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Posts Tagged ‘Rum’

2016 Spiced Rum Taste-off: Screech Spiced 100 (Proof) Rum

Posted by Arctic Wolf on August 12, 2016

Spiced ScreechThe Famous Newfoundland Screech is an amber rum which has become part of Canadian folklore. The tale I found upon the company website a few years ago goes like this:

“… the commanding officer of the (American) first detachment was taking advantage of Newfoundland hospitality for the first time and was offered a drop of rum as an after dinner drink. Seeing his host toss back the liquor with nary a quiver, the unsuspecting American adhered to local custom and downed the drink in one gulp.

The look of shock and the glorious shades of color on the American’s face were overshadowed by the bloodcurdling howl made by the poor fellow as he managed to regain his breath. Sympathetic persons from miles around rushed to the house to assist the poor man in such obvious agony and of course to satisfy their curiosity as to what was going on. Among the first to arrive was a garrulous old American sergeant who pounded on the door and demanded “What the cripes was that ungodly screech?”

The taciturn Newf who had answered the door replied simply, “The screech? Tis the rum, me son.”….”

Screech Spiced 100 (Proof) Rum is crafted from the same 4 separate marques of Jamaican rum which are used to produce the Famous Newfoundland Screech which are aged anywhere from 2 to 5 years. However, because this is a spiced rum which is bottled at 50 % alcohol by volume, the treatment of these marques will necessarily be slightly different.

Here is a link to the review of the third best spiced rum upon my rum shelf:

#3 Screech Spiced 100 (Proof) Rum

“… As the glass sits those baking spices seem to take over giving the rum in the glass a rich scent similar to fresh cinnamon buns taken from the oven. There are also aromas of roasted pecans and walnuts, a touch of treacle as well as a meandering scent of marmalade. I cannot say for certain, but it seems to me that I also notice some evidence of oak in the air floating beside the baking spices …”

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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

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Cocktail Hour: The Fog Horn

Posted by Arctic Wolf on August 11, 2016

Ray Bradbury is one of my favourite writers. His most famous work is the Martian Chronicles which was published in 1950 as a series of loosely connected short stories chronicling the exploration and colonization of Mars. Primarily a short story writer, Ray Bradbury published several more of these loosely connected short story collections. R is for Rocket, S is for Space, The Illustrated Man and Dandelion Wine, are some of my more favoured selections.

Fog Horn SAM_2707Bradbury’s stories ran the gamut from hard science fiction to horror fantasy, often with the two disparate genres colliding in wonderful ways. The inspiration for one of these stories came when he saw the ruins of a broken roller coaster on a California beach which suggested to him a dinosaur skeleton. In conceiving how the monster came to be washed up on shore, Ray Bradbury was inspired to write, The Fog Horn, a haunting tale of a lone sea monster who mistakes the sound emanating from a remote lighthouse as a call from one of his own kind.

Famous Newfoundland Screech Rum is blended in Newfoundland and Labrador, a Canadian province very familiar with the isolated setting of Ray Bradbury’s short story. Thus The Fog Horn serves as the inspiration for my latest cocktail recommendation which mixes Famous Newfoundland Screech Spiced 100 (Proof) Rum with fresh Orange and Lime juices and a touch of Campari.

The Fog Horn

2 oz Screech Spiced 100 (Proof) Rum
3/4 oz fresh Lime Juice
3/4 oz fresh Orange juice
1/8 oz Campari
1/2 oz Sugar Syrup (1:1 ratio)
Ice
Orange Peel

Add the first five ingredients into a cocktail shaker with ice
Shake until the out side of the shaker begins to frost
Strain into a chilled cocktail glass
Garnish with a thin strip of orange peel

Please Enjoy Responsibly!

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

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Note: Tomorrow I return to my 2016 Spiced Rum Countdown with the third best spiced rum on my bar shelf, Screech Spiced 100 (Proof) Rum, Chimo!

 

 

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2016 Spiced Rum Taste-off: Lemon Hart Navy Spiced Rum

Posted by Arctic Wolf on August 6, 2016

SAM_0991Lemon Hart is an iconic rum brand with roots which stretch back to the late 18th century when Mr. Lemon Hart began to supply rum to the British Royal Navy. By 1804, production of his “Lemon Hart Rum” was moved from his small merchant office in Cornwall, England to a larger facility in London. Over 150 years later the production of the blend had shifted to the Hiram Walker Distillery in Ontario, Canada.

Recently, the Lemon Hart brand has been re-energized with the launch of Lemon Hart Navy Spiced Rum and Lemon Hart Original One Hundred British Proof Rum (three years ago). The spiced rum (which is the subject of this review) is an 86 proof offering (43 % alcohol by volume), developed for Mosaiq (the brand owner) under the direction of former Hiram Walker Master Blender, Mike Booth.

Here is a link to the fourth best spiced rum upon my rum shelf:

#4 Lemon Hart Navy Spice Rum

” … The initial aroma from the glass is very pleasant. Things begin with a candied sweetness reminiscent of Butterscotch and/or Rum & Butter Lifesaver candies. Within that candied aroma I sense the spiciness of cinnamon, cloves, and cardamom as well as perhaps a touch of orange zest. There are obvious vanilla notes, a very light indication of treacle and hints of tobacco and oak which appear only after the glass sits for a few minutes …”

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I hope you are finding this countdown enjoyable. You can follow the rankings here:

The Rum Howler 2016 Spiced Rum Countdown

 

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2016 Spiced Rum Taste-off: Bayou Spiced Rum

Posted by Arctic Wolf on July 30, 2016

Bayou Spiced and Cola SAM_1668Louisiana Spirits was formed in 2011 with the stated aim to produce a world-class rum in Lacassine, Louisiana from Louisiana sugarcane.  By 2013 their distillery located a few miles east of Lake Charles, Louisiana, was producing a craft rum in what they call the largest privately owned rum distillery in the USA.

Bayou Rums are distilled upon a traditional copper pot still using 100% locally (Louisiana) produced cane sugar and molasses. According to the company website:

Spiced Bayou Rum is infused with classic traditional spices with a Louisiana twist. Featuring Louisiana grown ingredients, this special gumbo of spices creates a unique and satisfying blend that makes it the perfect rum for mixing. Spiced Bayou Rum livens up everything from a rum and cola to unsweet tea or an ice cube.

Here is a link to the review of the fifth best spiced rum currently on my bar shelf:

#5  Bayou Spiced Rum

“… When I brought the rum to my nose, I noticed a butterscotch and vanilla sweetness rode in the breezes alongside a pleasant, somewhat pungent, spiciness. The spiciness reminded me of nutmeg and allspice, with perhaps a touch of cardamom and ginger as well. I also seemed to sense some sharper aromatic spices akin to cinnamon and cloves …”

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

The Rum Howler 2016 Spiced Rum Countdown

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Review: Rum Nation Jamaica 25 Year Old Supreme Lord V

Posted by Arctic Wolf on July 28, 2016

RN_Jamaica_25Rum 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 25 Year Old Supreme Lord V Rum (201o release).

This small batch bottling was distilled upon a pot still at the Long Pond Estate in Jamaica in 1985 and was bottled in 2010 by Rum Nation. (In case you did not know, the Long Pond Distillery is the original home of Captain Morgan Rum.) The rum is apparently produced from locally grown Jamaican sugar cane molasses, and was originally aged in American Ex Bourbon Casks after which the rum was transferred to Oloroso Sherry butts where it aged for an additional time period.

Here is a link to my latest Rum Review:

Review: Rum Nation Jamaica 25 Year Old Supreme Lord V

“… As the glass breathes, sweetness develops with impressions of butterscotch and dark brown sugar appearing as well as rich baking spices in the form of vanilla, cinnamon, cloves and nutmeg. There is an herbal grassiness present reminiscent of green tobacco and heather with perhaps a little fresh poplar and willow thrown in for good measure. A touch of sea brine, bits of iodine and a phenol (rubbery) scent of fresh tar round out the aroma which seems to grow larger the longer the glass breathes …”

Please enjoy my review!

Chimo!

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