, Whisk(e)y, Whisk(e)y Review | Tagged: , , , , | Comments Off on Review: George Dickel No. 12 Tennessee Sour Mash Whisky

Cocktail Hour: The Bourbon Buckeroo

Posted by Arctic Wolf on May 23, 2016

It’s time for another deck drink, and the Bourbon Buckeroo is one of my favourites. Deck drinks as you know are that class of cocktails which are so easy to make that you can literally put all of your bar tools away and mix them up on your backyard deck as you enjoy the sunshine. No shakers, no strainers, and no fuss.

The great thing about deck drinks is that they are not only easy to make, they are also refreshing crowd-pleasers. You can haul your cooler full of ice out on to your back deck, fill it with cans of soda, place a couple of bottles of rum and whisky on the table with tray of sliced fruit and maybe a bottle of bitters, and then everyone can mix their own bar drinks to their own taste.

Buckeroo SAM_2401The Bourbon Buckeroo requires just three ingredients: Bourbon, Cola, and Bitters. Bourbon, which is at its heart a corn whiskey, mixes particularly well with cola and adding a dash or two of bitters gives this deck drink a nice extra depth of flavour. Of course, lots of ice makes it a cold refreshing serve on a lazy hot afternoon.

You probably do not need the recipe repeated; but here it is anyways:

Bourbon Buckeroo

1 1/2 oz Bourbon (George Dickel No. 12 in this case)
dash Angostura Bitters
Ice
Cola
Slice of Lime for garnish (optional)

Build in a tall glass with ice
Complete with Cola
Garnish with a lime slice

Enjoy Responsibly!

If  you are interested in more of my original cocktail recipes, please click this link (Cocktails and Recipes) for more of my mixed drink recipes!

Note: Tomorrow I will be reviewing a great bourbon for Buckeroos, George Dickel No. 12 Tennessee Sour Mash Whisky.

Chimo!

 

Posted in Cocktails & Recipes | Tagged: , , , | Comments Off on Cocktail Hour: The Bourbon Buckeroo

Review: Pusser’s Spiced Rum

Posted by Arctic Wolf on May 21, 2016

Pusser's Spiced and Cola SAM_2521Pusser’s Rum is advertised as the original rum of the British Royal Navy. And it is a fact that for over 300 years it was a tradition of the British Navy that each member of the crew was issued a daily ‘tot’ of rum. This tradition began in 1655, and by 1731, the tradition of the daily ‘tot’ was in general use throughout the British Navy. As it was the ship’s purser who was responsible for issuing the rum, the tot of rum became known as Pusser’s Rum in a sort of slang derivation of the term ‘Purser’s Rum’.

Although the naval tradition of the daily tot had ended, in 1979  Charles Tobias obtained the rights and the blending information for the British Naval Rum, and formed Pusser’s Ltd. on Tortola in the British Virgin Islands. His company produces their Pusser’s Rum following the blending information and the traditions of the Admiralty.

Pusser’s Spiced Rum is new to the Pusser’s range. According to the producer’s website it is flavoured with a blend of locally sourced Caribbean spices which have been steeped in Caribbean rum over 7 days. The final rum is bottled at 35 % alcohol by volume.

Here is a link to my full review:

Review: Pusser’s Spiced Rum

“… the spiced rum is perhaps just a little more heated than what I was expecting as both the cinnamon and the ginger seem to grab my attention. Despite the apparent heat, I can also easily discern other underlying pungent spices (reminiscent of allspice and nutmeg). Some sweet caramel-like flavours serve to soothe the palate making the spice easy to bear, and if you pay attention some mild tobacco and citrus notes play within the spice as well …”

Please enjoy my review of the new spiced rum from Pusser’s, Chimo!

Posted in Rum, Rum Reviews, Spiced Rum | Tagged: , , , | Comments Off on Review: Pusser’s Spiced Rum

Cocktail Hour: Bitter Blood and Spice

Posted by Arctic Wolf on May 20, 2016

Blood Orange Bitters

Blood Orange Bitters

Making new cocktails is fun, and when I received my sample bottle of Pusser’s Spiced Rum I decided that it was the perfect opportunity to do some experimentation. What I wanted to create was a new bar drink for spiced rum which would perhaps have a stronger ‘cocktail’ appeal than the more typical spiced rum and cola.

I began by doing a little research online, and I came upon a serving called the Cable Car which was created in 1996 at the Starlight Room in San Fransisco by Tony Abou-Ganim. Tony’s recipe (which I will be featuring at a later date) is based upon the Classic Sidecar; however the Cable Car uses spiced rum as the base of the cocktail instead of brandy.

I decided to follow Tony’s lead and began to examine the brandy-based libations in the Cocktails Section of my website looking specifically for a brandy based serving which used ingredients which would also favour spiced rum. The recipe which caught my eye was a bar drink which I had originally found on the website of Cognac producer, Hennessey called Blood Orange Bitters. It mixes Lemon juice and Blood Orange juice with Cognac and Bitters.

Hot Blooded SAM_2525

Bitter Blood and Spice

I liked the idea of using orange and lemon juice in my recipe and adding a dab of bitters would be a great way to top off the serving. So I started experimenting, and I found that the mixed drink tasted the best when I used a combination of both fresh squeezed Navel Orange and fresh Blood Orange. The lemon juice gave the libation just the right amount of tartness, and the added Angostura Bitters seemed to compliment and elevate the spiced rum which was the star of the serving.

Bitter Blood and Spice

2 oz  Pusser’s Spiced Rum
1/2 oz  Fresh Squeezed Lemon Juice
1/2 oz  Fresh Squeezed Blood Orange Juice
1/2 oz  Fresh Squeezed Navel Orange Juice
Dash or two  Angostura bitters
1/4 oz  Sugar Syrup (1:1)
Ice
Strip of Orange Peel

Add the first five ingredients into a cocktail shaker with ice
Shake until the sides frost
Strain into a chilled rocks glass with ice
Garnish with a strip of Orange Peel

Enjoy Responsibly!

If  you are interested in more of my original cocktail recipes, please click this link (Cocktails and Recipes) for more of my mixed drink recipes!

Note: My review of Pusser’s Spiced Rum will publish tomorrow, Chimo!

Posted in Cocktails & Recipes | Tagged: , , | Comments Off on Cocktail Hour: Bitter Blood and Spice

Review: Espolon Blanco Tequila

Posted by Arctic Wolf on May 18, 2016

Espolon BlancoEspolon is a tequila brand created by Master Distiller Cirilo Oropeza. This is an premium tequila made in a small batch process from ‘hand-selected 100% Blue Weber agave, grown in the rich red clay and cool climate of the Highlands of Jalisco, Mexico. The Espolon website tells us that the company likes to play rock music at their facilities to ‘inspire’ the agave.

At that facility piñas of the hand selected agave are cooked for 18 to 20 hours prior to their fermentation. They apparently use a slower distillation technique than is in use at most other facilities, and when the spirit is finished, their Espolon Blanco tequila is rested, filtered and then bottled at 40 % alcohol by volume.

Here is a link to the full review:

Review: Espolon Blanco Tequila 

“… The initial aroma somewhat earthy as a firm agave scent rises into the air. The punky agave gives me impressions of both baked squash and lightly sweet grilled pineapple. A light citrus zest is apparent as is some spicy white pepper. Taking my time with the glass, I seem to notice some softer notes of vanilla and menthol in the breezes which perhaps hints an underlying softness which may become apparent upon tasting …”

Please enjoy my review. In the next few days I will be taking a detour to try the new Pusser’s Spiced Rum, Chimo!

Posted in Blanco Tequila, Tequila, Tequila Review | Tagged: , , , | Comments Off on Review: Espolon Blanco Tequila

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