The Rum Howler Blog

(A Website for Spirited Reviews)

  • Copyright

    Copyright is inherent when an original work is created. This means that the producer of original work is automatically granted copyright protection. This copyright protection not only exists in North America, but extends to other countries as well. Thus, all of the work produced on this blog is protected by copyright, including all of the pictures and all of the articles. These original works may not be copied or reused in any way whatsoever without the permission of the author, Chip Dykstra.
  • Cocktails and Recipes

    Click Image for Awesome Recipes

  • Industry Interviews

    Interviews

    Click the Image for Great Interviews with the Movers of Industry

  • The Rum Howler Interview (Good Food Revolution)

    Click on the Image to see my interview on Good Food Revolution

  • The Rum Howler Blog

    Unknown's avatar

  • Rum Reviews

  • Whisky Reviews

  • Gin Reviews

  • Tequila Reviews

  • Vodka Reviews

  • Enter your email address to subscribe to this blog and receive notifications of new posts by email.

    Join 1,092 other subscribers
  • Subscribe

  • Visitors

    • 15,539,544 pageviews since inception
  • Archives

  • Follow The Rum Howler Blog on WordPress.com

Author Archive

Review: Forty Creek Heart of Gold (2013 Limited Release)

Posted by Arctic Wolf on October 5, 2013

Heart_of_Gold_bottleForty Creek Whisky has for the last number of years produced a special limited release whisky and allowed the public to participate in the release by offering to let you choose your own numbered bottle. As well you can have your bottle signed by their own Master Distiller and Whisky Maker, John Hall, when you arrive to pick up your pre-ordered bottles. These special release whiskies are built upon the foundation of the company’s flagship whisky, Forty Creek Barrel Select, and are basically versions of this whisky which have spent additional time finishing in selected oak barrels. The 2013 Special Limited Release Canadian Whisky, Heart of Gold, is a spirit with an emphasis on Canadian rye grain.

According to Whisky Maker, John Hall:

“This project started nearly a decade ago, focusing specifically on Canada’s noble rye grain. I have always brought out the spicy, fruity notes of rye in my whiskies, but this time, I wanted to perfect how to capture the underlying delicate floral notes of the rye that too often get lost in the process.“

Heart of Gold is not a 100 % rye grain whisky, as the whisky blend also includes a barley whisky, which adds some nutty flavours, and a corn whisky, which adds weight and body. But make no mistake about it, the intent of John Hall in creating this whisky is to showcase the spicy, fruity and floral notes of Canadian Rye.

I was given a pre-release media sample a few months ago and from that small sample I constructed a review of the spirit which roughly coincided with the numbered bottle offering upon the Forty Creek website. At that time the whisky was just being bottled, but as is John Hall’s way, these bottles are ‘rested’ for up to two months before the whisky is released to the public.  Now that the whisky has been released I have had an opportunity to sample the spirit from a full sealed bottle. I decided to revisit the review to see if this resting period had had any effect upon the spirit or my review.

Here is a link to my newly revised review (which incidentally contains very few changes):

Review: Forty Creek Heart of Gold (2013 Limited Release)

“… The breezes above the glass are full of wood spices (cardamom, ginger, sandalwood, sawdust and white pepper), and those breezes remind me of autumns past when the ripened grain in the fields was being combined …”

Cheers Everyone!

Posted in Canadian Whisky, Whisk(e)y, Whisk(e)y Review | Tagged: , , , , | Comments Off on Review: Forty Creek Heart of Gold (2013 Limited Release)

Review: Pumpkin Face White Rum

Posted by Arctic Wolf on October 4, 2013

Pumpkin Face WhitePumpkin Face Rum is a new brand of rum being distributed in Canada by Pure Global Imports. The rum inside the cool looking pumpkin shaped bottles is apparently a blend of selected rums from the Dominican Republic. I was curious about those pumpkin faced bottles, and found this statement on the Pumpkin Face Rum website:

“The pumpkin is a symbol of celebration to people around the world. The origin of the pumpkin can be traced to North American seeds dating back to 7000 BC. The word pumpkin comes from the word “pepon”, which is Greek for “large melon” and later changed by American colonists to “pumpkin”. Colonists would often slice off the pumpkin top, remove the seeds, and fill it with cream, honey, eggs and spices. They cooked the pumpkin in hot ashes until blackened then enjoyed its contents.”

According to the labeling, this is an ‘ultra premium’ Dominican Rum, bottled at 40 % alcohol by volume. The brand is owned by, Itsko Imports Inc of Beverly Hills, California.

You may click on the following excerpt to read the full review:

Review: Pumpkin Face White Rum

“… When I poured the Pumpkin Face White Rum into my glass, I noticed the spirit carried a light butterscotch scent into the air. A I nosed the rum, mild impressions of banana, orange zest, and faint grassy vegetal notes rose into the breezes. There were also a few light traces of cotton candy, wisps of mint, and hints of anise-like licorice scents …”

Please enjoy my review which includes a nice Daiquiri recipe at its conclusion.

Cheers Everyone!

Posted in Cocktails & Recipes, Rum, Rum Reviews, White Rums | Tagged: , , , , , , | Comments Off on Review: Pumpkin Face White Rum

Review: Pristina Vodka

Posted by Arctic Wolf on October 3, 2013

Pristina Vodka TonicPristina Vodka is a quadruple distilled wheat Vodka produced in High River, Alberta in the foothills of the Rocky Mountains just south of Calgary. I have been a fan of Highwood Distillers for a while now; but I was not prepared for what greeted me when I opened a sample bottle Highwood’s Pristina Vodka. Maybe it was the uninspiring bottle and label, or maybe it is just a case of us Canadians being a little too self-conscious to believe we can be as good as everyone else in the world. Whatever the reason, when I put the Pristina in a flight of Vodka samples at a tasting where it was up against an Authentic Russian Vodka called Black Stallion, a real Polish Vodka called Alchemia Czysta, and a Vodka made in France called Grey Goose, I was not expecting what happened.

What happened was that every person at my tasting chose the same Vodka as their favourite, and every person said it wasn’t even close. That favourite, the clear head and shoulders winner without reservation in everybody’s opinion, was of course the Pristina Vodka from Highwood Distillers.

You may read my full review by clicking on the following excerpt:

Review: Pristina Vodka

“… I was happy to taste no vegetal tones and to feel no burn at all in my throat. The swallow was clean and completely smooth. The back of my mouth received a mildly spicy warmth; but my throat felt no heat, even with a substantial swallow of the Pristina Vodka. This reaction was consistent amongst those who tasted the Vodka with me …”

Please enjoy my review and the included cocktail, the Vodka Tonic.

Posted in Cocktails & Recipes, Vodka, Vodka Reviews | Tagged: , , , , , | Comments Off on Review: Pristina Vodka

More Hockey Fun – Ranking The NHL’s Best Defencemen

Posted by Arctic Wolf on October 3, 2013

NHL_LOGO_grandeYesterday, Just for fum, I published my 2013-14 list of the Top 10 Forwards in the NHL. Today it is the D-Men which are examined as I try to sort out just who the very best are. The strength of any good NHL teams should begin with a solid core of  defensemen. If you peruse the list of the last 5 Stanley Cup Winners, I would argue that all but one of these teams owed their success to the play of their key defensemen. The lone exception to this rule are the 2009 Pittsburgh Penguins although even with that star-studded team, the steady play of Brooks Orpik and the rest of their defense should not be overlooked. Forwards tend to receive all the glory: but it is the shutdown  D-men who log all the important minutes.

With that in mind, I have constructed my top ten list of the NHL’s best defenders.

The Rum Howler 2013-14 Top 10 NHL Defencemen

______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

 

Posted in Howls | Tagged: , , | Comments Off on More Hockey Fun – Ranking The NHL’s Best Defencemen

Hockey Fun – Ranking The Top 10 NHL Forwards

Posted by Arctic Wolf on October 2, 2013

NHL_LOGO_grandeSometimes I do things just for fun. Like my Top NFL Quarterbacks List I published last year at the end of the NFL Regular Season. Since this is the beginning of the 2013-14 NHL Hockey season I though another list was in order. Like everyone one else who watches hockey, I have my opinions on who the great players of the game really are. The guys who make a difference in the outcome of important games. Just for fun I thought I would post my listing of the ten best NHL Forwards as we enter the 2013-14 Hockey Season. For added fun I counted them down from Number 10 to number one. And no Sidney Crosby is not the best forward in the NHL. He did not even make the top 5.

If you are interested, here is a link to my list:

The Rum Howler 2013-14 Top 10 NHL Forwards

Have fun with this, and let me know who you think should have been on the list, and who should have been number 1. Tomorrow, I will tackle the Defencemen!

_________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Posted in Howls | Comments Off on Hockey Fun – Ranking The Top 10 NHL Forwards