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Archive for the ‘Cocktails & Recipes’ Category

Revisiting Cabo Wabo Reposado

Posted by Arctic Wolf on January 31, 2012

Cabo Wabo Tequila is made from 100 percent Blue Weber Agave grown in the lowlands of the Mexican State of Jalisco. The distinction between agave grown in the lowlands versus the highlands is important because lowland agave tends to carry more earthy and vegetal flavours into the final distilled Tequila than Agave grown in the highlands. Interestingly, the founder of Cabo Wabo Tequila is rock musician Sammy Hagar, and his Tequila was apparently named after the nightclub he owns in Cabo San Lucas.

The Cabo Wabo Reposado was the first Tequila that I reviewed. Although it is two years later, I went back to this Reposado recently making a few cocktails and polishing off the contents which I had been slowly sipping on over time. (It takes me a while to finish a bottle as new bottles are constantly arriving in my review queue.) I decided to republish my original review with a nice cocktail suggestion added.

Here is an excerpt from the review:

“… This is spicy with lots of citrus. The spice is hot, more like pepper than cinnamon.  The citrus notes taste like fresh squeezed lemon and/or lime.  It’s hard to be specific as the punky agave flavour masks other notes to some degree.  I  feel a little oil on my palate.  As everyone knows, tequila bites hard, but in spite of the hot citrus and punky agave, this has a milder bite than other tequila I have tried …”

You may read the full review here:

Review: Cabo Wabo Reposado

Please enjoy the review and my cocktail suggestion, Pale Gray for Guilt!

Posted in Cocktails & Recipes, Reposado Tequila, Tequila, Tequila Review | Tagged: , , , , | Comments Off on Revisiting Cabo Wabo Reposado

Review: 5 Barrel Rum (Travellers)

Posted by Arctic Wolf on January 29, 2012

Travellers’ 5 Barrel Rum is a premium aged rum brand produced in Belize, (the northernmost mainland country of Central America). Belize is a former British Colony, and lies just south of Mexico with the Caribbean Sea to the east and Guatemala to the west and south. The producer of 5 Barrel Rum, Travellers Liquors Limited has been involved in the production of  rum in Belize since the early 1960′s originally working with independent distillers. In 1989, Travellers acquired full control of their own distillery, and they have remained in full control of their own brands ever since.

The 5 Barrel Rum is made from locally grown Belize sugar cane. According to the Travellers website, this cane is cut and crushed in a manner which retains its natural flavors, and the all of the rum is aged in Kentucky oak barrels for a full 5 years. It is blended to be a full-bodied rum with the well-rounded taste which results from oak barrel aging.

Recently, I was given a bottle of 5 Barrel Rum by a representative of Travellers Liquor Canada for the purpose of this review. Here is an excerpt:

“…As I let the glass breathe, the tobacco and the oak scents deepened. They were joined by wonderful sweet baking spices filled with rich brown sugar, spicy cinnamon, light vanillans and hints of nutmeg.  This one of those rums that grows in the glass as it breathes. The aroma is rich and deep and wonderfully in balance…”

You may read the full review here:

Review: 5 Barrel Rum (Travellers)

Please enjoy the review and the cocktail suggestion that follows, The Rum Old Fashioned.

And please remember to drink responsibly, it is my aim to help you choose better spirits, not to help you to consume more spirits!

Posted in Cocktails & Recipes, Dark Rums, Rum, Rum Reviews | Tagged: , , , , , | Comments Off on Review: 5 Barrel Rum (Travellers)

Review: Highwood Premium Vodka

Posted by Arctic Wolf on January 24, 2012

Highwood Vodka is a triple distilled wheat Vodka produced at the Highwood Distillery in High River, Alberta, situated near the foothills of the Rocky Mountains just 30 minutes south of Calgary. This vodka follows the recent trend of low-priced premium vodkas which take up the lion’s share of the market here in Alberta, Canada.

I used my Vodka Review Methodology, putting this spirit through the same paces as I have done for the higher priced spirits which I have reviewed. It turns out that the Highwood Vodka stands up to its higher priced competitors quite well.

Here is an excerpt from the resulting review:

“… There was very little aroma apparent as we raised our shot-glasses to our noses, light wispy bits of starch and grain perhaps, and maybe a touch a citrus zest in the air. As the vodka covered my tongue, my first impression was that this is a rather soft vodka which carries a nice bit of rye-like spice forward. I also seemed to be able taste just a hint of that lime citrus which I had noticed in the aroma…”

Here is a link to the full review:

Review: Highwood Premium Vodka

I have included a a nice cocktail with this review, The Kamikaze.

Please enjoy the review and the accompanying cocktail!

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

Review: Citadelle Reserve Gin (2011 Edition)

Posted by Arctic Wolf on January 22, 2012

Citadelle Gin has a history which stretches by to 1775 when King Loius XVI authorized two Frenchmen, Carpeau and Stival, to open a genievre distillery at the Citadelle in Dunkirk, which would serve as the Royal Distillery with an exclusive 20 year privilege. The Citadelle Distillery produced about 1000 litres of genievre per day which was predominantly shipped in small casks for sale in England, where gin was very popular.

About 200 years later in 1989,  Alexandre Gabriel of Cognac Ferrand, recognized that in France, gin had become more of an industrial spirit with much of the heritage and refinement lessened by time. He decided to create a handcrafted gin using small copper pots in the style and tradition of the Citadelle Distillery of old.

The Citadelle Reserve Gin (the most premium version of Citadelle Gin) is matured in oak casks for several months to add an extra dimension of flavour. I was given a sample bottle of Citadelle Reserve by Cognac Ferrand, for the purpose of a review here on my website.

Here is an excerpt:

“… Once poured into the glass, I am quite happy that I have opened this particular gin for a review. The aroma which drifts upwards is light and elegant, and very appealing. Mild piny notes of juniper seem to lead into the breezes with scents of lemon and balsam arriving almost as quickly. The oak manifests itself as sandalwood with light rye spices which build up as the glass sits… “

You may read the full review here:

Review: Citadelle Reserve Gin (2011 Edition)

Please enjoy the review and the cocktail suggestion which follows!

Posted in Cocktails & Recipes, Gin, Gin Review | Tagged: , , , , | Comments Off on Review: Citadelle Reserve Gin (2011 Edition)

Comparative Review: Schweppes Tonic VS Q Tonic

Posted by Arctic Wolf on January 15, 2012

I was visiting one of my favourite Liquor Stores this past August, (Lacombe Park Spirits in St. Albert if you want to know), when Karim, who is one of the owners, asked me to try a Gin and Tonic with a new Tonic Water he had started to carry called Q Tonic. Up to this point, pickings were mighty slim in my neck of the woods for Tonic Water and Schweppes Tonic was pretty much the standard choice amongst my friends and I.

So I let him make me a small sample cocktail, and I have to say, it was pretty good. In fact, I was intrigued enough to make contact with Jordan Silbert, the founder of Q Drinks and asked him if he would like to send me a sample and some information, especially as I had recently began to receive a few gin samples for review. My thought was that it would be fun to make some side by side cocktails with Q Tonic and Schweppes Tonic to see if I preferred one over the other consistently.

Jordan agreed, and I received a few small bottles of Q Tonic in the mail shortly before Christmas. This was good because the gin samples were beginning to pile up, and I wanted to get at them.

So with four different gins in my review queue,  Beefeater 24, Citadelle Reserve, Port of Barcelona and Broker’s Gin, I set out over the next couple of weeks to test the Gin and Tonic Cocktail with both Q Tonic and Schweppes Tonic Water.

You may read the results of this exercise by following the provided link:

Comparative Review: Schweppes Tonic VS Q Tonic

Enjoy!

Posted in Cocktails & Recipes, Extras, First Impressions, Gin, Gin Review | Tagged: , , , , , | Comments Off on Comparative Review: Schweppes Tonic VS Q Tonic