Lillet is an aperitif made from wine blended with citrus liqueurs, primarily orange. It has a wonderfully full, fruity and herbal taste and is distinct from Italian vermouth by its lack of spicy notes. Lillet accompanies Gordon’s Gin and Smirnoff Vodka in the Vesper martini ordered by Ian Fleming’s James Bond in his 1953 novel, Casino Royale. Lillet can be used in place of almost any recipe that calls for Martini Bianco, for a softer, more subtle drink. More info at Lillet.
Hammer is a London Dry Gin based on an English recipe originating from 1776 and is further refined with water from the natural reserves of Hammer. The Hammer reserves are located in the Hadeland district in Southern Norway. Water from this area goes through a unique filtering process where it is purified by rock minerals which were formed around 300 million years ago during the area’s volcanic period. Hammer Gin is among the purest of its kind, created with wild herbs and spices and produced according to a 200 year-old tradition. Using double pot still distillation with a unique filtering process extracts the purest flavour from the herbs, giving the product a clear, rich taste. Hammer Gin was awarded a silver medal in The International Wine and Spirit Competition in London 2005. Pure nose with a distinct aroma of juniper berries and a hint of citrus. Crispy, fresh and with a definite taste of juniper berries and elements of citrus. Refreshing aftertaste with a distinct dryness.
Created to attract the vodka drinkers to the gin market, the recipe supposedly goes back to the 1800′s, and includes triple distillation and the use of far less botanicals than other gins. Bafferts only uses four botanicals: juniper, coriander; orange peel, and lemon peel. Bronze in the 2006 SF Spirits Comp. The aroma is very light with a strong alcohol presence and just a hint of juniper, citrus and spice. The taste is very light and very smooth. It is so light in fact that you can barely make out the botanicals that differentiate gin from vodka. Just very slight hints of juniper, citrus, and spice.
The flavouring of the drink comes from a recipe of ten ingredients: almond, lemon peel, liquorice, juniper berries, orris root, angelica, coriander, cassia, cubeb, and grains of paradise. The spirit is triple distilled using a carterhead still, and the alcohol vapours are passed through a mesh/basket containing the ten botanicals, in order to gain flavour and aroma. This gives a lighter, more floral gin rather than the more-common ‘punchy’ gins that are distilled using a copper pot still. Water from Lake Vyrnwy is added to bring the strength of Bombay Sapphire down to 40.0%. Top quality. More info at Bombay Sapphire.
Made in very small batches using hand-hammered gin-head pot still. This uncommon step makes the gin crisp and very smooth on the finish. 2009 Gold Medal winner at SF Spirit Comp. An amazing local distillation. They also create Vanilla Bean Vodka, Red Absinthe, and Spiced Rum. Corsair will be moving into the Yazoo Brewhouse (Yazoo moved to the Gulch). Great review at Intoxicologist. More info at Corsair Artisan.
Bluecoat is an American Dry Gin, unique in flavor profile and unsurpassed in character, five times distilled in the birthplace of America – Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. It is craft distilled using organic juniper berries, giving it earthy, spicy juniper notes. When combined with a proprietary blend of organic American citrus peels and other organic botanicals, the result is a gin worthy of the term American Premium. Bluecoat is distilled in a custom-built, hand-hammered copper pot still. A true batch distillation, the process calls for extremely slow heating of the pot, which allows for maximum separation of alcohols. Impurities are discarded, leaving only the purest, most flavorful alcohols. The result is a spirit that is intensely smooth and invigorating. More info at Bluecoat Gin.
Named after the legendary tentacled sea beast and comes with the catch phrase “put a beast in your belly.” The rum is distilled in Trinidad and Tobago with a secret blend of 13 spices, and inspired by the Kraken’s legendary strength it weighs in at 94 proof and has a dark black color reminiscent of giant squid’s ink. Marketed as both a smooth sipping rum and a mixer for use in drinks like “Kraken and Cola.” More info at Kraken Rum.
At the corner of 11th and Woodland, right at the heart of 5 Points. Wednesday and Sunday 2 for 1. Always lively. Best of 5 Points’ bars. More info at 3 Crow Bar.
The Glenrothes is a single malt Scotch whisky, produced at the Glenrothes Distillery. The Glenrothes is mainly matured in Spanish ex-Sherry casks, and some ex-Bourbon casks. The Glenrothes is unique compared to other single malts in that, beginning in 1994, the bottlings are not determined by age but by vintage. More info at The Glenrothes.
Awesome bottle. Awesome taste. Smooth with a creamy texture and a clear flavor of honey and cinnamon. More info at Kilo Kai.