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Posts Tagged ‘Cocktails and Recipes’

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Review: Potter’s Traditional Dark Navy Rum

Posted by Arctic Wolf on September 30, 2012

According to Highwood Distillers, Potter’s Traditional Dark Navy Rum is an imported Caribbean dark rum. I have been told that the rum is not an infant spirit, and based upon Canadian Law, all rum in Canada must be aged for at least one year in oak barrels. Apparently the rum was aged prior to importation; however, because Highwood stores the reserves in oak barrels in their aging warehouse, it would be true to say that some aging in Canada also occurs.

Potter’s Dark Navy Rum is bottled at 40 % alcohol by volume, and is sold in a 750 ml glass bottle, or in 1.14 and 1.,75 litre plastic PET bottles. I was provided with a sample of the 750 ml glass bottle directly from the folks at Highwood for the purpose of this review.

Here is an excerpt:

“… The first sip brings strong impressions of molasses and caramel with strands of licorice and musty tobacco running right through the middle of the flavour. Some oak spices are apparent too, and they are mingling with that molasses and caramel giving me indications of maple, vanilla, cinnamon, cloves and brown sugar… “

You may read the full review here:

Review: Potter’s Traditional Dark Navy Rum

I added a tiki recipe at the end of the review, the Potter’s Mai Tai,

Please Enjoy the review and the recipe.

Cheers!

Posted in Cocktails & Recipes, Dark Rums, Rum, Rum Reviews | Tagged: , , , , , , | Comments Off on Review: Potter’s Traditional Dark Navy Rum

Review: Caribou Crossing Single Barrel Canadian Whisky

Posted by Arctic Wolf on September 27, 2012

Although Canadian whisky by volume is the best-selling whisky in the USA, the perception of this class of whisky (amongst spirits writers and whisky critics) is that the Canadian spirit is perhaps thin and uninteresting, (fortunately the millions of people who buy whisky appear to be much more impressed than the critics and writers). The landscape however, appear to be changing, especially at the premium end of the whisky market, where the Canadian spirit has seen strong growth in market share. Recognizing this trend, the Sazerac Company has recently made a push towards the premium end of the Canadian Whisky market with two new releases, Caribou Crossing and Royal Canadian Small Batch Canadian Whiskies.

Caribou Crossing is what is known as a Single Barrel Whisky. From the company’s inventory of over 200,000 barrels of Canadian whisky, Sazerac’s whisky making team selects what they deem to be some of the very finest barrels. Each of these chosen barrels is bottled individually capturing its unique flavour. This means that each individual barrel offers a unique taste experience for the Canadian whisky connoisseur. I was fortunate enough to have been sent a sample bottle from the good folks at Charton Hobbs who are marketing this unique whisky for Sazerac, here in Alberta.

Here is an excerpt from my review:

“… This is a whisky which grows a little in the glass as you let it breathe. The oak and the rye grain seem to gain strength as sawdust and rye husks fill the breezes above the glass. Fresh corn on the cob rises into those breezes; and impressions of butterscotch pudding and vanilla ice cream tempt me into taking my first sip… “

You may read the full review here;

Review: Caribou Crossing Single Barrel Canadian Whisky

Please enjoy my review, and my cocktail suggestion, the Canadian Rye Sazerac.

Cheers!

Posted in Canadian Whisky, Cocktails & Recipes, Whisk(e)y, Whisk(e)y Review | Tagged: , , , , , | Comments Off on Review: Caribou Crossing Single Barrel Canadian Whisky

Review: Magic Moments Remix Lemongrass and Ginger Flavoured Vodka

Posted by Arctic Wolf on September 25, 2012

Magic Moments Remix Flavoured Vodkas are triple distilled grain spirits from Radico Khaitan Ltd. (Radio Cask) who is one of India’s oldest and largest liquor manufacturers. (Radico Khaitan was formerly known as the Rampur Distillery which was established in 1943.) The Magic Moments brand was launched in November of 2005, and quickly became India’s fastest growing deluxe vodka brand, and since then the company has also introduced 6 new vodka flavors or ‘remixes’, each bottled at 37.5 % alcohol by volume. These remix flavours are, Green Apple, Lemon, Orange, Chocolate, Raspberry, and Lemongrass and Ginger. All of these remix flavours have been recent award winners at the International Spirits Challenge and Monde Selection Award 2011. Here is a link to the Magic Moments Website where you wish you can learn more.

AA Impex Ltd. has recently began to import the Magic Moments Vodka and the Remixes from India into Canada. They sent me samples of each spirit such that they could be reviewed here on my website. This, of course, is the review for the Magic Moments Remix Lemongrass and Ginger Flavoured Vodka.

Here is an excerpt from my review:

“… Once poured, the flavoured vodka displays a very obvious lemon scent. I liken this scent to the smell of lemon drop candies.  There is a bit of an herbaceous tinge to the aroma, similar to what I have likened in the past to sweetgrass. I suspect these are the grassy overtones of lemongrass and the pungent spiciness of ginger… “

Here is a link to the full review:

Review: Magic Moments Remix Lemongrass and Ginger Flavoured Vodka

Of course I made a few cocktails with this wonderful remix, one suggested by the Importer called Oriental Ale, and my cocktail called the Meadowland Breeze.

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

Posted in Cocktails & Recipes, Flavoured Vodka, Vodka, Vodka Reviews | Tagged: , , , , , , | Comments Off on Review: Magic Moments Remix Lemongrass and Ginger Flavoured Vodka

Review: Royal Canadian Small Batch Canadian Whisky

Posted by Arctic Wolf on September 21, 2012

According to the information sent to me by Sazerac, Canadian whisky is a very big deal in the USA, accounting for sales of roughly 100 million liters of spirits. In fact, Canadian Whisky is responsible for a whopping 11.6 % of the overall spirits market in the USA. Although it has been popular for spirits writer’s and whisky critics to disregard the Canadian Whisky category, the truth is that North America has seen growth in sales of the premium and super-premium categories of Canadian Whisky over the last several years. Sazerac has been a participant in this growth with the launch of their new Single Barrel Canadian Whisky, Caribou Crossing, and their new Small Batch Canadian Whisky, Royal Canadian Small Batch.

The Royal Canadian Small Batch whisky has been constructed from a very small selection (50 barrels) of carefully chosen Canadian whisky barrels. Bottled at 40 % alcohol by volume, this is a 4 grain whisky which was blended from those selected barrels to not only have the smoothness traditionally associated with Canadian whisky; but to also carry robust taste profile forward for the whisky connoisseur.

I was fortunate enough to have been sent a sample bottle from the good folks at Charton Hobbs who are marketing this unique whisky for Sazerac, in Alberta.

Here is an excerpt from the resulting review:

“… The whisky sends an initial display of light oak, sweet butterscotch, and punky caramel corn into the breezes above the glencairn glass. As the whisky breathes, I notice some wood spices and sticky maple wandering upwards joined by vanilla and light almond accents. There is a fruitiness in the air represented by light impressions of dry fruit (plums and apricots), some fresh berries, and a little citrus zest, all of which seem to meld into that sticky maple aroma giving me impressions of freshly opened cans of apricots and pears… “

Here is a link to the full review:

Review: Royal Canadian Small Batch Canadian Whisky

As part of the review I designed a nice cocktail for this whisky called the Sazerac Splash. I hope you enjoy the cocktail and of course. I hope you enjoy my review!

Cheers!

Posted in Canadian Whisky, Cocktails & Recipes, Whisk(e)y, Whisk(e)y Review | Tagged: , , , , | Comments Off on Review: Royal Canadian Small Batch Canadian Whisky

Introducing: Alexandre Gabriel (Cognac Ferrand)

Posted by Arctic Wolf on September 14, 2012

Alexandre Gabriel (Cognac Ferrand)

Allow me to welcome Alexandre Gabriel, President and Owner, of Cognac Ferrand to my website.

Alexandre Gabriel was born in France, on a farm in southern Burgundy near the medieval town of Cluny, where his grandfather taught him how to make wine and distill spirits. He went to university in Lyon, and then in the U.S. as an exchange student, before returning to Paris to attend business school. More than 20 years ago, Alexandre came upon an ancient and almost defunct Cognac house. Through his passion and his vision, Alexandre Gabriel turned this small Cognac House into a specialized house of artisan spirits before the term was even coined. He re-built what is known today as Cognac Ferrand, in the heart of the Grande Champagne district of Cognac.

Mr. Gabriel believes in making spirits for people who enjoy the epicurean life and for the bartenders that make these epicurean libations possible.

______________________________________________

I was given the opportunity to conduct an email interview with Alexandre Gabriel here on my website, and to my delight, Mr. Gabriel exceeded all of my expectations sharing his energy and passion for Craft Spirits. Mr. Gabriel shares how he “fell into a barrel of Cognac” when he was “only 2 years into drinking age by American standards”. He explains why craft spirits are so important to Cognac Ferrand, and whether or not he is he is leading the spirits world into the realms of madness.

We discuss not only Cognac, but also Gin, Vodka and Rum, and then Mr. Gabriel shares not only two of his favourite cocktails with me, but also (after a certain amount of wailing and gnashing of the teeth), his favourite or most treasured spirit which Alexandre would wish for if he were to be stranded on a deserted island…

Here is a link to the full interview:

A Man of Passion: Alexandre Gabriel

Posted in Brandy and Cognac Reviews, Cocktails & Recipes, Extras, Gin, Interviews, Rum, Vodka | Tagged: , , , , , , , | Comments Off on Introducing: Alexandre Gabriel (Cognac Ferrand)

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