What did you buy at the liquor store today? (2013–)

[Rafa]

Restocked on Wray & Nephew White Overproof and Old Pulteney 12. The W&N is the workhorse of my bar, ending up in various liqueurs and extracts and flaming garnishes as well as being very tasty on its own, and the OP12 is just a damn good Scotch that I'm always glad to have around.

I also bought Ferrand's Plantation 5 years Barbados rum for the first time; it's perfectly decent, especially for the price ($15!), but I was expecting more of that Barbados buttery smoothness than the vanilla bomb I got on opening the bottle. Maybe with a little air and time it'll reveal the usual banana and fruitcake notes. As it is it reminds me of Puerto Rico's Ron del Barrilito 2 Star, an equally good value but one that's harder to find here in the States, and not exactly Barbados rum.

Also stopped by Astor to try various Luxardo liqueurs. The Amaro Abano, which I've had before and am a fan of, has an Angostura nose, a cola taste, and a long blackstrap and black pepper finish; the Bitter has Campari's color and syrupyness if not all of its bitterness; the Fernet is less minty and mentholated than Branca but plenty bitter; the Anisette is too sweet for me, but so are all anisettes. Luxardo's got a great line of products.

Edited April 7, 2013 by Rafa (log)

[Hassouni]

Rafa, I love W&N, but don't use it for too many applications - mostly making falernum and allspice dram, mixing with Ting, occasionally drinking over ice, and for Jasper's rum punch. What other drinks do you make with it? (not in the flaming sense, but in the "main ingredient" sense)

[weinoo]

Might have to start a new topic. Here's something I didn't buy at the liquor store last night...

Anyone have the opportunity to taste this yet? I think there's an event showcasing it tomorrow night at Dead Rabbit.

[Adam George]

TELL US EVERYTHING

[Rafa]

Rafa, I love W&N, but don't use it for too many applications - mostly making falernum and allspice dram, mixing with Ting, occasionally drinking over ice, and for Jasper's rum punch. What other drinks do you make with it? (not in the flaming sense, but in the "main ingredient" sense)

I like it in everything you mention, in a Jamaica Daiquiri with Petite Canne syrup, and in many cocktails that call for Smith & Cross -- the Professional, the Ashtray Heart, the Bitter Mai Tai, even in a Vic's Mai Tai mixed with something aged like Barbancourt 5 Star or Appleton Extra. I like to follow Rick from Kaiser Penguin's lead and add a quarter ounce of it to a Chartreuse Swizzle. It's good in refreshing drinks with lots of fresh juice that call for normal white rum or blanco tequila -- I like it with strawberries. And, though to my knowledge no classic Tiki drinks call for it by name (presumably because it wasn't available in the US in the Tiki era?), it shines in complicated tropicals. I built a Donn Beach-style blended drink around it that I make for myself quite often. I sometimes use it in drinks that call for more standard white rum, but those are just for me, not for company. (I used it in the original version of a cocktail I intended as a refreshing and accessible Cosmo-lookalike before I came to my senses and realized that most people don't share my love of overproof hogotastic rum.)

[Rafa]

Might have to start a new topic. Here's something I didn't buy at the liquor store last night...

JD rye.jpg

Anyone have the opportunity to taste this yet? I think there's an event showcasing it tomorrow night at Dead Rabbit.

Andrew Strenio at Serious Drinks liked it quite a bit, calling it one of the better white whiskeys he's ever tried. His description reminds me a bit of a white agricole. Sounds pretty interesting, though hardly worth the $50 a bottle. Seems like a good excuse to head down to the Dead Rabbit, not that anyone on this forum needs one.

Edited April 8, 2013 by Rafa (log)

[tanstaafl2]

Might have to start a new topic. Here's something I didn't buy at the liquor store last night...

JD rye.jpg

Anyone have the opportunity to taste this yet? I think there's an event showcasing it tomorrow night at Dead Rabbit.

I have it and like everything about it except the price. It is grossly overpriced and I doubt I will buy more because of that. I do think the rye whiskey it will become could be an interesting addition when it has had a chance to mature and will likely try at least one bottle to see.

I find it has an interesting bready rye flavor with a hint of sweetness and very little new make harshness. Going with an 80 proof spirit was probably a good move in that regard.

I have no skill at creating cocktails but would think it would have potential as a mixer in a drink where that malty rye forward flavor is desirable. Maybe a bit like a really malty genever without the juniper?

[mkayahara]

I wonder how it would do in something like a Garrick Club Punch? I say this without having tasted this particular bottle, but I recently acquired a small bottle of "white rye" from Dillon's distillery in the Niagara region of Ontario, and it's putting me in mind of a juniper-free genever as well.

[Rafa]

My first instinct is to try it in a 'Ti Punch-type drink with lemon wedges and cane syup, but treating it like a genever is a great idea. I wonder what the guys at Dead Rabbit will do with it; I'm too tired to attend tonight, sadly.

[Hassouni]

The ever elusive Lemon Hart 80, and my favorite white wine ever, Pheasant's Tears Rkatsiteli, from Georgia (more info here http://weballharder.com/2012/07/19/georgian-wine-at-its-best-pheasants-tears/)

[Hassouni]

Gosh, nobody's been shopping? I discovered that Total Wine in non-Montgomery County parts of Maryland has a full liquor selection with great stock and good prices, and some stuff that's impossible to find elsewhere, namely Seale's products:

[Rafa]

Seale's! I've been meaning to try that for ages. Please do share your thoughts once you've tried it.

I haven't done any shopping lately, but I'm going to take advantage of the Cinco de Mayo sales this weekend to restock up on tequila and mezcal.

[mkayahara]

I've mostly been stocking up on rums lately, as Tiki season gets into full swing. Flor de Cana 5, Mount Gay Eclipse, Appleton 12, Lemon Hart 80 proof and Havana Club anejo blanco. Should keep me going for most of the summer!

[Hassouni]

is LH80 easy to get in Canada? And does it have the old yellow label or the new red one?

Rafa, I'll definitely let you know. Total Wine has it for a paltry $22. The Doorly's XO, another Seale product, is only $15...and Doorly's 5, which Capn Jimbo gave a solid 8/10 (and I didn't buy), is a mere $10! It was a 90 minute shlep roundtrip, but I'm excited.

Also the Dillon was $12, and Jimbo rates that very highly too. The Hayman's was cheaper than I've seen it anywhere, too.

[Kerry Beal]

is LH80 easy to get in Canada? And does it have the old yellow label or the new red one?

Rafa, I'll definitely let you know. Total Wine has it for a paltry $22. The Doorly's XO, another Seale product, is only $15...and Doorly's 5, which Capn Jimbo gave a solid 8/10 (and I didn't buy), is a mere $10! It was a 90 minute shlep roundtrip, but I'm excited.

Also the Dillon was $12, and Jimbo rates that very highly too. The Hayman's was cheaper than I've seen it anywhere, too.

I saw it in the LCBO today - had a new label - but I've seen a different label at another store a few weeks ago.

[mkayahara]

is LH80 easy to get in Canada? And does it have the old yellow label or the new red one?

Rafa, I'll definitely let you know. Total Wine has it for a paltry $22. The Doorly's XO, another Seale product, is only $15...and Doorly's 5, which Capn Jimbo gave a solid 8/10 (and I didn't buy), is a mere $10! It was a 90 minute shlep roundtrip, but I'm excited.

Also the Dillon was $12, and Jimbo rates that very highly too. The Hayman's was cheaper than I've seen it anywhere, too.

Well, Canada isn't a single jurisdiction for liquor: it varies by province. The Liquor Control Board of Ontario (LCBO) recently started carrying it, with a red-and-yellow label that I think is a redesign (it looks updated from the labels on my old bottles of LH151), but it's still not completely "easy" to find: not all the stores have it.

Let me know what you think of the Doorly's XO. I wasn't that impressed, but then I probably paid $27 for it.

[Kerry Beal]

What are people's thoughts on the El Dorado 5 year old? Picked up a larger bottle in clearance at the LCBO today and hope it's a good choice.

[Tri2Cook]

What are people's thoughts on the El Dorado 5 year old? Picked up a larger bottle in clearance at the LCBO today and hope it's a good choice.

I like that one. The stores here aren't stocking the Lemon Hart but the one about an hour away carries the ED 5. I mainly use it instead of the 12 in situations where I'd use Appleton V/X instead of the Extra (when they're going to be playing with ingredients that stomp on the benefits of the more aged versions) but, in all honesty, I could use it in the majority of cases and not feel like I cheated myself.

[Hassouni]

ED 5 is a great value rum. Much smoother and softer than Lemon Hart, but for the price it's hard to beat. Works well in cocktails where you don't necessarily want a sharp bite from the liquor

[FrogPrincesse]

Kerry - I like ED 5 as well. That's typically what I grab for tiki recipes that call for Demerara rum. I was hoarding it for a while until I remembered how cheap it was.

[Moto]

I must agree on the Doorly's I was sorely disappointed when I bought some last year. I also thought the English Harbour 5 year was a big miss as well.

[Hassouni]

Kerry - I like ED 5 as well. That's typically what I grab for tiki recipes that call for Demerara rum. I was hoarding it for a while until I remembered how cheap it was.

I haven't done the experiment with the new bottling yet (because I don't own it), but I find diluted Lemon Hart 151 or, for that matter, the stock Lemon Hart 80 to have a more distinctive character than the ED 5. The latter sort of melts into the cocktail, while LH brings something different.

[judiu]

Is the bottle of Seale's supposed to be cockeyed, is it the picture, or is it just me? It's making me seasick!

[Hassouni]

It is, it's meant to be reminiscent of drinking skins

[FrogPrincesse]

Gosh, nobody's been shopping? I discovered that Total Wine in non-Montgomery County parts of Maryland has a full liquor selection with great stock and good prices, and some stuff that's impossible to find elsewhere, namely Seale's products:

I would love to read your tasting notes on the Dillon rhum agricole. $12 a bottle? Even in France it retails for 20 euros or so, so that's a steal for sure. Amazing find.

I've done some shopping too, although not at the liquor store. I bought amaro at a winemaker dinner hosted at the Wine Vault. The winemaker in question was Margerum. He had this really cool story about how the Manhattan was his dad's drink of choice and that it was a special way for them to share time together. So he decided to create an amaro for him. We tried it both neat and in a Maker's Mark Manhattan and it was great, so I bought a couple of bottles.

Edited May 2, 2013 by FrogPrincesse (log)