113 replies to this topic

[Chris Amirault]

Great research and notes, Sam. Where'd you get the R&W, and how much was it?

[slkinsey]

Don't remember where I bought it. A lot of Haus Alpenz importa (Zirbenz Stone Pine Liqueur of the Alps, Batavia Arrack van Oosten, Rothman & Winter Orchard Apricot Liqueur and Crème de Violette, etc.) are starting to show up in NYC liquor stores lately. Recently I snagged some of their crème de violette, which is quite nice. They sell for a bit less than 25 bucks a bottle, I'd say.

Edited by slkinsey, 18 September 2007 - 08:59 AM.

[notahumanissue]

I know you can find the R&W Apricot and Violette at Astor Wines. And LeNell's, of course...

Edited by notahumanissue, 18 September 2007 - 09:27 AM.

[Nathan]

yup. haven't seen the Arrack yet. Swedish Punsch is supposed to be on its way as well.

Edited by Nathan, 19 September 2007 - 07:22 AM.

[KatieLoeb]

Astor is currently out of stock on the R & W Violette and Apricot. I tried to snag a bottle of Violette today to bring back to Philly with me, but to no avail. <sigh>

[slkinsey]

Can anyone explain what diffrence there is between Pescetes Barack Palinka and Kecskemeti Barack Palinka?

[eje]

Can anyone explain what diffrence there is between Pescetes Barack Palinka and Kecskemeti Barack Palinka?

My impression was that the Pescetes was Zwack's more generic Apricot Eau-de-Vie (or firewater) and that the Kecskemeti was some sort of a special appellation brand with apricots from a specific area of Hungary.

I can no longer find the website where I got that impression, so perhaps if David Santucci is still around he could comment.

[slkinsey]

I have the Zwack Pecsétes Barack Palinka, and it's not all that fire water-like.

For what it's worth, Pescetes comes in a nicer-looking bottle then Kecskeméti.

Having done some digging:

Kecskemét is a city in Hungary.

I have seen translations of pecsétes meaning "something with a seal" (pecsétel = "to seal"). This makes some sense, as Pecsétes Barack Palinka comes in a special round bottle with a red seal. Other translations have pecsétes meaning "stained or greasy." This might also make some sense, as the slight coloration ("staining") of the spirit comes from aging in used oak.

[eje]

[...] This might also make some sense, as the slight coloration ("staining") of the spirit comes from aging in used oak.

I could be wrong but I thought I remembered noting Caramel Color on the label...

[slkinsey]

[...] This might also make some sense, as the slight coloration ("staining") of the spirit comes from aging in used oak.

I could be wrong but I thought I remembered noting Caramel Color on the label...

Not on the label of mine...

(ETA quotes for context, since this post starts a new page.)

Edited by slkinsey, 01 February 2008 - 05:35 PM.

[eje]

[...] This might also make some sense, as the slight coloration ("staining") of the spirit comes from aging in used oak.

I could be wrong but I thought I remembered noting Caramel Color on the label...

Not on the label of mine...
[...]

Yeah, you're probably right. I think I am thinking of Brizard Apry instead of the Zwack Pecsétes Barack Palinka apricot Eau-de-Vie. Though I can't seem to find my bottle of Zwack at the moment. The disadvantage of having a large and poorly organized spirits collection. I purchased it a long time ago and didn't really taste it until after I had tried the Haus Alpenz Blume Marillen Eau-de-Vie. Trying them together, I thought, "...And I would use the Zwack because?" The Zwack tasted more like tequila than apricots to me. I'm sure I stashed it at the back of some cabinet somewhere in the house.

Really need to inventory and come up with an organizational scheme...

edit - clarify that we were talking about comparing apricot eau-de-vie, not apricot liqueur.

Edited by eje, 02 February 2008 - 02:49 PM.

[eje]

[...] This might also make some sense, as the slight coloration ("staining") of the spirit comes from aging in used oak.

I could be wrong but I thought I remembered noting Caramel Color on the label...

Not on the label of mine...
[...]

Yeah, you're probably right. I think I am thinking of Brizard Apry instead of the Zwack Pecsétes Barack Palinka apricot Eau-de-Vie. Though I can't seem to find my bottle of Zwack at the moment. The disadvantage of having a large and poorly organized spirits collection.
[...]

Actually...



Nice to know that the drink enfeebled brain cells occasionally fire in the correct order.

[DCP]

After putting in a request many months ago with my go-to source for hard-to-find bottles, said source came through. Last Saturday, at least 3 bottles of Marie Brizard Apry were on the shelf. Picked up one; haven't had a chance to get into it.

Perhaps MB's production issues are finally being resolved.

[slkinsey]

I think it was a labeling/branding issue rather than a production issue. Apry (now apparently called "Apricot Brandy" in the US) has been back on the shelves for quote some time in NY.

[weinoo]

A big shock today when I went to my local liquor store to pick up a couple of bottles of Marie Brizard Apry, which the proprietor had special ordered for me.

It looks like there's now a new bottling of the stuff, at 2/3 of the ABV of the "old" stuff. Yep, it's now 20% ABV as opposed to what it used to be - 30% ABV; and I snatched up all remaining bottles of the 60 proof.

[FireAarro]

I picked up a bottle of 20.5% Apry the other day; found one shop that stocks it in Melbourne (Parkhill Cellars on Errol st. there are probably other little hidden ones). It tastes awesome. Also, if you haven't yet, take Paul's advice and try the Claridge*. It's as worthy as he makes it out to be

* Though feel free to scale it down a third

Edited by FireAarro, 08 March 2010 - 05:36 AM.

[bostonapothecary]

A big shock today when I went to my local liquor store to pick up a couple of bottles of Marie Brizard Apry, which the proprietor had special ordered for me.

It looks like there's now a new bottling of the stuff, at 2/3 of the ABV of the "old" stuff. Yep, it's now 20% ABV as opposed to what it used to be - 30% ABV; and I snatched up all remaining bottles of the 60 proof.

i noted this change and it got me thinking. that is a pretty big volumetric change, so what happened? did we get more apricot or did we get more water. that alcohol is potentially important to the structural expression of the drink, but was it quality stuff with a tonal effect on the fruit expression or just junk, barely cut grain neutral spirits. if that later it might not be worth its emotional contribution to a drink's structure...

and then what are the implications of moving from a syrup to a liqueur. does a fruit syrup imply there is more aroma than a fortified syrup(liqueur) which has been diluted with alcohol. and could we jack our syrups and replace a portion of water with alcohol to create liqueurs with the syrup level aromatics.

the state of california would not be happy with me making five gallon batches of "ice wine method" apricot liqueur fortified with st. james amber or cape verdean rum, sugared to the same ethic as brizard, and dispensed into 375ml decanters from air purged cornelius kegs tucked away in the basement.

[Yojimbo]

Has anyone done a side-by-side tasting of R & W and Apry since Brizard dropped the ABV? I noticed that Clover Club has added a whole category of "Bell Ringers" to its menu -- described as analogous to a Sazarac's absinthe rinse, but with apricot brandy instead. I don't think apricot brandy is the next absinthe, but I'm curious . . . .

[FrogPrincesse]

I made a Slope tonight with the following ratios:

2 oz Rittenhouse rye
3/4 oz Punt e Mes
1/4 oz R&W apricot liqueur
1 dash Angostura bitters

I was concerned that the apricot may overwhelm the drink. It was quite the opposite. At first this Manhattan variation seemed a little intense with the Punt e Mes and rye dominating the drink. The apricot gave it a nice subtle finish.

[FrogPrincesse]

The logical follow-up for the Slope is the Sunset Park (Michael Madrusan), which replaces the Punt e Mes with dry vermouth (and uses slightly different ratios). I found it last night while looking for Manhattan variations in the Bartender's Choice app for my husband who was not convinced by my latest discovery, the Infante.




2 oz rye, 1/2 dry vermouth, 1/2 apricot liqueur, 2 dashes angostura bitters

It's described as a summertime Manhattan. It's good but a little on the sweet side, so I would reduce the amount of apricot liqueur next time.

[earlgrey_44]

I have an unopened gift bottle of Lejay-Lagoute Creme d'Abricot from Dijon, which represents an invitation to explore unknown territory (for me) in apricot cocktail land. I've made a list from this thread of things to try.

For a point of reference, is anyone familiar with Lejay to compare it to other apricot liqueur discussed upthread?

[earlgrey_44]

(Bump)

Anybody?

[thirtyoneknots]

(Bump)

Anybody?

How about telling us what you think of it? Does the apricot flavor ring true or does it taste artificial? How would you compare the sweetness to other liqueurs? What's the proof?

[earlgrey_44]

Happy to oblige. Attached is a pic of a Charlie Chaplin, made with london gin and the Lejay.
Straight, it has a clean apricot flavor, more fruity than sweet - 40 proof like the "new" Apry.
In this cocktail, the drink is pleasently tart but well balanced with sweetness. The apricot is well centered with the lemon morphed into a fresh apricot juice impression - nice.
While I wouldn't care to sip this liqueur, this cocktail is a winner.

The Charlie Chaplin Cocktail
1 part apricot brandy
1 part sloe gin
1 part lemon juice

( I made it up, shaken, w/ the gin subsitution)

Edited by earlgrey_44, 05 June 2012 - 07:47 PM.