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Posts Tagged ‘Review’

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Review: Ethan Koll Rare 8 Year Old Canadian Whisky

Posted by Arctic Wolf on July 19, 2016

Ethan Koll SAM_2622Ethan Koll Rare 8 Year Old Canadian Whisky is a whisky brand developed by Distiller Sales Company of Princeton, Minnesota and is part of a portfolio of brands owned by Phillips Products Company (PPC). The Brand was registered in 2010, and is distributed in the Northwestern States of the US and Western Canada.

Some of the other PPC brands which are available in my home market include: Broken Bell Bourbon, Cross Keys 5 Yr Old Barbados Rum, Monkey Paw Rum, Luxus Vodka, Capatina French Vodka and Veil Premium Vodka.

Although the whisky is apparently bottled (at 40 % abv.) in the USA, the whisky inside the bottle was both distilled and aged in Canada.

Here is a link to my new review:

Review: Ethan Koll Rare 8 Year Old Canadian Whisky

” … By the time I began to taste the whisky (after about 10 minutes of nosing) the whisky flavour had progressed along that same avenue of built-up richness which the nose had slowly revealed. The mouthfeel was soft and approachable, and I tasted a combination of maple and butterscotch sweetness melded into the oak spice, cedar and rye grain. This gave the spirit a mild rum-like quality which I quite enjoyed …”

Please enjoy my latest Canadian Whisky Review.

Chimo!

Posted in Canadian Whisky, Whisk(e)y, Whisk(e)y Review | Tagged: , , , , | Comments Off on Review: Ethan Koll Rare 8 Year Old Canadian Whisky

Battle of the Rum Cakes: Pusser’s Vs. Tortuga

Posted by Arctic Wolf on July 18, 2016

rc-side3Several years ago I was contacted by Adam Dell (on behalf of Pusser’s Rum) and asked if I would review their Pusser’s Premium Rum Cake on my website. I accepted, and my friends and I got together and enjoyed sampling and discussing the cake. I took their comments and cobbled together a review of sorts.

Recently, I was contacted by Adam again and was asked if I would sample some of their rum cake again, but this time he wanted me to also sample a competitor’s rum cake, Tortuga Golden Original Rum Cake, and write a comparative review. This seemed like a fun exercise, and since Pusser’s have apparently been improving their recipe over the past several years, the new review would probably be timely as well.

Tortuga-OriginalThe two rum cakes (sent to my by Adam Dell) arrived separately with the Pusser’s Premium cake arriving first and the Tortuga Golden Original cake arriving about two weeks later. This meant I had to refrigerate the Pusser’s Cake in the interim so that I would be able to taste the two side by side. When I asked Adam if this would affect the quality of the Pusser’s product he assured me that as long as the cake was left sealed and refrigerated it would keep for up to 10 months.

Once I had received both products, I placed them each in my refrigerator, and then arranged to have a few of my rum friends over to help me taste them.

You may click on the following link to read the results of my first ever Rum Cake Battle:

Battle of the Rum Cakes: Pusser’s Premium Rum Cake vs. Tortuga Golden Original

“… Whereas the Pusser’s Rum Cake had a very rum forward scent oozing from it on the pate, the aroma of the Tortuga rum cake was less rum forward. The sweetness was also more muted. I am not sure if this is more positive or more negative, but if I were to make a differentiation based upon visual appearance and aroma, I would say that the Pusser’s Premium Rum Cake is more rum-like, and the Tortuga Golden Original Rum Cake is more cake-like …”

Please enjoy the review, Chimo!

 

Posted in Extras, Rum Cake | Tagged: , , , | Comments Off on Battle of the Rum Cakes: Pusser’s Vs. Tortuga

Review: Cruzan 9 Spiced Rum

Posted by Arctic Wolf on July 17, 2016

Cruzan Spiced PuchThe Cruzan Rum Company is located on the Island of St. Croix in the US Virgin Islands. The Island of St. Croix is the largest of the US Virgin islands, being approximately 28 miles long and 7 miles wide. Along with the tourism industry and one of the largest oil refineries in the Caribbean, the St. Croix economy is dependent to a large extent upon the Rum Industry as a major engine of their economic growth.

All of the Cruzan Rums are produced using a modern five column distillation method which produces a light bodied rum, the quality of which can be tightly controlled by the five column distillation. The rum is then aged in once used American oak bourbon barrels.

The Cruzan 9 Spiced Rum is named for the 9 spices blended within the rum, allspice, vanilla, pepper, ginger, mace, clove, nutmeg, cinnamon, and juniper berry. It is bottled at 40 per cent alcohol by volume and is, I believe, aged for up to two years in American Oak.

Here is a link to my review:

#8 Cruzan 9 Spiced Rum

“… I was struck by the scents of pungent spices mingling with the sweeter scents of caramel toffee. Vanilla, nutmeg, allspice, cinnamon and cloves are easily identified in the breezes. I am noticing the ginger playing in the breezes as well mingling with just a hint of oak spice …”

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I hope you all find this countdown enjoyable and you can follow the rankings here:

The Rum Howler 2016 Spiced Rum Countdown

Posted in Rum, Rum Reviews, Spiced Rum | Tagged: , , , , | Comments Off on Review: Cruzan 9 Spiced Rum

Review: Bacardi Anejo Rum

Posted by Arctic Wolf on July 15, 2016

Bacardi Anejo SAM_2626The Bacardi Anejo Rum is produced using column still distillation and oak barrel aging. The rum carries no age statement, however based upon its placement in the Bacardi line-up between the Bacardi Gold and the Bacardi Gran Reserva 8 Anos, we can reasonably guess that the rums within the Anejo blend are between 2 and 6 years old. According to the website information, the final rum is further ‘shaped’ by filtering the aged rum through a secret blend of charcoal. This charcoal filtration helps to blunt some of the harsh flavour characteristics of a young rum giving it a smoother taste profile and less astringency.

The anejo rum is bottled at 40 % alcohol by volume.

Here is a link to my new review:

Review: Bacardi Anejo Rum

“… Sharp orange and banana peel follow with light notes of baking spice and vanilla. Although the rum has been filtered to remove some of its youthful astringency, there is nevertheless more than a few telltale notes of alcohol sharpness. In fact, based upon my assumed age of the rum, the rum is sharper and rougher than I expected …”

Please enjoy my latest rum review.

Chimo!

 

Posted in Dark Rums, Rum, Rum Reviews | Tagged: , , | Comments Off on Review: Bacardi Anejo Rum

2016 Spiced Rum Taste-off: El Dorado Spiced Rum

Posted by Arctic Wolf on July 13, 2016

el-dorado-spicedThe Diamond Distillery sits on the East Bank of the Demerara River near Georgetown, Guyana (South America). The Distillery, originally attached to the now closed Diamond Sugar Estate, is home to Demerara Distillers Limited (DDL). A few years ago, I was invited by DDL and Woodman Wines and Spirits to travel to Guyana for a very exclusive tour of DDL’s facilities with a small group of Canadian Spirits Writers and Restauranteurs. Some of the ‘Heritage Stills’ I saw in operation at the distillery were over 250 years old, and they were still producing (as closely as possible) the same historic marques of rum which they had produced over two centuries ago. Superimposed upon the scene of ancient Stills and equipment was the dichotomy of a brand new distillation plant which had just begun to produce its own marques of rum side by side with the ancient historic stills.

El Dorado Spiced Rum is produced at the Diamond Distillery, and according to the El Dorado Website the rum is a 100 % Demerara blend which is  produced using natural spices (cinnamon and vanilla) and hints of citrus flavour. According to recent correspondence I have had with the folks at Demerara Distillers, all rums which are branded as El Dorado Rum are blended from stocks of rum which are produced upon DDL’s traditional Heritage Stills. (For more information on the unique Heritage Stills in operation at the Diamond distillery you may read my first hand account here (Diamond Distillery Tour).

Here is a link to my most recent review of the El Dorado Spiced Rum:

#9 El Dorado Spiced Rum

“… The aroma is richer and spicier than I remember from my review of a few years back, although the general profile of vanilla, brown sugar, cloves, and cinnamon is the same as before. Light notes of apricot and peaches reach the breezes above the glass as well alongside some quiet notes of orange peel and citrus …”

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I hope you all find this countdown enjoyable and you can follow the rankings here:

The Rum Howler 2016 Spiced Rum Countdown

Posted in Rum, Rum Reviews, Spiced Rum | Tagged: , , , | Comments Off on 2016 Spiced Rum Taste-off: El Dorado Spiced Rum

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