Author Archives: Greg

Tallarico Vodka

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Tallarico Vodka is a new entry into the premium vodka market.  It’s sold in a tall, black bottle that fades to clear at the bottom to give you a peek at the vodka inside. Tallarico is distilled from rye and wheat, and for the whiskey lovers out there, that often translates to spice and sweet. Sounds good so far, right?

Tallarico is a flavorful vodka, sold for $45 a bottle and distilled in the U.S. Spice is the primary taste, and because of this, a rye-like but un-woody vodka is a fun alternative to use in your cocktails instead of rye whiskey. Tallarico tastes good on the rocks, and while alcohol burn is almost non-existent, the rye spice gives it a good bite.

I took a recipe that I normally use rye whiskey in and replaced it with Tallarico. I ended up with a very good cocktail, a crystal-clear Old Fashioned is incredibly cool looking, and this drink really works with the “premium” branding of Tallarico.

Vodka Old Fashioned

  • in an old fashioned glass, add:
  • 1 1/2 tsp simple syrup
  • 3 dashes of orange bitters (this helps to keep the drink crystal-clear)
  • 2 oz Tallarico vodka
  • stir briefly
  • add a single, large ice chunk (2″ or larger)
  • stir again until well-chilled
  • garnish with an orange peel and a cherry

 

Walk the Line: Bacardi

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bacardi bottles product line

This is Walk the Line: a series where I explore the entire product lines of the most popular liquor brands together with a panel of friends and tasters. Click here to view the entire Walk the Line series.

Bacardi is the world’s top-selling rum and one of the top liquor brands in the world. Originally made over 100 years ago in Cuba, Bacardi is now distilled in Puerto Rico and it’s used in drinks like the Bacardi Cocktail or the Cuba Libre – a rum and Coke with lime that was originally mixed in 1900.

Bacardi Superior. Aged 1-2 years in oak and charcoal filtered twice, Superior is really the the standard for mixable white rums and the one to buy for Mojitos, Daiquiris, or Rum and Cokes. Maybe it’s the aging process, maybe it’s how it’s distilled, but Bacardi always tastes like Bacardi, it’s one of the most iconic flavors I’ve ever experienced. Tasters found it pleasant tasting with a strong burn and a smell that almost reminded them of nail polish remover. Superior will run you $13 a bottle, and this is the one to buy for Caribbean and South American Cocktails.

Bacardi Gold. Gold is an alternative to Superior that’s a bit more complex in flavor, a little richer, but is still simple enough that it makes great cocktails. Tasters said it has a little more buttery, there was a little less of the familiar Bacardi taste, and that it was heavier overall. Gold is a better choice for Tiki drinks and will also run you $13 a bottle.

Bacardi Oakheart. This is Bacardi’s entry into the spiced rum market, it’s name playing off the oak aging that all Bacardi rums enjoy. In its cool looking knobby bottle, Oakheat is sweet and smoother than it’s brethren, and I’d guess there is a touch of sugar within to smooth it out (it’s also slightly lower in alcohol). Tasters thought this one had a great flavor and discovered lots of vanilla and cinnamon, most said it’d be great in Coke. Oakheart will run you $14 a bottle.

Bacardi 8. Aged 8 years in oak, this brand of Bacardi is meant for sipping. Priced modestly at $25, this definitely tastes like a more mature Gold. A lot of Gold’s familiar flavors are there, though Bacardi 8 is mellower, cooler, and has a bitter raisin or maybe banana bread taste that’s not present in the younger Bacardis. There’s less alcohol burn, too, and it finishes clean and dry. I’ll probably use Bacardi 8 to make Daiquiris as I’ve started to love the was they taste with aged rum, and for the price, it’s a good aged rum for mixing in cocktails.

Walk the Line: Smirnoff

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smirnoff vodka product line

This is Walk the Line: a series where I explore the entire product lines of the most popular liquor brands together with a panel of friends and tasters. Click here to view the entire Walk the Line series.

Smirnoff is not only the best-selling vodka in the world, but it’s the best-selling spirit brand in the world, too. While most of it’s varieties are just in different flavors, I stuck with what I consider to be the basics: two versions of Smirnoff and two classic vodka flavors. All in all, Smirnoff falls right in the middle: for the price, you could do much, much worse, but it’s not a perfect vodka.

Smirnoff. This is the standard red label Smirnoff vodka, also known as “Recipe No. 21.” Distilled from a corn, 80 proof, and selling for $10-15 a bottle, Smirnoff is a pretty safe buy. Tasters found it had a bit of an alcohol bite, particularly in the smell, but that it was a pretty smooth-tasting vodka overall.

Smirnoff Blue Label. Also known as “Recipe No. 57,” Blue Label is 100 proof and is slightly more expensive than the Red Label ($17). It really ignites your taste buds all around when you sip it and tasters found that the burn you get from it is a significant step up from Red Label. There are a few reasons to choose Blue Label over Red: to make infused vodkas, to make stronger cocktails, because you have the extra money to spend, or…let’s be honest here: because you want to get drunk faster.

Smirnoff Citrus. Citrus is one of the “original” vodka favors, from way back in the days when Fruit Loop vodka was unheard of. Citrus vodka is recommended when you make a Cosmopolitan. Smirnoff Citrus has a fresh, clean, and dry lemon flavor. Tasters said it was very smooth and one said they could easily sip it on the rocks. For $14, this is a great choice if you’re looking to incorporate some vodka flavors into your home bar without embarrassing yourself.

Smirnoff Vanilla. The Vanilla vairety is quite a bit sweeter than Citrus, but still fells like a classic vodka flavor. Tasters liked it in general, and said they could see this one used in a Chocolate Martini or give White Russians a nice flavor boost. The taste of Vanilla felt a little manufactured, particularly when compared to the Citrus, but like the other Smirnoffs, Vanilla is a decent buy at $14.

Walk the Line: Johnnie Walker

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johnnie walker bottles product line

This is Walk the Line: a series where I explore the entire product lines of the most popular liquor brands together with a panel of friends and tasters. Click here to view the entire Walk the Line series.

Johnnie Walker joins the Walk the Line series to help prepare us for the return of Mad Men on Sunday. Christina Hendricks (who plays Joan in the show) is the brand ambassador for Johnnie, which is the top-selling brand of whisky in the world. Prices of some Johnnie Walker varieties sell for hundreds of dollars, and every type of Johnnie is a blended scotch, as opposed to single malt. This means Johnnie Walker is a blend of different scotch varieties from different distilleries, and it also means their taste is well-balanced and predictable.

Johnnie Walker Red Label. Originally blended in 1909, this is the most affordable Johnnie of the line at $23 a bottle. Red Label is the scotch of choice for mixed drinks, stuff like a Rusty Nail or a Scotch and Soda. Red Label is a blend of “young malts,” so it’s a bit less mellow than a more mature scotch. This blend is dry and clean and the flavor is light.

Johnnie Walker Black Label. A blend of whiskies that are at least 12 years old, Black Label will run you $34 a bottle. Outside of maybe ice or a splash of soda or water (your preference), this Johnnie is one to drink straight. As this is an older scotch, it’s more mellow and has a more wood and spice in the flavor. This blend was the preferred one for all the testers except for one who prefers a smokier scotch. For the price and taste, Black is a great buy.

Johnnie Walker Double Black. A limited-edition release for Johnnie in 2011, Double Black was permanently added into the line late last year. Double Black retails for $40 in a taller, smoked glass bottle that hints about what lies inside: a blend of smokier whiskies from smaller Scottish distilleries. Double Black is surprisingly less aromatic than the others, but makes up for it with rich, smoky, slightly mossy flavor. This label was preferred especially by drinkers who love bolder, smokier whisky. One taster said it was like “smoke in a bottle.”

What about Drinking at Work?

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dudes drinking beer, circa 1970's

With Mad Men Season 6 debuting on Sunday, this week’s posts will have a connected theme. Let’s start with a taboo question: what about drinking at work?

Let’s just establish that I am not suggesting that all the 1960’s stuff on Mad Men is good. How about Peggy smoking and drinking while pregnant? Or little Sally Draper playing “spaceman” in a dry cleaning bag? Yikes! Having a drink at work has sometimes gone badly even for the Mad Men, especially for Freddy Rumsen, who peed his pants right there at his desk.

Let me say that I have almost never had a job where drinking is appropriate, just like most of you. I’ve spent the greater part of the last decade working in education and I never drank alcohol at work, and teaching is clearly not one of the professions I’m talking about. Let’s just agree that there are professions that drinking will never be ok, like heavy machine operators, or pilots, probably most assassins.

There are still some professions where drinking is accepted, though, even though I suspect it happen less than it did in the 60’s. How Drinking Vodka Makes You More Creative summarizes a scientific experiment involving creative workers. They were tested on response time when they had has drinks until they were just below the legal limit. Their response and thought time was improved over non-drinkers. You can read through the science of the experiment here, titled “Alcohol Intoxication Facilitates Creative Problem Solving.”

Curious about corporate friendliness to booze, KegWorks interviewed a company about their monthly Craft Beer Exchange, which they consider part of corporate team building. Nathan Miloszewski, VoIP Supply’s Content and Conversations Leader, said “We have a pretty awesome environment and having a beer while on the clock is 100% acceptable so long as the person is being responsible and maintaining the company’s Core Values.”

So….what about drinking at the office? Do you ever enjoy a company-sanctioned tipple, particularly those of you in “creative” jobs? Post pictures of your office bar in the comments.

Portland Potato Vodka

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akdov telmig

It shouldn’t be a shock to hear me say that I’ve enjoyed tasting the products that Eastside Distilling in Portland makes. From whiskies to rums, they’ve all proved to be excellent liquors. My expectations, then, were pretty high when I tasted Portland Potato Vodka.

Many folks assume that potatoes are the most common base for making vodka, but it’s actually grains like wheat or corn that are most often used. Potato vodkas like Karlsson’s (an advertiser at Simple Cocktails) are considered more “boutique” than your typical vodkas. I’ve tried 3 potato vodkas at this point, and they have a common earthiness to them and are occasionally herbal or minty.

Portland Potato ($23 retail) is pleasantly mild without a harsh alcohol bite. There is a very slight earthy scent that is followed by a nice, fresh, sweet finish. The flavor is full and it finishes clean and flavorless, like you’d expect from a quality vodka. I used PPV in Ed Wood’s favorite cocktail, the Vodka Gimlet, or as he called it, the “Akdov Telmig”:

Akdov Telmig

  • 2 oz vodka
  • 3/4 oz lime juice
  • 1/2 oz simple syrup
  • shake and serve up or on the rocks
  • garnish with a lime wheel

Lovoka

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lovoka caramel liqueur

Lovoka is a caramel liqueur from South Africa that’s launching this year in the United States. Arriving in an aluminum bottle that reminds me of a bicycle flask, Lovoka (la-vah-cah) fills a pretty sparse niche – I can only think of one more brand of caramel liqueur on the market. “Serve chilled” is the instruction on the bottle, so if you store it in the fridge or freezer, the aluminum with frost up nicely.

Taste-wise, Lovaka is nice and sweet, just as you’d expect it to be. There’s a lot of opportunity to make some cocktails with it – stir it into a White Russian, mix with S’mores Vodka, or add a shot to a cup of coffee or a pint of Guinness. I made this simple cocktail with it (pictured above):

Betty Rubble (by Greg Mays)

Lovoka will be available this Spring in the U.S., starting in California, for $28 a bottle.

SilverCoin Tequila

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silver coin tequila with cocktail

SilverCoin is the first tequila available from Santa Fe Tequila Company. Made from 100% blue agave and sold in a hearty hand-blown bottle, this tequila is available in about 6 states right now. SilverCoin Silver (unaged) is a quality tequila with lots of flavor, a very clean taste, and a fresh finish.

I have been a bit stuck lately with tequila. Using it for either Margaritas or shots, I haven’t had much success making other tequila cocktails until I got a copy of the Café Royal Cocktail Book (Amazon link). I found a tequila and gin cocktail that has a surprisingly great flavor combination. Here’s the recipe:

Señorita

  • 1 oz tequila
  • 1 oz gin
  • 1 oz lemon juice
  • a dash of grenadine
  • shake and strain into a chilled cocktail glass
  • garnish with a lemon wedge

Gin and Tonic

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juniper green gin and jack rudy tonic

“In addition to being a marvelous dancer, Jack Rudy loved to entertain and was known to overindulge in drink, smoke, and his wife’s gourmet cooking.”

My first cocktail order at a bar was a “vodka martini: shaken, not stirred,” which is pretty embarrassing in hindsight. I actually said “shaken not stirred.” Sigh. I can thank the Gin and Tonic for setting me on a course to enjoy more classically-styled cocktails, though, and I’ve found G&Ts to be a pretty accessible drink for most people.

As you may gather from my occasional ramblings here at Simple Cocktails, I like things a certain way: fresh, natural, and enjoyable. I think it adds to the pleasure of cocktails and make home parties better. I avoid high fructose corn syrup, which means that the grocery-store tonic water like Schweppes or Canada Dry never make an appearance in my home bar. Hansen’s Natural makes Tonic (Amazon link), which I’ve been stocking in my bar for several months, but it’s too sweet for my taste.

All of that considered, I recently made the best-tasting Gin and Tonic that I have tasted. Here’s the recipe:

 Gin and Tonic

  • in a 10 oz glass filled with ice, add:
  • 1 1/2 oz gin
  • 1/2 oz tonic concentrate (see below for info)
  • top with club soda
  • lime wedge garnish
  • optional: add some mint leaves and a mint sprig

Now the individual components of this particular G&T include Juniper Green Organic Gin and Jack Rudy Tonic. Juniper Green has a touch of sweetness and a fresh, minty, herbal flavor ($33 a bottle). Jack Rudy is a traditional tonic that comes in a cool apothecary bottle ($32 for 2- 17 oz bottles). Jack Rudy has now spoiled me on tonics as it isn’t overly sweet and has more quinine/bitter flavor.

Powder Rum and Class V Vodka

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syntax spirits rum and vodka

Syntax Spirits distills Class V Vodka and the newly-released Powder White Rum in Colorado. Proud of their heritage, they use 100% wheat and snow melt from their native state to distill their vodka.

Both the rum and vodka are functional in cocktails, though I don’t know if I’d recommend drinking them neat. At $25 each, the rum has a full-mouthed burn that gives your Daiquiris quite a punch. Their vodka is sharp, grainy, and almost chalky. It’s a pretty interesting tasting experience because it’s so full of flavor, which is unusual for vodka. I used Syntax Class V to make a lemon drop:

Lemon Drop

  • 1 1/2 oz vodka
  • 1 oz lemon juice
  • 1 tsp sugar
  • shake and strain into a chilled cocktail glass
  • lemon wheel garnish