Liquorists.com

Yes, it finally happend, i have now linked the liquorists.com domain to this blog. So you can directly go to www.liquorists.com aswel, besides the .blogspot.com adress(it will only redirect so you won't actually notice much). One step in the right direction, now to get started with reviewing again.

*Drum rolls*

Yes, updates will be incomming soon again. "Things" are getting back on track, so be warned for new posts!

Carolan's Irish Cream

A luscious blend of Irish Cream, honey and mellow irish spirits, is what this 17% alcohol (34 proof) containing bottle is telling me.

And this seems rather true. The typical coloured irish cream smells like one would expect from a irish cream, but with a sweet hint of honey.

Tastewise, it's basicly the same story. It's nice and creamy, and leaves just a slight hint of a alcohol burn on the tongue, and almost no burn down the throat.
Besides that, the overall taste is like a mix between very creamy and milky coffee, and a more darker chocolate. With honey in the mix.


Gorter Estaro Dark Rum

To clear some confusion, the bottle i have in my hands is the Gorter Estaro White Label Dark rum.
Label looks different then the picture shown, but i've seen both in the shop. Something with new designes etc.

But on topic: a dark rum that hints towards the golden colours.
The sense is rather light, and if i didn't know this was a dark rum, i would have guessed a light/blanco rum. Just because it has a more light and fresh feel to it. Maybe even a tiny hint of citrus, but no woody or smokey factors.
You do get a bit of alcohol, but nothing strange. The alcohol content is standard, 37.5% (75 proof).


Absenthe 55%

A 55% (110 proof) absinthe from France. And that is where my struggle starts.
There seem to be two versions that look very very similar, and i have a little sample bottle, written in French. And i don't speak a word French.

But, seeing as the two versions are a American version, and a European version. Seeing as this thing is written in French and i clearly bought it in Europe, i am going to assume i have that version...


Bacardi Gold

Everyone knows Bacardi, and everyone can get Bacardi, making it one of the biggest rum brands around.

This particular gold (can be called oro aswel) is priced a little above the average rum i usually encounter, with around €17,- for a 70CL bottle. As usual, this rum sports a 37.5% alcohol (75 proof).

The colour, is obviously, a amber or rich gold.
When taking the first *sniff*, you will get some ethanol properties, but that soon makes place for a pleasant vanilla with some hints of sweet oak.


Delay

Slight delay in my reviewing plans, it got ruined by a simple....cold.
However there is allot more to write about then just reviews, i'm far from done!

Van Perlstein Oranje Bitter


This orange liqueur from Van Perlstein is about average priced, around €6,- for a 35CL bottle, and contains 30% alcohol (60 proof).

As shown the bottle has nothing special going on, just a normal regular bottle. The orange fluid inside has surprisingly little alcohol in it's smell, it's mostly smelling like a orange based soda (like fanta, etc).
It's a very light crisp smell, with no bitterness.

That bitterness does come out in the aftertaste thought. The front end remains a bit light, but the orangy/citrus is not as prominent as in the smell.
After that initial orangy taste, the bitterness starts to hit on the back of the tongue. Yet again not much alcohol taste, but you will get some hints of it when the alcohol starts to evaporate inside the mouth, and by that time the lips and edges of the tongue will start to tingle a bit from the alcohol.
There isn't a real burning or warming sensation in the throat though.


Bailey's Irish Cream Coffee

Right from the start i'll have to say, there isn't much to say here that i didn't already tell in the Bailey's and Bailey's Mint Chocolate posts.

Since it really is, Regular Bailey's, with a hint of Coffee. Not a fake cheap coffee, but a nice and smooth one with a darker hint to the coffee bit.
Ofcourse because of the Bailey's itself the drink is creamy, therefor mellowing out every sharp edges there might be. But the coffee taste itself does have a little bit of a sharpness to it, but that is probably the combination of a little bit of mint that is working together with the coffee to create that effect.


How to write a liquor review

Just to clarify things, i thought it might be handy to write a post about how i actually write my reviews.

For starters all my spirits are in the same room, where the temperature usually doesn't change too much. Usually i grab a shotglass and fill it about half way, and then ad a drop of water to unleash some of the aroma's that are trapped in the alcohol.

After spending some time sniffing the drink, quick, long, just above the glass or almost diving in, i get to the tasting part. Usually the first sip tends to be a bit alcoholic, if it's your first drink of the day, so when ignoring that, i take a few sips. Some bigger ones, some smaller ones. Some i swallow right away, some i swirl around inside the mouth for a while.
And then comes the hard part of discribing what you actually taste. Try grabbing a regular drink (doesn't have to be alcoholic) and discribe what it taste and smells like. It can be quite tricky.


Kingston White Rum

This white rum is named after the Jamaican capital Kingston, contains 37.5% alcohol (75 proof) and is around the middle/lower budget range of rums. Costing around €13/14,- for a 100CL bottle.

While some white rums are a little bit coloured, this one is as clear as it can get. As the picture shows the bottle is just a average looking bottle, nothing to write home about.

The scent is a sharp one, that hints towards ethanol, but isn't strong. Not much rum in the nose, but what you do get is really light.

When drinking this spirit, you will notice a little numbing on the sides of the tongue and quite allot of alcohol. Not that it burns, the alcohol taste is more from the nose department as it vaporises in your mouth.
A typical sharp but light rum that doesn't have allot of forced sweetness.


Pisang Ambon Mellow


Pisang Ambon Mellow is a banana flavoured liqueur from Lucas Bols, contains 14.5% alcohol ( 29 proof ) and around €12,- for a 70CL bottle. The Mellow version has a bit less alcohol then the normal version, and is therefor allowed to be sold in more places.

There isn't allot to tell about the colour and bottle that you can't see in the picture, so i'll just leave it at that.

The bottle tells me it is a exotic fruit drink with a hint of banana taste. Well when smelling it, i do get banana. No subtile fruity banana tho, but candy like. In fact the aroma reminds me of the round chewing gum you can grab from a machine.
You don't really have to drown your nose in the drink to smell it, it's a strong scent that grabs you, even when just opening the bottle. But not offensive at all.


Gold Strike

A cinnamon schnapps from Lucas Bols, with actual gold(flakes) in it. Altho allot of cinnamon schnapps seem to handle the gold theme.

Facts are; 23.5 karat gold flakes that float around(no, they do not cause harm and are digested just fine), costs around €15,- for a 50CL bottle, and contains 50% alcohol (100 proof).

Now to start off, yes, the goldflakes do look awesome, and since the *servingtip* is to drink the liqueur chilled as shots, you can enjoy them in all their glory.
Besides the gold, the liquid crystalclear.

Diving in nosefirst results in a little alcoholsmell, but just a tiny amount. With less drastic smelling tactics the drink has a very strong cinnamon smell to it.
And in fact, the same goes for the taste. At first, it will start to tingle on the tip of the tongue, give you a cinnamon explosion in your mouth, and end in a warm little burn in the upper throat.


Old Captain Well Matured

Another product from Boomsma Distillery, a gold/dark rum. 37.5% (75 proof) alcohol, and blended from a few different Caribbean rums.
With a price around €9,- for a 70CL bottle, priced more towards the lower budget range.

That reveals itself in the smell a little bit. You do get quite some ethanol if you dive in deep. But also a darker rum smell that isn't overwelming strong, but smells a bit warm. With a very tiny hint of spice (caramel) once in a while. Since the label tells me well matured, no surprise there.

The taste pure is not for the weak hearted, from almost nothing initially on the tongue, to a dark heavy rum near the back of the tongue. With a little tickling on the sides of the tongue from the alcohol, that turns into a warm feeling further down the throat. The alcohol evaporating right away in the mouth causes a strong taste/smell sensation at first, but dims out quite a bit after you are used to it.
Then it takes place for a more bitter, i almost want to say woody taste. But not as in whiskey, not sweet, no smoke.

When mixed into other drinks all alcohol related smell and taste issues disappear right away, as usual. What remains is a dark/bitter rum taste, in a more mellow way. Exactly as the well matured on the bottle suggested.


The White Jamaican


Like most cocktails, another one with different recipes out *there*. I will just be using the most common one i found.


--------
- 1 ½ part Coconut rum
- ¾ part Dark rum
- ¾ part Creme de cacao
- 4 parts of milk
--------

Shake the drink, and serve in a highball glass, over ice. And enjoy your tropical variation on the white russian.

77.7 Absinthe

A brand without allot of info, my favorite.
This is one of the 2 absinthe products this brand has. One beeing the 55.5, and the other, the one i am dealing with today, 77.7.

Like the name maybe already suggested, this version is rocking a 77.7% alcohol ( 155.4 proof). And while the bottle has a serving tip of drinking it pure on the rocks, that might be a little potent for some of us.
Because this is a rather low end absinthe, it isn't as *real* as the more expensive brands, and therefor made with artificial flavors, and colors.

The fluid itself isn't as bright green as the picture might suggest, more a mix between green yellow and gold. The odor if this absinthe is a really strong one. Black liquorice and a little bit of anise almost punch you in the face. A really strong smell that leaves no room for anything else, including alcohol. Diving in the glass nosedeep will reveal some ethanol, but not much.

This absinthe does in fact louche when mixed with water (see this article, and this follow up for more info) and becomes cloudy white.
When drinking pure, the massive amount of alcohol will immediately attack your tongue, and it will begin to tickle and numb right away. At first you will get the minty anis on the tip of your tongue, and that will go into a heavy black liquorice aftertase on the back end of the tongue. And a rather bitter aftertase.


Alcohols by Volume

For all the people interested, Alcohols by Volume is now officially started with a coconut rum tasting. (And for the ones that have no clue what this new site is, it's the new spin-off from Everydaydrinkers/Common man cocktails.)

Go visit it now!
But don't look too long, that site might be allot better then mine. So do come back here once in a while!

Disaronno Originale

Now who doesn't know this famous brand, or atleast, recognize the distinctive bottle it's shipped in.
The story behind this brand and it's amaretto is one with a long history, according to their website it has been around since 1525. The liqueur itself is a almond tasting liqueur, that actually does not contain almonds, or other nut based ingredients.
But it contains apricot kernel oil, alcohol (28% or 56 proof), sugar, and a few herbs.

The fluid itself is obviously a classy amber colour as you can see in the picture. The smell is a really sweet almond, almost almond spice odor, wich masks the alcohol really well. You have to dig really deep to actually smell the alcohol.

The same thing goes for the taste. It is yet again really sweet, a little bit bitter sweet, and hints at the almond spice again. But with a little bit of added alcohol. Nothing extreme, and in the taste, you won't really notice it that much, especially when chilled. The most notable about the alcohol is a small burn it leaves in the throat and to the sides of the tip of the tongue.