Hard Drinkers, Lets Drink Hard (Spirits, Liquors and Cocktails)
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Elijah Craig Small Batch ~$27 (Bardstown, KY)
Eyes/Nose- That good ole familiar copper red bourbon. Magical liquid. Nose has noticable alcohol, but beyond that a corn sweetness backed by wood smoke. Like a buttered smoked corn on the cob. I'm biased, bourbon is my drink.
Drink- This one was a special barrel selection for a distributor (Liquorama!). I know nothing beyond that, but it cost me exactly $2 more than the regular Small Batch so the risk was low, and Elijah Craig is a known quantity. Mouthfeel is a bit thinner than the leopold, despite the similar poof. Almost oily, but not in a bad way. Otherwise it's a solid bourbon and all that entails, with more noticeable charred oak.
Finish- Short, with some of that side of the tongue tang I alluded to earlier. I probably finished this glass twice as fast as the Leopold, which is neither good nor bad.
Overall: A nice bourbon for under $30. I would say it's slightly heavier on the corn than I prefer (I'm a high rye guy), but that's merely a preference. If you had this and Bulleit in your cabinet you'd be ready for any bourbon drinking guest.
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I'm guessing that rye might be kind of young. Any idea as to how old it is? My current go to rye is Pikesville,although I have quite a few in my cabinet. Nice review.
No age statement, and I agree it's young. Although I'd say it has wisdom beyond its years.
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Some of the liquor stores in my area also have the Elijah Craig barrels. Haven't tried one as i have some in my cabinet as well as a bottle of the 18yr Single Barrel which is one of my favorites. Bourbon is my drink as well and I think Elijah Craig is one of the best values out there.
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Slaughterhouse - ~$35 (Napa, CA although I'm sure the whiskey is sourced elsewhere)
Eyes/Nose- No doubt your eyes start on the bottle, and I'll admit, I was intrigued by the packaging. This is labeled as an "American whiskey" and is thus not bound to the same rules that a bourbon might be. This is a whiskey aged in Bordeaux bottles, and the ruby red cast on the liquor betrays this dirty little secret. That red wine scent is noticeable on the nose, but not assertively so. Otherwise fairly neutral, not sweet at all. Also there's something unfamiliar there, not unpleasant per se but maybe a bit rubbery, like a pencil eraser.
Drink- Not overly complex, but it's clearly a whiskey. That might sound like a dumb thing to say but I'm always wary of these "aged in…" sorts of things. Truth be told I was half in the bag when I made this order and this was by far the most "out there" selection for me. Anyway, I read somewhere that it's high rye, and I'll back that up. No corny sweetness is present, a tiny bit of spice, but lacking the...hard?...mouthfeel that ryes tend to have. Relatively thin on the mouthfeel, actually, which was a surprise. Perhaps the dark color was prepping me for more of a port-like mouthfeel. Vanilla and a bit of wood, maybe honey, but imagine honey that wasn't sweet at all (which I guess would be mead).
Finish- More wine on the finish. That juicy fruit notion that a red wine elicits, all without being sweet. A pleasant finish, which has a mouth coating notion that is surprising due to the thinness of the spirit. Some nutmeg and cinnamon like notes on the finish.
Overall: Not bad, but probably won't buy again. Dare I say this could actually have benefited from some sweetness? As it is, I feel it straddles the after dinner drink and sipping whiskey zones. That is to say, it's too far from a whiskey if that's what I want, and not truly an after dinner either. In the future, I'll probably skip this and keep a port on hand.
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I hear it's refreshing.
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I'll take a pint
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Just saw @Anesthetist post,and it reminded me of the time my brother had met the race car driver Danica Patrick,and I asked him was she beautiful? To which he replied "I'd drink her bath water"
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Just bought this cool globe decanter from an antique store on the south side.
It has a roulette wheel of shot glasses and when the red button is depressed it dispenses a half shot. It is full of Chivas atm but after I’m sure it works consistently, will probably fill it with some kind of cordial for my missus.Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
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^^ that’s super rad!
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Last night, John Collins:
This morning, amaretto coffee:
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^ Savage
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For the John Collins:
2.5 oz Genever
1 oz lime juice
3/4 oz simple syrupShake with ice, pour into tall glass with ice, top off with club soda.
You could probably get away with just building the drink directly into the glass, but if you're gonna make yourself a fresh cocktail you may as well take the time. Using "Old Tom" gin would make it a Tom Collins. Some recipes specify lemon juice and just sugar. You'll see "John" made with whiskey nowadays, but the barrel aged genever is quite whiskey-like, and what they would have had for gin back when this was a "punch" (thus the lack of bitters), and back when punch was something people drank. Apparently the genesis of the drink name was a prank that ran thus:
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Local chaps drinking at a bar
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Notice a non-local walking in
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After a few drinks, tell non-local that a guy named "Tom Collins" was talking shit about him, and that Mr. Collins was now at a bar down the street
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Man is sent, fuming, to new bar
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Other locals, in on the joke, either send him further afield or point out an unsuspecting wretch as the aforesaid gentleman
Apparently this prank only resulted in a few deaths…
For the amaretto coffee...pour some amaretto in your coffee. Especially helpful if your daughter's been sick and is being an annoying little jerk.
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Bolero:
1oz dark rum
1oz brandy
1oz lime juice
1/2oz orange juice
1/2oz simple syrupShake with ice.
Pretty darn good, nothing earth shattering. The Koaloa rum I’m using is phenomenal, so that helps. Ran out of limes so tried with lemon; limes are better.
