Posts Tagged ‘Rum howler’

Rum Howler 2016 Top 50 Mixing Rums Countdown (#30 – #26)

Posted by Arctic Wolf on November 29, 2016

2016rum_howler_badge Today is the last of the ‘group’ postings for my Top 50 Mixing Rum Countdown. From this point forward, the mixing rums will be introduced one at a time as I count down from number 25 to number 1. If you are interested in how the Countdown has progressed so far, here is a link to the growing list:

The Rum Howler 2016 Top 50 Mixing Rums Countdown

Today’s revelation includes three spiced rums within the grouping. Spiced rum has been a bit of a revelation for myself this year. Whereas I have long considered spiced rums strictly as soda mixers, great with cola and not much else, this year I encountered Tony Abou’s spiced rum cocktail, the Cable Car which opened up a whole new world of mixing possibilities for me with respect to spiced rum servings.

This revelation, I am sure, is the reason why so many spiced rums have made my list. I recommend that any who have not sampled the delight of the Cable Car do so immediately, and if you find that particular libation to your liking, try a few the cocktails I was inspired to create, The Fog Horn, The Jerrycan, The Pedestrian, or the Trolley Car. Hopefully a new world of possibilities will open for you as well.

Here are the next five spirits in my Rum Howler 2016 Top 50 Mixing Rums Countdown:

The Fog Horn

#27 Screech Spiced 100 (Proof) Rum

“… I mixed a nice spiced rum and cola, and found the result very satisfying. To test the spiced rum’s versatility, I mixed next with ginger-ale and was surprised at the tasty result. Finally I mixed a new short cocktail combining the Screech Spiced 100 (Proof) Rum with Southern Comfort, fresh juice and bitters (my Fog Horn recipe). Once again I was well pleased …”

#26 Captain Morgan Jack-O’Blast Pumpkin Spiced Rum

“… The aroma from the glass is very nice. I let my wife have a nice sniff, not letting her know what was inside. She immediately smiled and said my rum reminded her of her pumpkin spiced chai tea that she loves. I guess you could say that Captain Morgan nailed it! Pumpkin, caramel, and vanilla rise into the breezes accented lightly by cinnamon and cloves. The combination is wonderful …”

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Stay tuned for more mixing rum revelations as I will be adding to this list each day until Christmas Eve.

Posted in Awards, Extras, Rum, Rum Reviews | Tagged: 2016 Rum Howler Top 50, Appleton White, Brugal Especial, Captain Morgan, Jack-O' Blast, Lemon Hart Spiced, Review, Rum howler, Screech Spiced, Top 50 Mixing Rums | Comments Off on Rum Howler 2016 Top 50 Mixing Rums Countdown (#30 – #26)

Rum Howler 2016 Top 50 Mixing Rums Countdown (#35 – #31)

Posted by Arctic Wolf on November 27, 2016

2016rum_howler_badge When I decided to switch things around this year and publish a countdown of the best mixing rums, I was expecting some push back from my regular readers who look forward to my annual review of the very best rums each year. So far however, my mixing rums list has been met with great enthusiasm. I suspect that everyone was ready for a change this year and a list which is new and fresh is much more exciting than a list which was perhaps getting a little stale which essentially the same information upon it each year.

I will admit though that this year’s list was much harder to put together. Rather than spending a few weeks at the end of the year re-tasting my favourites, I spent most of the year sourcing rums and building cocktails. By my count, I built, tasted and rated almost 160 cocktails as I constructed my overall rankings.

I trust the fruits of my labour were worth the effort. Here are the next five spirits in my Rum Howler 2016 Top 50 Mixing Rums Countdown:

#35 Plantation Original Dark 73 % Overproof Rum

“… I decided to mix a more complex cocktail which I created call, the Hart Breaker. This cocktail combines an overproof rum with lime, agave syrup, and a heavy dose of crushed ice. It is really a great recipe, and with the Plantation Overproof, it was extremely tasty. I followed this up (the next day) with a true tiki recipe, the Zombie (see recipe below). The zombie kicked my tonsils hard; but again it was just plain tasty with the Plantation rum …”

#34 Rum Nation Demerara Solera N° 14

“… What we have is exactly what the nose implied, a funky ‘navy’ style rum. If you like rums like Pusser’s Navy Rum, then you will like the Demerara No. 14. (Although this is a little less spicy than Pusser’s.) I did a little mixing and found that the rum really shines in cocktails. The rum has the ability to push its funky navy flavour through the mixed drink, even when mixing with cola …”

#33 Pusser’s Spiced Rum

I mixed putting in equal amounts of spiced rum and cola. I felt this ratio of spiced rum to cola was much more to my liking. Having found a suitable ratio for my rum and cola, I next set out to make a more complicated bar drink. Using a brandy recipe which I favoured, I tweaked the ingredients and came up with a new cocktail I call, Bitter Blood and Spice. This mixed drink quickly became my preferred serving for the Pusser’s Spiced Rum.

#32 Smuggler’s Cove Dark Rum

” … Of course rums such as this are practically destined from birth to be mixed with cola, and my review would be remiss if it did not involve a nice rum and coke. The resulting bar drink is very nice. The Smuggler’s Cove seems to be particularly well suited as a cola mixer. I am pretty sure that the agreeable flavour of Smuggler’s Cove and Cola will ensure the rum will disappear quickly at my next deck party …”

# 31 Blue Chair Bay Coconut Spiced Rum

“… The rum mixes very easily into all manner of cocktails. I did a little experimentation, and I found the rum mixes easily with ginger ale, cola, all manner of fruit juices, and even with iced tea. I even tried a little mixed with egg nog (it is almost Christmas Season after all), and I really enjoyed the results …”

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Stay tuned for more mixing rum revelations as I will be adding five more rums to this list shortly.

And you can follow the rankings by bookmarking this page:

The Rum Howler 2016 Top 50 Mixing Rums Countdown

Posted in Awards, Extras, Rum, Rum Reviews | Tagged: 2016 Rum Howler Top 50, Blue Chair Bay, Coconut Spiced Rum, Demerara No 14, Mixing Rum Countdown, Plantation Original Dark, Pusser's Spiced, Review, Rum howler, Rum Nation, Smuggler's Cove | Comments Off on Rum Howler 2016 Top 50 Mixing Rums Countdown (#35 – #31)

The Rum Howler 2016 Top 50 Canadian Whisky Countdown (#35 – #31)

Posted by Arctic Wolf on November 26, 2016

One of my favourite Canadian Whisky brands seems to have taken a tumble recently as my scores this year as both Gibson’s Finest Sterling and Gibson’s Finest 12 Year Old have seen their rankings fall dramatically. Without their own distillery and aging facilities, the Gibson’s brand is perhaps suffering as the other major Canadian distilleries may be much more interested in maintaining their own brands than in maintaining the quality of a whisky brand they do not own. I am guessing of course; but this guess is based upon my recent tasting notes for both whiskies.

Canadian Club on the other hand has maintained its quality, and across the board, I have seen little change in their products over the past two years. Sazerac, despite not owning a Canadian Whisky distillery has also seen its quality maintained, and for one of its brands in particular (which we will encounter later in the countdown) a huge improvement has been discovered. With this in mind I am revealing the next five spirits in my Rum Howler 2016 Top 50 Canadian Whisky Countdown.

Here are the links to my next five whiskies in my countdown, #s 35 thru 31:

#35 Gibson’s Finest 12 Year Old

“… The initial nose from the glass is of honey and fruit filled rye spices and some light butterscotch alongside firm dusty wood spices. As the glass breathes, ripened fields of prairie grain and corn rise up out of the glass. I sense both musty cornstalks and rows of freshly swathed grain. Sawdust, chaff, and then bits of orange peel add to the dry spiciness …”

#34) Legacy Small Batch Canadian Whisky (Sazerac)

“… The breezes above the glass were scented with aromas of peppery rye spice and butterscotch. As the glass was allowed to breathe, I noticed some corn-like accents, and some developing baking spices and which turned the butterscotch to toffee. Impressions are fleeting, but perhaps a little milk chocolate has made its way into my consciousness along with a stronger impression of wood spices …”

#33) Canadian Club Small Batch Sherry Cask

“… The whisky is soft in the mouth carrying impressions of fine wood spice and bits of red licorice, dark fruit (raisins and dates) and red cherry wood. Oak and cedar flavours grow from the wood spice. A flavour of Port wine and impressions of sweet cigar tobacco are hinted at. Caramel toffee, baking spices, and sticky red jelly all seem to find a place in the complex flavour profile of the Sherry Cask whisky …”

#32) Tangle Ridge (Bourbon Casked) Canadian Whisky

“… The whisky carries a strong bourbon flair with corn and honeycomb combining with flavours of brown sugar and butterscotch steeped in peppery wood-spice and cinnamon. Just as it was on the nose, the whisky flavour evolves in the glass if we allow it time to settle. Vanilla melds into the flavours of butterscotch and cinnamon, and a rich fruit-filled rye begins to assert itself …”

#31) Canadian Club Reserve (9 Year Old)

“… The initial nose is rich with butterscotch, oak, cedar, and a growing impression of maple. As the glass breathes some dank corn notes rise into the breezes along with some spicy tobacco, oak vanillans, sticky orange marmalade, and a dusting of rye spice. If you wait long enough, some nice chocolate notes and dabs of bourbon-like honeycomb begin to reveal themselves as well …”

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Please enjoy my Countdown of the Best Canadian Whiskies of 2016. Stay Tuned for numbers 30 through 26, Chimo!

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* You may follow my Canadian Whisky Countdown by bookmarking this link:

The Rum Howler – Top 50 Canadian Whiskies of 2016

Posted in Awards, Canadian Whisky, Extras, Whisk(e)y, Whisk(e)y Review | Tagged: 12 Year Old, 2016 Rum Howler Canadian Whisky Countdown, 2016 Rum Howler Top 50, Canadian Club Reserve, Canadian Club Sherry cask, Canadian Whisky, Gibson's Finest, Legacy Small Batch, Rum howler, Sazerac, Tangle Ridge, Whisky | Comments Off on The Rum Howler 2016 Top 50 Canadian Whisky Countdown (#35 – #31)

The Rum Howler 2016 Top 50 Mixing Rums Countdown (#40 – #36)

Posted by Arctic Wolf on November 25, 2016

2016rum_howler_badge Although I tried to compare all of the mixing rums in this countdown using similar cocktails, the truth is that occasionally I would go off the chart and construct servings which I felt suited a particular rum better than the standard cocktail for the category. This was the case with the #36 spirit, Gosling’s Black Seal. For those unfamiliar with Gosling’s, it is the standard rum for the Dark ‘n Stormy Cocktail. In fact if the serving is made with any other rum, it cannot properly be called a Dark ‘n Stormy.

Although Goslings Black Seal is a strange tasting rum which many people find difficult to mix, in the aforementioned cocktail it tastes so good, that I had to include the dark brooding rum on my list.

Along with the spirit from Goslings, here are the next 5 entries in my Rum Howler 2016 Top 50 Mixing Rums Countdown.

#40 Cabot Tower 100 Proof Rum

“… Cabot Tower is not a well aged dark rum, rather it is young and brash; however, it is also full of the wonderful flavours of a full strength Demerara rum. The only reason my score isn’t higher is that a large swat of treacle-like bitterness follows all that flavour, and that bitterness, not the heat and the spice, seemed just a little out of place. This is no sipper, (unless you are into self punishment); but, after trying out a few bar drinks, I discovered that all that flavour (and even that bitterness) works really well in long tall cocktails …”

#39 Cruzan 9 Spiced Rum

” … I like that this spiced rum dares to be different. Not that it is revolutionary, it’s just that I am pleasantly surprised that the company chose to work on the more pungent side of the spice path just a little to the left of the more trodden slopes of vanilla and caramel. We have a little of that here, but we also have welcome doses of ginger, allspice, mace and juniper which makes the path they chose a little more challenging for the palate but also make it much more fun. I did a little mixing with cola at first, and found that I liked the spicy rum and cola combination. I also tried a recipe from the Cruzan Rum Company website, the Cruzan 9 Punch which tasted really nice …”

#38 Bayou Spiced Rum

“… As I sip, the spiciness builds, and for me the obvious way to enjoy the spirit is with a well placed ice-cube. I am not saying the rum needs an ice-cube; it does not. However for myself, the addition of the ice-cube mutes the sweetness just a tad and gives the spices more expression. I am a Rum and Cola nut; so I decide that I should also try that combination in my mixing glass with the aforementioned ice. I am hooked pretty much on the first sip, as the laid back deck drink has just enough attitude to be enjoyable without being demanding in any way …”

#37 Last Mountain 306 Original Saskatchewan Rum

” … the standard, rum and cola cocktail (Cuba Libre’) is enhanced in a big way by the firm fine oak spice within the 306 Original Saskatchewan Rum. In Canada (and throughout most of North America) cola is the standard mixer for amber rums, and the enhanced flavour provided by the oak spice is definitely a huge positive for this spirit. Adding a few bitters makes the cocktail even better …”

#36 Gosling’s Black Seal

“… I smell burnt caramel apples, intense hyacinth, and wisps of cinnamon and nutmeg. Maybe even a little allspice. At the same time the smell is earthy. It makes no sense to my nostrils to get this earthy smell but it is there in spades. (I hate to admit this; but in my imaginings I actually think of an old graveyard with freshly upturned earth, hyacinth and hibiscus on nearby graves and pungent burnt smells coming from the glass.) I find myself grabbing a bit of lime and some ginger-beer and making a strong Dark ‘n Stormy cocktail. For myself anyway, this classic Gosling’s Rum cocktail is the best way to enjoy their Dark Rum …”

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Stay tuned for more mixing rum revelations as I will be adding five more rums to this list shortly.

And you can follow the rankings by bookmarking this page:

The Rum Howler 2016 Top 50 Mixing Rums Countdown

Posted in Awards, Extras, Rum, Rum Reviews | Tagged: 2016 Rum Howler Top 50, Bayou Spiced, Cabot Tower, Cruzan 9, Gosling's Black Seal, Last Mountain 306, Mixing Rum Countdown, Review, Rum, Rum howler | Comments Off on The Rum Howler 2016 Top 50 Mixing Rums Countdown (#40 – #36)

The Rum Howler 2016 Top 50 Canadian Whisky Countdown (#40 – #36)

Posted by Arctic Wolf on November 24, 2016

rum-howler-top-50-2016 When it comes to Canadian Whisky, price is not a good determinant of quality. The next five entrants in the Rum Howler 2016 Top 50 Canadian Whisky Countdown, features two of the lowest priced whiskies in Canada, Highwood Canadian Rye Whisky, and Potter’s Special Old. Both of these whiskies score in the mid eighties, despite their economy price.

Another interesting entrant on my top 50 list is Century Distillers (Highwood) White Owl Whisky, an aged whisky which has been filtered clear to provide a smooth crisp mixing spirit for the cocktail revolution. White Owl’s high standing on the list is a testament to how successful this spirit has been at fulfilling its destiny. Sazerac’s Rich and Rare Reserve, and Collingwood Handcrafted Whisky are not as well-known to Canadian consumers, but each are well deserving of their respective standing on the list.

#40 Rich & Rare Reserve Canadian Whisky

“… I smell corn, butterscotch and a sweet sticky marmalade when I bring my nose to the glass. As that glass breathes, scents of oak and cedar rise as well and some spicy rye and citrus zest. There is a little vanilla and almond in the breezes too, and a nice touch of maple seems to weave in and out. The whisky has a gentle complexity that is pleasant and engaging …”

#39 Highwood Canadian Rye Whisky

“… Butterscotch and honey, rye and wood spices, and a light dab of vanilla all meld together and with a simple ice-cube added the whisky is delicious. There is polish in evidence here, but a little rough and tumble too, as the wood spices liven the mouth-feel and take me back in time to when rye was the King of Canadian Spirits. Touches of almond and orange marmalade complete the flavour profile …”

#38 White Owl Whisky

“… As I take the first sip, the first impression I have is of a softly sweet vanilla and honey flavour accented by grain spice and light butterscotch. The astringency I noted on the nose has not manifested itself across the palate. I taste similar whispers of oak flavour and rye flavours which beguiled me six years ago. Although the whisky is very vodka-like, it does have a light whisky character.

#37 Collingwood Handcrafted Canadian Whisky

“… The spirit begins its traverse through the mouth with initial flavours of butterscotch toffee and sour fermented fruit. There is a nice spicy rye flavour rolling through which is chased across the palate by flavours of corn and dark spicy tobacco. Some fresh oak and cedar (more oak than cedar) appears carried forward with a dabble of sweetish honeycomb ..”

#36 Potters Special Old Rye Whisky

“… A clean spicy rye is out in front carried by light oak and the combination delivers a wonderful mouth-feel full of what I can only term as old-time traditional Canadian Whisky flavour. In fact this might just be the closest that I have come to recapturing the Canadian Whisky flavour that I remember from my younger days. The rye livens the mouth with a light spice, and a nice soft punch of vanilla with a light accent of corn completes this nicely …”

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Please enjoy my Countdown of the Best Canadian Whiskies of 2016. Stay Tuned for numbers 35 through 31, Chimo!

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* You may follow my Canadian Whisky Countdown by bookmarking this link:

The Rum Howler – Top 50 Canadian Whiskies of 2016

Posted in Awards, Canadian Whisky, Extras, Whisk(e)y, Whisk(e)y Review | Tagged: 2016 Rum Howler Top 50, Canadian Whisky, Canadian Whisky Countdown, Collingwood, Highwood Whisky, Potter's Special Old, Reserve, Rich & Rare, Rum howler, Rye, Sazerac, White Owl Whisky | Comments Off on The Rum Howler 2016 Top 50 Canadian Whisky Countdown (#40 – #36)

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Posts Tagged ‘Rum howler’

Rum Howler 2016 Top 50 Mixing Rums Countdown (#30 – #26)

The Rum Howler 2016 Top 50 Mixing Rums Countdown

#30 Appleton White Jamaican Rum

#29 Lemon Hart Navy Spiced Rum

#28 Brugal Especial Extra Dry Rum

#27 Screech Spiced 100 (Proof) Rum

#26 Captain Morgan Jack-O’Blast Pumpkin Spiced Rum

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Rum Howler 2016 Top 50 Mixing Rums Countdown (#35 – #31)

#35 Plantation Original Dark 73 % Overproof Rum

#34 Rum Nation Demerara Solera N° 14

#33 Pusser’s Spiced Rum

#32 Smuggler’s Cove Dark Rum

# 31 Blue Chair Bay Coconut Spiced Rum

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The Rum Howler 2016 Top 50 Canadian Whisky Countdown (#35 – #31)

#35 Gibson’s Finest 12 Year Old

#34) Legacy Small Batch Canadian Whisky (Sazerac)

#33) Canadian Club Small Batch Sherry Cask

#32) Tangle Ridge (Bourbon Casked) Canadian Whisky

#31) Canadian Club Reserve (9 Year Old)

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The Rum Howler 2016 Top 50 Mixing Rums Countdown (#40 – #36)

#40 Cabot Tower 100 Proof Rum

#39 Cruzan 9 Spiced Rum

#38 Bayou Spiced Rum

#37 Last Mountain 306 Original Saskatchewan Rum

#36 Gosling’s Black Seal

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The Rum Howler 2016 Top 50 Canadian Whisky Countdown (#40 – #36)

#40 Rich & Rare Reserve Canadian Whisky

#39 Highwood Canadian Rye Whisky

#38 White Owl Whisky

#37 Collingwood Handcrafted Canadian Whisky

#36 Potters Special Old Rye Whisky

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