Posts Tagged ‘Review’
Posted by Arctic Wolf on November 17, 2015
The Renegade Rum Panama (Don Jose 1997) from the Renegade Rum Company was distilled at the Don Jose Disatillery (also known for the production of Ron Abuelo) in the Pese region of Panama on the Azuero Penninsula. This distillery was established around 1940 by the Spaniard Don José Varela Blanco who emigrated from Spain to Panama in 1908. Don José settled in the village of Pese and proceeded to establish one of the country’s first sugar mills (in the Village of Pese). It was about 30 years later that Don José and his Sons began to distill rum from the excess sugar cane and molasses. Today (nearly 75 years later), the Don Jose Distillery controls and/or produces about 90 % of all Rum in Panama.
The Renegade Rum Panama (Don Jose 1997) was first distilled in a column still, and then aged for ten years in Panama in used bourbon barrels. The rum was then shipped to Scotland for finishing in a Port pipe at the Bruichladdich Distillery. The Rum is bottled in the 700 ml squat decanter style bottle shown below at 46 percent alcohol by volume
Here is a link to the review of the #38 spirit on my Rum Howler Top 100 Spirits Countdown.
“… My tasting notes include main flavours of brown sugar and oak spice, accented by exotic flavours of oriental 7 spice mixture, and sweet cherries! The complimentary flavours are extremely nice! What I like most about the Port enhanced Renegade Rum from Panama is the way the regular rum-like flavours of molasses and caramel are in the forefront, and how the the Port flavour introduced acts as an enhancement and not a competing element. …”
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You may follow my Countdown list of the 100 Best Spirits here: The Rum Howler 2015 – Top 100 Spirits
Posted in Awards, Extras, Rum, Rum Reviews | Tagged: Don Jose, Panama 1997, Renegade Rum, Review, Rum howler, Top 100 Spirits | Comments Off on #38 Renegade Rum Panama (Don Jose) 1997
Posted by Arctic Wolf on November 16, 2015
All of the Glenfarclas whisky is matured in two styles of oak barrels, plain oak barrels which have previously contained Bourbon or Scotch Whisky, and Spanish oak which has previously contained Oloroso or Fino Sherry from Seville. The barrels are stored in traditional ‘dunnage’ warehouses which date from the late 1800s. The Glenfarclas 30 Year Old Highland Single Malt Whisky which is the subject of this review has been bottled at 43 % and is produced from both first fill sherry casks and refill bourbon casks.
My review of the Glenfarclas 30 Year Old was facilitated by Pacific Wine & Spirits Inc who provided a sample for me to assess, and who kindly invited me to several tasting events hosted by George Grant, the Sales Director for the Glenfarclas Distillery where I was able to sample the entire core range of Glenfarclas Whisky in side by side comparisons. Mr. Grant is part of the 6th generation of the Grant Family who originally purchased the distillery in 1865. His family still controls and manages the distillery today.
Here is a link to the review of the #4o spirit on my Rum Howler Top 100 Spirits Countdown.
“… This whisky is rich and luxurious on the nose. Chocolate, coffee, nutmeg, allspice, ginger, cardamom and wonderful oak spices all rise up in a veritable bouquet for the nostrils. The whisky show its age in the glass but it also shows its character with a complex oakiness which is almost perfectly melded into the 30-year-old sherried whisky …”
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You may follow my Countdown list of the 100 Best Spirits here: The Rum Howler 2015 – Top 100 Spirits
Posted in Awards, Extras, Scotch Whisky, Single Malt Whisky, Whisk(e)y, Whisk(e)y Review | Tagged: 30 Year Old, Glenfarclas, Review, Rum howler, Scotch, Single Malt, Top 100 Spirits, Whisky | Comments Off on #39 Glenfarclas 30 Year Old Highland Single Malt Whisky
Posted by Arctic Wolf on November 14, 2015
The Rum Nation Demerara 23 Year Old, is quite an interesting rum. According to my correspondence with Mr. Rossi (of Rum Nation) he purchased 3 casks of this rum from a vendor in the United Kingdom in 2002. The barrels bore the marque from Demerara Distillers Limited’s famous Double Wooden Pot still of the Port Maurant Estate (PM). These ex bourbon casks were transferred into a Sherry Butt (Oloroso N. 61) in 2004 and were left to age in an underground cellar in Bristol, England where “early landed cognac” (Hine and Delamain) was also aged. The cellar in Bristol was closed in 2007, and the rum was brought to the Piedmont area of Italy (famous for the nebbiolo grape varietal) where it continued to age until 2012 when it was bottled in Italy.
The age statement on the rum is based upon certification in the United Kingdom (I note that the UK customs system is very stringent). Unfortunately there is no record of when the rum was shipped from Guyana to the UK, but my speculation is that it was probably meant to be part of the blend of a ‘navy style’ rum as Port Mourant Rum (from the Double Wooden Still) is one of the key ingredients in those British Navy Rums.
Here is a link to the review of the #41 spirit on my Rum Howler Top 100 Spirits Countdown.
“… The initial aroma is perhaps a little daunting as rising from the glass are rich caramel scents laced with the smells of wood sap and resin. Felled poplar trees, spruce wood chips, and fresh unstained oak all seem to be part of that wood filled onslaught in the breezes above the glass. Wisps of dry fruit and licorice mingle within the breezes as does a faintly sappy, mildly acrid, vaguely rubbery tar-like scent …”
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You may follow my Countdown list of the 100 Best Spirits here: The Rum Howler 2015 – Top 100 Spirits
Posted in Awards, Dark Rums, Extras, Rum, Rum Reviews | Tagged: Dark Rum, Demerara 23 Year Old, Demerara Rum, Review, Rum, Rum howler, Rum Nation, Top 100 Spirits | Comments Off on #41 Rum Nation Demerara 23 Year Old
Posted by Arctic Wolf on November 13, 2015
Wyborowa Exquisite is the Premium version of Wyborowa Vodka and it is produced in Turew, which is a single estate distillery in Western Poland. It is distilled using 100 % Dankowslie Slote Rye Grain. This particular grain is said to give the final spirit a creamy consistency and sweet, nutty note. The grain used to produce Wyborowa Exquisite vodka comes from the fields surrounding the traditional rural distillery. Rectified spirit of excellent quality is diluted with water from a deep spring.
The Wyborowa Exquisite was one of the very first Vodka spirits I reviewed upon my website. I loved it at once, and upon re-tasting the spirit for my Top 100 Spirits Countdown, I fell in love with it all over again.
Here is a link to the review of the #42 spirit on my Rum Howler Top 100 Spirits Countdown.
“… The initial aroma of the vodka presented tantalizing glimpses of rye spices with just a hint of pine and citrus. These impressions were reinforced on my palate although the ghostly flavour impressions seemed to vanish as quickly as they appeared. The Vodka was not as creamy as some of the more recent premium vodkas I have tried. It was however cleaner in the mouth, and as it is swallowed the finish in the throat was clean as well …”
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You may follow my Countdown list of the 100 Best Spirits here: The Rum Howler 2015 – Top 100 Spirits
Posted in Awards, Extras, Vodka, Vodka Reviews | Tagged: Exquisite, Pernod Ricard, Review, Rum howler, Top 100 Spirits, Vodka, Wyborowa | Comments Off on #42 Wyborowa Exquisite Vodka
Posted by Arctic Wolf on November 12, 2015
Demerara County (in Guyana) is popular across the world for its rich, three hundred year history of rum production. Using a combination of old wooden stills in conjunction with modern stills and distilling techniques, Demerara Distillers Ltd. (DDL) has built a reputation for outstanding quality and consistent production. In fact, Demerara Distillers is the currently the largest supplier of bulk Caribbean rums to Europe and North America.
The Year Old Special Reserve Rum is blended from aged stocks (the youngest being no less than 12 years old) from the original Wooden Enmore Coffey still, the original metal Diamond Coffey still, as well as from the ancient Port Mourant double wooden pot still which was used to produce ‘navy’ rum for the English Admiralty. All of the Demerara Rum produced by El Dorado is aged exclusively in American oak (bourbon barrels).
Here is a link to the review of the #43 spirit on my Rum Howler Top 100 Spirits Countdown.
“… Oak and wood spices provide a nice backdrop for the sweet baking spices (vanilla, brown sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg and cloves) and rich molasses that rises into the breezes above the glass. There are hints of spicy orange peel, and fresh citrus fruit which appear and disappear within the aroma, and I have a hard time finding fault …”
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You may follow my Countdown list of the 100 Best Spirits here: The Rum Howler 2015 – Top 100 Spirits
Posted in Awards, Dark Rums, Extras, Rum, Rum Reviews | Tagged: 12 Year Old, Demerara Distillers Limited, Diamond Distillery, El Dorado, Review, Rum, Rum howler, Top 100 Spirits | Comments Off on #43 El Dorado 12 Year Old Special Reserve Rum
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