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Archive for the ‘Cocktails & Recipes’ Category

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Chinook Whisky Revisited

Posted by Arctic Wolf on June 7, 2012

If you look at the picture to the left, you can see that Chinook Canadian Whisky has undergone a bit of a facelift since I reviewed it last year (Click here for the 2011 review). It arrives in a new PET Bottle, and it has a brand new label. Gone is the 5-Year age statement, and gone as well is the reference to being distilled, aged and blended in Calgary, Alberta. Rather, the label now simply says “aged and blended in Southern Alberta” with no reference to where the whisky is distilled.

When I first saw the new bottle, I was surprised, and of course my first question was, “Has the blend changed?”

To help me answer that question, I was sent a new bottle for review from the brand owner Mcbsw Sales Company Inc., such that I could revisit the Chinook Whisky here on my website.

Here is an excerpt from my review:

“… My first impression as the new whisky crossed my palate for the first time, was that the sweetness and the fruitiness have been ramped up in this blend. Stronger caramel flavours were obvious as was a spicy green pepper lingering in the background. Caramel apples, slightly sour purple grapes, canned apricots, and canned pears all seem to find their way across my palate in what is a real mixture of fruit flavour. I taste some rye-like spiciness which resembles ginger and cloves with maybe just a dash of cinnamon …”

You may read my full review here:

Review: Chinook Whisky (2012)

I have included a nice recipe which works well with the Chinook Whisky called the Buckeroo.

Please enjoy the review, and do try a Buckeroo.  Cheers!

Posted in Canadian Whisky, Cocktails & Recipes, Whisk(e)y, Whisk(e)y Review | Tagged: , , , , , | 1 Comment »

Review: London No. 1 Original Blue Gin

Posted by Arctic Wolf on June 6, 2012

London No. 1 Original Blue Gin is a product of Gonzalas Byass who are a Spanish wine/cellars company which also produces a variety of distilled spirits including brandy, anisette, botanical vodka and of course gin. Their gin is triple distilled (from English grain in London, England) on a traditional pot still in small batches by Master Distiller, Charles Maxwell. According to the London No. 1 website the gin is distilled with 12 key botanicals which include: Juniper from Croatia; Angelica root and Savory from France; Coriander from Morocco; Cassia bark from China, Liquorice from Turkey, Cinnamon from Ceylon, Almond from Greece; and Lemon peel, Orange peel, Lily root and Bergamot from Italy.

The product was first test marketed in Spain, and is now being launched in limited quantities internationally. It is bottled at 47 % alcohol by volume ensuring a more concentrated flavour than more traditional distilled spirits which are bottled at 40 % alcohol by volume.

I was given a bottle for review by Woodman Wines and Spirits Inc. who have informed me that this product is now available in limited quantities in Ontario, Canada.

Here is an excerpt from my review:

“… The aroma from the glass is intensely floral. It has a sharp quality which similar to freshly bloomed lilacs. The more familiar gin aromas of earthy juniper, spicy cardamom, lemon peel and orange citrus lie somewhat behind that floral intensity …”

You may read my full review here:

Review: London No. 1 Original Blue Gin

I included a classic cocktail recipe, The Pegu Club Cocktail, with this review. Please enjoy the review and of course my included recipe.

Cheers!

Posted in Cocktails & Recipes, Gin, Gin Review | Tagged: , , , , , | Comments Off on Review: London No. 1 Original Blue Gin

Review: Herradura Reposado Tequila

Posted by Arctic Wolf on June 4, 2012

Thirty miles from Guadalajara, in the state of Jalisco, in the town of Amatitan, is where the Herradura LDN can be found. Herradura LDN makes a true 100% Weber Blue agave tequila. The agave is cooked in old stone ovens, and distilled on old copper pot stills.

Herradura Reposado tequila has won numerous awards and accolades for the Herradura company. As well, Herradura LDN is credited on more than one website as pioneering the movement towards aging tequila in oak and making Reposado and Anejo Tequila. Reposado means rested, and literally the implication is that this style of tequila ‘rests’ in oak. By law reposado tequila must spend more than two months and less than one year in oak to be considered  “Reposado”.  The Herradura Reposado rests in oak for eleven months.

I first reviewed the Herradura Reposado on my website in January of 2010. Recently I received a new bottle, and this past weekend I put it through the paces of my review system and revised my original review. Here is an excerpt from that review:

“… Once we pour the Herradura Reposado our nose is immediately greeted with an intense, earthy, agave scent. Getting past the intensity of that earthy agave is difficult, but letting the glass rest for a few moments allows us to catch sweeter tones of caramel and to a lesser extent vanilla. The spiciness of red chili peppers and a hint of citrus complete the nose …”

My complete review is available here:

Review: Herradura Reposado Tequila

As well I have included a classic Tequila recipe, the Toreador.

Please enjoy the review and the classic cocktail….

Cheers!

Posted in Cocktails & Recipes, Reposado Tequila, Tequila, Tequila Review | Tagged: , , , | Comments Off on Review: Herradura Reposado Tequila

Review: London Dock Rum (Favell’s 100 Proof)

Posted by Arctic Wolf on June 3, 2012

 

Favell’s London Dock Rum is (according to the label anyways) blended and bottled in Canada for White Favell (Vinters). The Canadian agency responsible for blending and bottling this rum is the Newfoundland and Labrador Liquor Corporation (NLC).

The label tells us that London Dock is a Demerara Rum produced in Guyana; therefore I can deduce that the rum was distilled on the East Bank of the Demerara River at the facilities of Demerara Distillers Ltd. (DDL).  (This information was confirmed to me by both the NLC and Demerara Distillers.) It is apparently produced from original marques of rum which in the past would have been shipped to England to mature in the London Docks, hence the name London Dock Rum. Of course, the rum no longer travels to England to mature, rather it travels from Demerara County in Guyana in bulk to St. John’s Newfoundland to be blended bottled by the NLC. London Dock is an old style Demerara rum, with strong flavours of molasses and treacle.

(I was given a sample bottle by the NLC for the purpose of a review here on my website.)

Here is an excerpt from my review:

“… The Rum has a strong aromas of molasses and burnt caramel. There is also a bit of astringency rising into the air which is not unexpected from a young overproof rum. I say young because I detect only a light  ‘woodiness’ rising from the glass. Other scents drift up from the glass into the breezes, in particular I notice a bit of orange marmalade and banana peel …”

You may read the full review here:

Review: London Dock Rum (Favell’s 100 Proof)

As well please enjoy my suggested cocktail, the Cosmopolitan Rum Swizzle!

Cheers!

Posted in Cocktails & Recipes, Dark Rums, Overproof Rum, Rum, Rum Reviews | Tagged: , , , , , , | Comments Off on Review: London Dock Rum (Favell’s 100 Proof)

Review: London Dock Rum (Favell’s 70 Proof)

Posted by Arctic Wolf on June 3, 2012

Favell’s London Dock Rum is (according to the label anyways) is blended and bottled in Canada for White Favell (Vinters). The Canadian agency responsible for blending and bottling this rum is the Newfoundland and Labrador Liquor Corporation (NLC).

The label tells us that London Dock is a Demerara Rum produced in Guyana; therefore I can deduce that the rum was distilled on the East Bank of the Demerara River at the facilities of Demerara Distillers Ltd. (DDL).  (This information was confirmed to me by both the NLC and Demerara Distillers.) It is apparently produced from original marques of rum which in the past would have been shipped to England to mature in the London Docks, hence the name London Dock Rum. Of course, the rum no longer travels to England to mature, rather it travels from Demerara County in Guyana in bulk to St. John’s Newfoundland to be blended bottled by the NLC. London Dock is an old style Demerara rum, with strong flavours of molasses and treacle.

(I was given a sample bottle by the NLC for the purpose of a review here on my website.)

Here is an excerpt from my review:

“… The London Dock Rum has a strong aroma of molasses and burnt caramel, and there is only a light essence of ‘woodiness’ rising from the glass. (My general impression from the aroma is that the rum has been aged somewhere in the range of two years or so.) Other smells drift up from the glass, a bit of orange and banana peel, some indications of vanilla and some  medium sweet baking spices …”

You may read my full review here:

Review: London Dock Rum (Favell’s 70 Proof)

Included with the review are two cocktail suggestions for this rum, the Mandeville, and Baron Bliss.

Please enjoy the review and the cocktails suggestions that follow, Cheers!

Posted in Cocktails & Recipes, Dark Rums, Rum, Rum Reviews | Tagged: , , , , , , , | Comments Off on Review: London Dock Rum (Favell’s 70 Proof)

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