Category Archives: reviews

Bees vs Trees: Honey Whiskey

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honey whiskies

This week we’ll have a two-part series called Bees vs. Trees, in which I taste a bunch of honey whiskies (the Bees) and maple whiskies (the Trees). Today, the Bees get the spotlight as honey has become a very popular additive to a wide variety of whiskeys. Just as an educational note, there is a very blurry line between whether these are, by definition, flavored whiskies or strong liqueurs, since they usually have added sugars as well.

After tasting this lot, I found that overall, honey whiskies have a much less-pronounced scent than maple, but the sweetness comes through stronger as you taste them, plus the honey whiskies are mostly lower in alcohol % than the maple varieties that you’ll see in the next part, too.

Let’s get tasting!

Evan Williams Honey Reserve

  • Cost: $15
  • Description: “The smoothness of Evan Williams with a sweet honey taste.”
  • Alcohol: 35%
  • Evan’s take on honey whiskey is pretty interesting, and overall, we found it to be the least honey-tasting of the bunch. It’s got a more dry, almost medicinal, flavor that finished very fruity, almost like cherry cough syrup. This might be a good fit for a cocktail with some fruit ingredients, particularly cherry or berries.

Jim Beam Honey

  • Cost: $16
  • Description: “Kentucky straight bourbon whiskey infused with real honey and liqueur.”
  • Alcohol: 35%
  • Beam is the only brand you’ll see playing for both teams in the Bees/Trees series. We found it to be the sweetest-tasting of the bunch, with a strong flavor of root beer, even licorice. The honey flavor is present and does contribute to the overall sweetness of the drink. This might be a fun liquor to mix with Root or even Absinthe to help complement it’s flavors. Actually a splash on your ice cream would be pretty great, too.

Bushmills Irish Honey

  • Cost: $25
  • Description: “A blend of triple distilled Irish whiskey, real Irish honey, and other natural flavors.”
  • Alcohol: 35%
  • This may not be a surprise, but Bushmills is the more serious honey whiskey in this list. It tastes like an Irish whiskey, even a Scotch, as you can totally detect the barley base it’s made with, which is a very different experience from the bourbons and Tennessee whiskies in this list. Just as it finishes, there’s a touch of what seems like a cool, natural, sweetness. We found it tasted stronger than the others, and it would be a perfectly respectable sipper. If you’re a Scotch noob, this and Dewar’s Highlander Honey would make some good entries to start with.

Jack Daniel’s American Honey

  • Cost: $20
  • Description: “Honey liqueur blended with Jack Daniel’s Tennessee whiskey.”
  • Alcohol: 35%
  • I am consistently surprised by the quality of the various Jack Daniel’s whiskies I try. American Honey smells mostly like whiskey, and it’s not syrupy or sticky. The honey flavor delivers a substantial helping of sweetness, though the Jack Daniel’s base turns this into a more nutty/buttery experience, ultimately tasting something like pecan pie. Sipping this neat with a spicy, earthy cigar would be a good fit.

Clique Vodka

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clique vodka

Clique Vodka is a newer brand that’s really embraced the times it’s in. Their Twitter handle @cliquevodka is printed right on the black bottle, and they’re promoting a hashtag of #cliqueshots to feature folks drinking Clique or holding their bottles of Clique.

All that considered, it’d be easy point to Clique as all style and no substance, a marketing plan in high gear. The biggest question to ask about Clique, then, is “how does it taste?”

It’s actually quite good – a touch fruity with traces of berries, and minimal alcohol burn. It’s not perfect, but it’s definitely worth $16. Try Clique in this pleasantly sweet vodka cocktail:

Kamikaze

  • 1 1/2 oz vodka
  • 1 oz triple sec
  • 1 oz lime juice
  • shake with ice, then serve on rocks
  • garnish with a lime wedge

Bourbon Heritage Month 2013

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bourbon heritage month

Bourbon Heritage Month is built on 2 congressional declarations: in 1964, Congress declared bourbon America’s Native Spirit, then in 2007,  Congress named September National Bourbon Heritage Month.

Last year, I talked you though 6 of the most popular brands of bourbon. This year, I grabbed some less familiar bourbon brands and tasted them throughout September. Remember that to be legally called bourbon, a spirit must be:

  • Distilled from a grain mash that’s at least 51% corn.
  • Aged in new, charred, oak barrels for a period of time (not specified).
  • Distilled and aged in the United States.

Here were the sippers that I enjoyed in September 2013 for Bourbon Heritage Month:

Peach Street Colorado ($66): Aged 9 years and bottled at 92 proof. This is an amazing bourbon – complex, strong, spicy, and a tad sweet. If you pressed me and the mood was right, I might tell you that this is the best bourbon I’ve ever had. I’ve become a big fan of Colorado whiskey.

Col. E. H. Taylor Small Batch ($45):Aged 7 years and bottled at 100 proof. A great, balanced bourbon with a bunch of history distilled in the bottle. There’s a good, sweet, and almost fruity, flavor to this bourbon.

McAfee’s Benchmark No. 8 ($12): No age statement, bottled at 80 proof. You will discover online that many claim this as the best bourbon you can buy for $12. I made a Manhattan with it, and it is a very good bourbon, though compared to pricier offerings, McAfee’s tastes a little bit young and hot.

Chartreuse

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20130907-142821.jpg

Liquor in general is a pretty colorful industry and the players involved can be quite fascinating on their own. Chartreuse stands as one of the most fascinating and legendary liquors ever, and I’m really excited to feature it for you. Here is the Chartreuse story:

In 1605, at the Chartreuse monastery in France, the monks received a gift from an agent of the king: an aged manuscript for an “Elixir of Long Life” that was thought to be the work of a 16th century alchemist with a unparalleled knowledge of herbs. This manuscript included detailed instructions for blending, infusing, and macerating 130 herbs to form the perfect tonic.

100 years later, the manuscript was sent into the mountains of the Mother House of the Order of La Grande Chartreuse. The Apothecary of the monastery studied the manuscript in detail and, in 1737, drew up a formula for the actual preparation of the Elixir.

Since 1737, this green liqueur has been made by Chartreuse Monks, who use the money they raise from the liqueur to enable them to dedicate their lives to prayer and meditation. Only two brothers know the Chartreuse recipe at any time.

The most fascinating thing about Chartreuse is that its legends are true, unlike the “deer blood” Jagermeister story or the “fly wings” Fernet Branca legend. The two most common varieties of Chartreuse, both of which will run you about $55, are:

Green Chartreuse (55% alcohol) is the original 1737 green liqueur, made from the 1605 recipe by Chartreuse Monks even today. The color chartreuse is named after this liqueur.

Yellow Chartreuse (40% alcohol) was introduced in the 1800’s and is a milder, sweeter flavor and aroma than it’s older brother.

Here’s a common Yellow Chartreuse cocktail (pictured above):

Alaska Cocktail

  • 1 1/2 ounces gin
  • 1/2 ounce yellow Chartreuse
  • 1 dash orange bitters
  • stir and strain into a chilled cocktail glass
  • garnish with a lemon peel

Real McCoy Rum

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real mccoy rum

I’ve started to realize that aged rum may just be my favorite drink to pair with a quality cigar. A quality aged rum delivers a flavorful sweetness that complements the warm spiciness that cigars bring to the palate.

Real McCoy Rum is currently only available in Connecticut (where it’s distilled), Massachusetts, and Rhode Island. This is a sipping rum, just like a quality bourbon or whisky, and while you could mix it in a cocktail, it’s probably best enjoyed neat or on the rocks.

In a matter of perfect timing, Real McCoy arrived a few days before a big local cigar event (see my photos here), so I took it there to get some opinions from people. Smooth was first word everyone said after sipping Real McCoy, and everyone seemed really fond of it, including a self-proclaimed Puerto Rican rum lover. It’s got a good flavor with basically no alcohol burn and a mild spiciness from the barrel aging. Ice is an optional addition, but because of the low alcohol (40% ABV), I ended up preferring to drink it neat.

If you’re near the 3 states that carry Real McCoy 5 Year Old at this point, it’s definitely a good buy at $29. You may also find 3-year-old and 12-year-old varieties as well.

Applejack

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lair's applejack

Brandy is a spirit distilled from fruit and named for either the methods that it’s made by or for the region it’s distilled in. The most common variations of brandy include Cognac, Armagnac, Pisco, Calvados, Grappa, Apple Brandy, and Applejack.

So what’s the difference between Applejack and Apple Brandy? Both are distilled from apple cider, but Apple Brandy is traditionally distilled and aged while Applejack is jacked somehow. In the case of Laird’s Applejack, this means their Apple Brandy is blended with neutral spirits. Others may use freeze distillation to create theirs, but once the Brandy gets jacked, it becomes Applejack.

Laird’s is probably the most common brand of Applejack you’ll see, and it runs around $17 a bottle. Never having Applejack before this (though I have tried Apple Brandy), Laird’s a cool, mellow, naturally sweet, and freshly harvested apple flavor. This is easy to drink neat (straight – no ice) as the low alcohol doesn’t need watering down to enjoy it. I will definitely drink this through the fall with some cranberry bitters, and this simple cocktail is a great fit for Applejack, too:

Applejack Cocktail

  • 1 1/2 oz applejack
  • 1 tsp grenadine
  • 1 tsp lemon juice
  • shake with ice and strain into a chilled cocktail glass

Johnnie Walker Platinum Virtual Tasting

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johnnie walker platinum

Arriving to fill the void in the middle of their product line, a new bottling of Johnnie Walker has just been released: Johnnie Walker Platinum. Platinum currently fits squarely between the sub-$100 Johnnies (Red, Black, and Double Black), and the top-of-the-line Johnnie Walker Blue ($200+).

I joined two of my favorite spirits writers – Geoff Kleinman of DrinkSpirits and Christopher Null of DrinkHacker – in a virtual tasting of this new scotch whisky. Here is the video replay of the live tasting (live broadcast September 12, 2013 at 11am MST):


Read the written reviews from Geoff and Christopher.

Grenadine Compared

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granadine

Grenadine is probably the second home bar syrup you’ll get, right after you make some simple syrup. Wikipedia says Grenadine is “a commonly used bar syrup, characterized by a flavor that is both tart and sweet, and a deep red color…..Grenadine was originally prepared from pomegranate juice, sugar, and water.” As you can see, this can cause some confusion: does grenadine contain pomegranate? Not always. In fact, many popular brands have no pomegranate at all, which you’ll see below.

Here’s a bottle-by-bottle comparison of several popular grenadine brands, including some of the newer craft varieties. They’re pictured here from left to right.

granadine

Sonoma Syrup.

  • Visual: Light red, almost orange.
  • Ingredients: Pure cane sugar, pomegranate juice from concentrate, filtered water, citric acid, vanilla extract, vitamin C (ascorbic acid), sea salt.
  • Cost per ounce: 95¢
  • Sonoma is the most expensive and is marketed as “Pomegranate Grenadine Simple Syrup” and you can tell. It’s the most subtle and mild flavor of all those we tasted, and it tastes the most like pomegranate. You may have to increase the amount of this syrup just to get the flavors right in your cocktails.

Jack Rudy.

  • Visual: Natural reddish-brown.
  • Ingredients: Pomegranate, cane sugar, citric acid, orange flower water.
  • Cost per ounce: 94¢
  • You may recall when I tried Jack Rudy tonic too, which is great. This grenadine, like Sonoma, actually tastes like pomegranate. This syrup is sweeter than Sonoma, but natural ingredients lead to a different colored drink than some may expect, leaving Shirley Temples more copper-colored than red as a result. This one has good balance and isn’t overly sweet.

Fee Bros. American Beauty.

  • Visual: Dark syrupy red.
  • Ingredients: Corn sweetener, water, natural and artificial flavor, citric acid, less than 1/10 of 1% Benzoate of Soda as a preservative, FD&C Red #40 and Blue #1
  • Cost per ounce: 83¢
  • “Corn sweetener” in this ingredient list is just another word for corn syrup. Comparing the ingredient list with Rose’s (below), it’s a very similar product at nearly triple the price. Fee Bros. definitely has a very familiar grenadine flavor, and it’s the most syrupy and sticky of this bunch.

Monin.

  • Visual: Bright red.
  • Ingredients: Pure cane sugar, water, citric acid, natural and artificial grenadine flavor, FD&C red #40
  • Cost per ounce: 63¢
  • I like Monin’s syrup the best of these 5, because it’s a happy medium of the traditional (syrupy, red, sweet) and the craft grenadines (more fruity in flavor, less sweet, less red). Plus, because the Monin bottle is so big (750 ml), the cost per ounce is very low.

Rose’s.

  • Visual: Bright red.
  • Ingredients: High fructose corn syrup, water, citric acid, sodium citrate, sodium benzoate, Red #40, natural and artificial flavors, Blue #1.
  • Cost per ounce: 33¢
  • Rose’s is the iconic brand of bar grenadine, and you’ll be able to find it in grocery stores nationally. As you can see, it has the dreaded HFCS in it as ingredient #1. There’s no pomegranate in it, it’s really just a sticky, syrupy red and features water as the only natural ingredient. Cost is the only advantage here – Rose’s tastes like snow cone flavoring.

Click here to get the Simple Cocktails Guide to Grenadine as a downloadable PDF.

Moonshine Bloody Mary

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moonshine bloody mary

Using Moonshine in the place of vodka when you serve up a Bloody Mary is one way to change up a classic recipe. Fortunately, Ole Smoky makes a Bloody Mary mix that you can buy alongside a jar of their moonshine.

To garnish this cocktail, I used some of Tillen Farms‘ pickled vegetables which, like their cherries, is made with cocktails in mind. Here’s the recipe:

Moonshine Bloody Mary

  • build in a glass:
  • 1 1/5 oz of moonshine
  • 4 oz bloody mary mix
  • garnish of choice, preferably pickled, like those shown above, olives, gherkins, or a lemon wedge

Ok time for a heart-to-heart here. As someone born in East Tennessee, I get the fascination with moonshine. As a practical element of a home bar, though, moonshine has yet to earn it’s place beyond novelty. In this cocktail, I found the corn-sweetness of the moonshine actually clashed with the savory Bloody Mary. If you want to stick with the Ole Smoky brand for a Bloody Mary, use White Lightnin’, which is more flavorless than their Moonshine.

Ole Smoky’s Bloody Mary mix is good. It’s nice and thick, it has quality, natural ingredients, but lacks the spiciness of Zing Zang or the thick-deliciousness of Ubon’s. I added some Tabasco to pick up the burn.

 

Balblair Scotch

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balblair scotch

This bottle of Balblair 2001 was bottled in 2012, making it an 11-year-old scotch. The bottle itself is classy, to be sure: a squat oval shape with a raised glass vine crawling up the left side. The whisky itself is pale, a more yellow tinted liquid than I’ve seen in scotches, but I’d guess the color is all-natural.

Balblair 2001 is a treat, with a wonderful fruitiness in the smell and a flavor that’s bright and cool. From there, Balblair has a lingering agey-ness in the flavor: the scotch itself is lighter bodied, but the finish is rich and has a distant flavor of charred wood. This isn’t a smoky scotch, nor a peaty scotch, but it’s a very complex tasting, high quality scotch for sure. You can pick up Balblair 2001 for about $65.