The Rum Howler Blog

Cocktail Bazaar: Spooky Screwdriver

Posted by Arctic Wolf on October 28, 2018

My Smirnoff inspired cocktail Bazaar continues, and with Halloween just around the corner I thought I would share a simple Vodka Cocktail which features Smirnoff Ice Screwdriver, the Spooky Screwdriver.

I should point out to my readers that Smirnoff makes two different products by the name of Smirnoff Ice. In Canada (and parts of Europe) Smirnoff Ice is a brand of vodka based Premixed beverages. In the United States (which is where my samples came from) and in France, Smirnoff Ice is instead a Malt based premixed beverage. Vodka is a product of distillation, whereas the malt based drinks produced by brewing. This means that the Canadian version of the product has a cleaner flavour profile which highlights more clearly the chosen flavour of the Ice beverage, whereas the US version of the Ice beverage has a more complex flavour profile with additional hints of malty beer.

This means that the Halloween recipe I am sharing will taste quite a bit different north of the border when mixed with the Canadian Version of Smirnoff Ice Orange Screwdriver than it will south of the border when mixed with the USA version of Smirnoff Ice Screwdriver. As the samples sent to me for my Cocktail Bazaar originated south of the border, this means that I am using the malty US version of Smirnoff Ice Screwdriver. Let me suggest however, that the recipe works either way.

Happy Halloween Everyone!

Spooky Screwdriver

1 Bottle Smirnoff Ice Screwdriver
1.5 oz. Smirnoff No. 21 Vodka
Splash of Grenadine (to taste)
Black Rock Candy

Fill two glasses with ice
Add Smirnoff Ice Screwdriver and Smirnoff Ice cocktail shaker, shake together the Smirnoff Ice and Smirnoff No. 21 vodka
Pour in the cocktail
Top with a splash of grenadine
Garnish with rock candy

Enjoy Responsibly!

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

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Note: Smirnoff Ice Screwdriver is a premium malt beverage brewed and bottled at 5.8 % abv. by Smirnoff Co.. The product contains natural flavours, certified and natural colours.

Posted in Cocktails & Recipes | Tagged: Cocktail Bazaar, Cocktails, Halloween, Ice, Orange, Recipe, Screwdriver, Smirnoff, Spooky Screwdriver | Comments Off on Cocktail Bazaar: Spooky Screwdriver

Cocktail Bazaar: Green Apple Smash

Posted by Arctic Wolf on October 21, 2018

If you’ve been following my Cocktail Bazaar you have probably figured out that my cocktail suggestions have been inspired by Smirnoff. Their US media team has sent me an assortment of samples of Smirnoff Vodka, Smirnoff Ice Premium Malt Beverages, the new Smirnoff Spiked Sparkling Seltzers as well as some Smirnoff Flavoured Vodkas. I was also sent a plethora of recipes to try out. From those recipes, I chose the ones which suited my skills as a home bartender to share with you.

My autumn Cocktail Bazaar continues with a look at Smirnoff Ice Green Apple. I should point out that the Smirnoff Ice brand is quite different here in Canada from what it is south of the border in the United States. That is because in Canada the brand is sold as a Premixed Vodka Beverage. However, in the US, the brand is instead a Premixed Premium Malt Beverage based not upon a distilled vodka, but rather a brewed let me say ‘beer-like’ product. This means that the flavour profile of Smirnoff Ice products in the US contains a ribbon of beer-like malt flavour that is absent the Canadian Smirnoff Ice branded product.

As indicated earlier, my samples were sent to me from the US-based Smirnoff Media Team. This means the recipe I am sharing will taste quite different when mixed with the Canadian version of Smirnoff Ice Green Apple. That should not dissuade however, as the recipe works well either way.

Here is a nice fall recipe which mixes Smirnoff Ice Green Apple with one of my favourite whiskeys, Bulleit Bourbon Frontier Whiskey.

Green Apple Smash

1 bottle Smirnoff Ice Green Apple
4 oz Ginger Beer
4 oz Bulleit Bourbon
Ice
Rosemary for garnish

In a mixing glass, combine Smirnoff Ice Green Apple, Ginger Beer and Bourbon with Ice.
Stir until chilled
Fill a glass with crushed ice
Strain cocktail over ice

Garnish with a sprig of rosemary

Enjoy Responsibly!

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

Note: Smirnoff Ice Green Apple is a premium malt beverage brewed and bottled at 4.5 % abv. by Smirnoff Co.. The product contains natural flavours, and certified and natural colours.

Posted in Cocktails & Recipes | Tagged: Bulleit Bourbon, Cocktail Bazaar, Cocktails, Green Apple, Green Apple Smash, Ice, Recipes, Smirnoff | Comments Off on Cocktail Bazaar: Green Apple Smash

Fall Cocktail Bazaar: Cranberry Lime Fresher

Posted by Arctic Wolf on October 14, 2018

This is the second cocktail in my Fall Cocktail Bazaar and like the first one shared last week, it has been created with one of the new Smirnoff Spiked Sparkling Seltzer premium malt beverages. These malt beverages contain natural flavours, zero added sugar, no artificial sweeteners, and no preservatives. They have been produced as a more healthy alternative to traditional vodka premixes. This week I am working with Smirnoff Cranberry Lime Spiked Sparkling Seltzer which features light flavours of cranberry and lime within the malty flavour of the spiked seltzer.

Cranberry and Lime is of course the winning combination of flavours found in the modern classic cocktail, the Cosmopolitan. So my thought was to work within that framework to create a tall refreshing alternative. I call my cocktail, the Cranberry Lime Fresher.

Cranberry Lime Fresher

1 oz. Smirnoff No. 21 Vodka
1/2 oz. Triple Sec
1/2 oz. Cranberry Juice
1/2 oz. Lime Juice
Ice
Smirnoff Cranberry Lime Spiked Sparkling Seltzer
Lime for Garnish

Add the Smirnoff Vodka, Triple Sec, Cranberry juice and Lime juice into a metal shaker with ice
Shake until the outside of the shaker begins to frost
Pour the chilled contents into a serving glass with ice
Lengthen with Smirnoff Cranberry Lime Spiked Sparkling Seltzer
Garnish with a slice of lime

Enjoy Responsibly!

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

Note: Smirnoff Spiked Sparkling Seltzer Cranberry Lime is a premium malt beverage which is brewed and bottled at 4.5 % abv. by Smirnoff Co.. The malt beverage contains zero sugar, no artificial sweeteners, no preservatives and natural flavours.

Posted in Cocktails & Recipes | Tagged: Cocktail Bazaar, Cranberry Lime Fresher, Cranberry-Lime, Smirnoff, Spiked Sparkling Seltzer | Comments Off on Fall Cocktail Bazaar: Cranberry Lime Fresher

Review: Rum Nation Jamaica 7 Year Old Pot Still Rum

Posted by Arctic Wolf on October 12, 2018

Rum Nation is an Italian company created by Fabio Rossi, who began his life in the spirits trade as a Oenologist (one who has studied wine-making). After his studies, Mr. Rossi left the wine business and started up a whisky company in Edinburgh (Wilson and Morgan) acting as an independent bottler of Single Malt Scotch Whisky. His interest turned to rum, and in 1999 Fabio Rossi founded Rum Nation. His company is headquartered in Italy; but Fabio purchases select rums from various distillers in the Caribbean and the Americas. As a result Rum Nation provides a rather unique assortment of limited edition bottlings. One such bottling is Rum Nation Jamaica 7 Year Old Pot Still Rum (2018 release).

The 7 Year Old Jamaican Pot Still Rum was distilled upon a traditional Jamaican Pot Still (at Worthy Park) and aged for 7 years in the tropics in used American Oak barrels. The spirit was bottled at 61.2 % alcohol by volume with no dilution from cask strength. No colouring has been added, and the rum has not been chill filtered.

Here is a link to my full review of this burly rum:

Review: Rum Nation Jamaica 7 Year Old Pot Still Rum

“… A firm brown sugar sweetness accompanies vanilla and baking spice (cinnamon. nutmeg and cloves), and I am reminded of the flavour of fresh cinnamon buns. Oak spice, menthol, peppermint, camphor and resin add complexity …”

Please enjoy my review which concludes with my recommended serving, the Pot Still Rum Old Fashioned.

Chimo!

Posted in Rum, Rum Reviews | Tagged: 7 Years Old, Fabio Rossi, Jamaican Pot Still, Review, Rum Nation | Comments Off on Review: Rum Nation Jamaica 7 Year Old Pot Still Rum

Review: Canadian Club Premium Whisky

Posted by Arctic Wolf on October 10, 2018

Today Canadian Club Premium is the flagship brand for the company. Although it was previously aged for a minimum of 6 years in white oak barrels, the brand carries no longer carries an age statement. The aforementioned Canadian Club website now reports:

” … Our best-selling, flagship whisky is where most folks begin their whisky journey. This is the one that started the legend. A giant of Canadian whisky since 1858, it’s aged longer than the 3 years required by law in oak barrels before bottling for the smoothest possible flavour. …”

If you have been paying attention to the new television ads, you will have noticed that Canadian Club has been touting their flagship whisky with a new advertisement featuring the outstanding score (92/100) which Jim Murray (revered whisky critic) recently gave the spirit. This high score is quite a bit north of the last score I published two years ago. However when I learned of Jim Murray’s high score, I couldn’t resist checking my recent private score when I served as a juror for the 2018 Canadian Whisky Awards. Indeed, I found that I also had scored the whisky somewhat higher for those awards than I had in my past review.

So I decided to revisit Canadian Club Premium to see if these observations held up when I tasted the spirit in isolation.

Here is a link to my new review:

Review: Canadian Club Premium Whisky

“… The initial aroma brings fine wood spice, light vanilla butterscotch and almond scents with a mild grassy/herbal impression. As the glass sits, I notice a slight thickening of the aroma. Spicy fine oak permeates the breezes with caramel toffee beginning to develop from the wood spice, the butterscotch and the vanilla …”

Please enjoy my latest look at Canadian Club Premium.

Chimo!

Posted in Canadian Whisky, Whisk(e)y, Whisk(e)y Review, Whisky Review | Tagged: Canadian Club, Canadian Whisky, Premium, Review, Whisky | Comments Off on Review: Canadian Club Premium Whisky

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