The Grapefruit Catapult

The Grapefruit Catapult

3  oz   white or amber Rum (Mount Gay Silver Eclipse)
1/4 oz  Sloe Gin
Juice from 1 fresh Limes
Juice From 1/2 Grapefruit
1 – 3  teaspoons of Simple syrup or Grenadine

Shake with ice and strain into a glass of your choice.

Making two of these will use up a full grapefruit with no waste. Not wasting fruit keeps my wife happy.  Trust me on this one folks.  Keeping your wife happy is a great start to any evening of cocktails.

Rum Review: El Dorado 21-Year-Old Rum

Ed 21 Served Neat

The Master Blender for  Demerara Distillers Ltd. , (DDL) is credited with the creation of El Dorado 21-Year-Old Special Reserve Rum which uses a selected blend of rums from their world-famous stills, the Enmore (wooden Coffey still), the Versailles (single wooden pot still), and the Albion (Savalle still). All of these rums in the blend have been aged in oak for a minimum of 21 years, making this one of the oldest production rums in the world.

The rum is part of a family of luxury cask aged rums which also includes a 12-year-old rum,  a 15-year-old rum and a 25-year-old Rum. According to the DDL website…

“El Dorado rums are blended selections of different ‘vintages’ or batches of rums from different stills – aged in oak barrels. Importantly, the age statement specifically indicates the youngest rum in the blend, even though the oldest may be many years older. This rule is the same as the one for Scotch Whisky and is used for rums produced in English-speaking countries…“

This age statement is quite different from those rums which feature a solera style age statement which highlights the oldest rum in the blend and usually includes a high percentage of rum which is much younger in the blend. In my opinion, this sets the El Dorado 21 Year Old Rum apart from its peers and it is very hard to find many comparably aged rums in my marketplace.

Here is an excerpt from my review:

“…The mouth is heated up with oak spice, and my first impression is that I am sampling a yummy oak and toffee extract filled with rich brown sugar. The oak is at the center of the flavour, yet the tannins do not inhibit the other flavours in the rum from forming and delighting me.  Raisins, prunes, and dates give the rum an almost smoky quality while the impressions of nutty elements adds softness to the mouth-feel. Cinnamon and brown sugar weave throughout and the rum is an absolute marvel of complexity and balance…“

You may read the full review here:

Please enjoy the review and remember that it is my aim to help you drink better rums not to help you drink more rums!

The Edmonton Whisky Festival Wrap-Up

The 2nd Annual Edmonton Whisky Festival in support of the MS Society of Canada was a huge success. I helped a bit with the festival by blogging and telling everyone I could about the event. But the real force behind the Festival was the guys at Vines-Riverbend Wine Merchants (2331 Rabbit Hill Rd, Edmonton 780-434-9444).  They did all the work, and  volunteered their time and their knowledge and produced a fantastic event!

Some of the highlights of the event included the attendance of a few whisky dignitaries from home and abroad.  John H. Hall the Owner of and Whisky Maker for Forty Creek Whisky poured so much of his new Confederation Oak Canadian Whisky that it was gone by 9:00 PM.  Andrew Gray of Bruichladdich Distilleries was pouring a few of the new Laddies from Bruichladdich’s impressive line-up and seemed to have a large crowd around him at all times throughout the night.  James Robertson, The International Sales Rep for Tullibardine, was in attendance as well.  I chatted briefly with Mr. Robertson having met him at last year’s festival and at other whisky events over the past two years. His enthusiasm is infectious and I had more than one dram of his wonderful Tullies. I also saw Jamie MacKenzie, the Regional Manager (North America) for Morrison Bowmore Distillers tempting everyone with the whiskies from Bowmore and Auchentoshan.

Of course all that name dropping is just to get those people who did not attend a little jealous so that they get their tickets next year to support the MS Society.  The event raised over $10,000.00 which was a full 60 % more than last years efforts.

I offer my hearty congratulations to the fellows at Vines in Riverbend who were the driving force behind the festival!  You did great, and you can count on my continued assistance in this worthwhile venture.

The Crowd at the festival was impressive, as everyone seemed to thoroughly enjoy themselves!

 

The 2nd Annual Edmonton Whisky Festival

I would like to invite everyone to the 2nd Annual Edmonton Whisky Festival in support of the MS Society of Canada. Last years event was a smash hit and raised over $6000.00 in support of the Multiple Sclerosis Society of Canada. This year it is hoped that the amount of money raised can be increased by 50 % for this worthy cause.

Here are the important details:

What: 2nd Annual Edmonton Whisky Festival in support of the MS Society of Canada
When: January 19, 2011 (7:00 pm – 10:00 pm)
Where: Sutton Place Hotel, 10235 – 101 Street, Edmonton, Alberta
Price: $75.00

The admission price ticket gets you into what I believe is Edmonton’s Premier Whisky Event.

As well,  your ticket stub gives you $10.00 or 10 % (whichever is greater) off of your next purchase of Scotch Whisky at Vines Wine Merchants in Edmonton.

The event will also features over 15 whisky importers and distributors with over 100 different whiskies to sample as part of your ticket price.  And you even get a cool commemorative Edmonton Whisky Festival Glen Cairn glass.

I was there last year and can confirm that I had a blast pouring over 100 whiskies to sample with only one night to do it. (Last year’s event sold so well that a larger venue had to selected for this year. )

Additional events planned in conjunction with the festival are a special Bowmore Dinner at the Petroleum Club with Dave Gordon; and a special Silent Auction to raise additional funds.

Tickets for the Edmonton Whisky Festival and the related  Special Events are available at:

Vines-Riverbend Wine Merchants – 2331 Rabbit Hill Rd, Edmonton (780-434-9444)

or

The Vineyard Wine Market - 41 St. Thomas Street, St. Albert (780 419 6696)
email: vineyardwinemarket@telus.net

*Remember your ticket stub is redeemable for a $10 or 10% discount, whichever is the greater, on your next purchase of Scotch Whisky at Vines Wine Merchants. Offer expires April 30, 2011

So come on out and support the MS Society and have a great time doing it. I will be there and would love to say hello!

*(Just a note to let everyone know that I am not affiliated in any way with Vines-Riverbend Wine Merchants, I just think what they are doing with this festival and their support of the MS Society is worthy of writing about!)

Arctic Wolf’s Christmas Eggnog

This year I am going to re-post my favourite recipe for the Christmas Eggnog.  This is a simple recipe in terms of ingredients, but it will require a bit of a baker’s touch get it just right. I switched up the Rum and the Whisky in the recipe from last year and found it to be as good as ever.

Arctic Wolf’s Christmas Eggnog
(This makes about four servings. )

3 eggs at room temperature, (yolk and whites  separated)
3/8 cup sugar (for the yolks)
3 tablespoons sugar (for the whites)
1/4 teaspoon vanilla
a touch fresh ground cloves (About 1/16 of a teaspoon)
a pinch of fresh grated nutmeg (About 1/8 of a teaspoon)
a dash of fresh ground cinnamon (About 3 /16 of a teaspoon)
1 1/2 cups whipping cream, chilled
1 cup whole milk
1/2 cup dark rum ( Mount Gay Gold Eclipse)
2/3 cup Canadian Whisky (Potters Special Old)

……………………………………………………..

First the yolks

Separate your egg yolks and your egg whites in two bowls. Whisk the first amount of sugar and the vanilla into the egg yolks.   A a touch of  ground cloves, a pinch of nutmeg and a dash of cinnamon into the yolk bowl.   Add the cream, the milk and the rum and whisky (for adult consumption only). Make sure everything is mixed thoroughly.

Now the whites

This is where a baker’s touch is necessary.
Beat the egg whites until they form soft peaks (3-4 minutes). Add the second amount of sugar slowly during this beating process.

Now we combine

Gently and with large circular motions blend the egg white mixture into the yolk mixture, trying to keep things as ‘poofy’ as possible.

Sprinkle a little left over spice on the top of each glass, and enjoy with your favourite chocolates!

Merry Christmas Everyone!

Introducing: The Canadian Whisky Awards 2010

Davin de Kergommeaux has hit upon an idea which I think is just Grand, The first ever independent Canadian Whisky Awards! I came up with my Rum Howler Awards earlier this year where I sought to give credit to various impressive rums and whiskies which I felt had set the mark for excellence during the past year. And now Davin builds on that, at least with respect to Canadian Whisky. These Canadian Whisky Awards highlight not only the best quality whiskies made in Canada, but also special achievements by Canadian Whisky Distillers.

Why am I excited? Mainly because of the knowledge I have for the outstanding contributions Davin has made in bringing forward recognition of Canadian Whisky as a world-class spirit. You see Davin has the credibility to make these awards meaningful for whisky companies as well as for whisky connoisseurs. He is a professionally trained sommelier who is well acquainted with not only Canadian Whisky, but also all of the other great whiskies of the world. He is an experienced whisky taster and writer who is a much sought after judge at international whisky competitions.

The Awards will be unveiled tomorrow, December 6, on Davin’s Website, Canadianwhisky.org! Based upon what I know of the thoroughness of Davin’s research and the quality of his work, these awards are sure to become prominent markers of excellence on the Canadian Whisky landscape.  Great Job Davin! I look forward to reading the selections for the first Canadian Whisky Awards 2010!

Introducing: Mount Gay 1703

The rum renaissance is well under way in my home province of Alberta. Yesterday I received word the arrival of  one of the most highly anticipated premium rums, Mount Gay 1703, Old Cask Selection. The Mount Gay 1703  is a premium rum blend which features aged rum stocks from selected barrels of the Mount Gay treasured reserve.  These barrels have been aged 10 to 30 years and feature the best that Mount Gay has to offer in the areas of Craftsmanship and Quality.

But do not take my word for it, at the recently held Ultimate Spirits Challenge Mount Gay 1703 waltzed away with the coveted Chairman’s Trophy.

“This is a fantastic sign of appreciation for the brand. Remy Cointreau can pride itself on possessing the best rum in the world, as selected by the greatest experts”, stated Hugues Le Marie, their International Brand Director.

It is hard to argue the point. The Mount Gay 1703 scored a nearly impossible 97 pts out of 100, at the Ultimate Spirits Challenge. As well, other spirits writers have lauded similar praise upon this premium rum. Dave Russel of R & D Reviews scored the rum 9.5 flasks out of 10, when he published his review on January 1, 2010.  And Drinkhacker gave the rum a score of A- in his recent review.

These accolades are from gentlemen whose reviews I respect. This accounts for my recent excitement at Mount Gay’s introduction of the 1703 Old cask Selection to my local.

In case you were wondering, here was my review written several months ago:

Review: Mount Gay Rum 1703 Old Cask Selection

So I spread a warm welcome to the Mount Gay 1703, hopefully your stay in our Province is for more than just a short while.

Introducing: Sweet Sippin’ Canadian Maple Whisky

My Rum Chums, (Dennis and Lucas), were out and about at the Rocky Mountain Wine and Food Festival with me, when I became side tracked by the Highwood Distillers booth. I have come to know the local rep, Allan Owen, quite well, and so I had to mosey over to greet him. While I was busy gabbing and talking at the booth, Dennis and Lucas took the opportunity to sample some of Highwood’s Sweet Sippin’ Canadian Maple Whisky.

“You gotta try this, Chip,” was their consensus opinion.  Not one to argue unnecessarily with my friends,  I sampled the Sweet Sippin’ Maple Whisky and I was literally taken aback by the nice combination of maple and whisky flavours I encountered. The Maple Whisky (22 % alc/vol) had a gentle sweet maple flavour carried to the palate by a particularly smooth Canadian Rye Whisky.  In all it was quite nice!

So after the festival, I decided to do a little research as I wanted to know a little more about this particular flavoured Whisky which seemed to have a lot more depth and smoothness of flavour than I was expecting.  What I discovered was that Highwood’s Sweet Sippin’ Maple Whisky is the fusion of three ingredients, Highwood  Canadian Rye Whisky (a five-year old wheat based Canadian Whisky), 100% pure natural Amber Maple Syrup from Quebec, and pure natural spring water.  No additives are used in producing the Maple Whisky which probably accounts for the inviting flavour profile I encountered.

Now a full review based upon one tasting at a festival where I probably sampled at least 40 different spirits is pretty much impossible. Fortunately for me, Allan Owen contacted me shortly after the festival and asked if he could drop off a sample of the Sweet Sippin’ Canadian Maple Whisky (and the Highwood Canadian Rye Whisky) for me to review. Being the generous fellow that I am, I accepted his kind offer and will in the coming weeks review both the Sweet Sippin’ Canadian Maple Whisky and the Highwood Canadian Rye Whisky.  I look forward to sharing the results in the coming weeks, cheers!

Introducing: O2 Sparkling Vodka

I ran into a new style of Vodka at the Rocky Mountain Wine and Food Festival a few weeks back and I thought it would be fun to write about it here on my Blog,  Of course, since you read the title of this post, you know that I am talking about  O2 Premium Sparkling Vodka! (PS: In case you were wondering, they sent me copies of their website graphics to dress up my posting!)

O2 Premium Sparkling Vodka bills itself as the world’s first Premium Sparkling Vodka. When I sampled this spirit at the Wine and Food Festival I was actually quite smitten by what I encountered, hints of citrus, and those awesome tiny bubbles filling my mouth. Anyone who has read some of my reviews, and the cocktails which I like to construct for the various spirits I have sampled, realizes that I am a soda loving  person. A spirit that combines my love of soda bubbles with a light crisp taste really has my attention from the get go.

I should also mention that there is two different versions of the O2. The ‘regular’ O2 Premium Sparkling Vodka which arrives in a tall frosted white bottle (which is not regular at all). And the 945 Super Premium Sparkling Vodka which arrives in a tall frosted black bottle. Both versions carry nice light citrus notes and those wonderful champagne-like bubbles to the palate. The 945 Super Premium Vodka also carries hints of floral tones and mild grain in the flavour profile.

Unfortunately, I have only had that one sampling experience with O2 which was at the aforementioned Rocky Mountain Wine and Food Festival. I remember thinking as I was sampling, of how those little bubbles would improve the mouth feel of some of my favourite cocktails. Think about it, a Screwdriver or a Cosmopolitan full of nice bubbly goodness. So… to make a long story short, I contacted the importer of O2, Premium Imports, to see about getting a sample to review on my blog.  Initial indications are positive, so in a few weeks time I hope to be providing everyone with a full review to kick off my new Vodka Review Section.

Things seem to be looking up for the Rum Howler!  Cheers Everyone!

The 2010 Rocky Mountain Wine and Food Festival

Rum Runners Imports shows off their Hispaniola Mamajuana and the Doorly's XO

This year I was back at the Rocky Mountain Food and Wine Festival checking it out with a few of my good friends from the rum club. This was a two-day event  held at the Shaw Conference Centre on November 4 and 5th.  I took in both days and enjoyed myself thoroughly.  (I really do recommend that everyone who is in the Edmonton area make an effort to go to this festival next year as it is a blast.)

One of the big hits of the show was the Juana Berry Tea made with Hispaniola Mamajuana.  A nonstop lineup was created at the Rum Runner Imports booth as their specialty cocktail seemed to be hitting all the right spots for all who stopped by.  In fact, I thought I might share the recipe here:

Juana Berry Tea

1 oz Hispaniola Mamajuana
1 oz Sourpuss Raspberry
2 oz Cranberry Juice
2 oz Iced tea

Stir and garnish with a lemon twist.

For those who do not know, Hispaniola Mamajuana is a Dominican rum beverage which is reported to have beneficial effect for the libido. (Perhaps that is why the cocktail was so popular at the show.)

Crystal head Vodka

Perhaps the most unusual product presentation at the show was the Crystal Head Vodka.  A vodka bottle, shaped like a Crystal Skull, complete with two skull cups to serve it in.  The pleasant woman in the Crystal Head booth went to great lengths explaining how the vodka is filtered a real diamond filter and uses the freshest water in the world, but I’ll be honest, they had my attention with the crystal skull and the two glasses.

I was amazed at the sheer numbers of Vodka booths I  encountered. There was O2 the World’s first ever Sparkling Vodka, which I sampled (and enjoyed).  A Ukrainian Vodka called Nemiroff had a delightful slightly rough and tumble flavour which I thought would be ideal for shots.  There was also a dizzying array of Nemiroff flavoured Vodka’s and my Rum Chum, Dennis, was enchanted by their Cranberry Vodka.

But I want to get back to the Rum for a minute.  At Paul Charabin’s Booth (Paul is the importer of Diplomatico Rum), he was sharing samples of the new Dictador. Paul also informed me that Dictador is not the only new product of his to hit the shelves here in Alberta.  Hacienda Saruro is about to be launched. Hacienda Saruro is a brand new luxury dessert rum from Diplomatico and based upon a small sample I had back in January, I am excited that this rum is finally here..

Of course the show featured a few other rums which have entered the Albertan market in the last six months.  The Beam Global table was serving up Moscow Mules (Vodka, Ginger  Beer and Lime) with their Russian Standard Vodka, but I (being the Rum Howler after all) could not help but ask for a Dominican Mule to be made with their brand new Brugal Rum. Then I had a nice long chat with the Beam Global Brand Ambassador, J. Leslie Wheelock.  He confirmed for me that Beam is planning to continue to expand the lineup of Cruzan Rums in the Alberta market, and according to Simon Mooney (Beam Ambassador), a new 30-year-old rye whisky from Alberta Distillers is on the horizon.

Other new rums I encountered news of at the show (these will be new to Alberta at least) were the Castillo Spiced Rum, the Mount Gay Silver Eclipse in the brand new Bottle (awesome with tonic water), the Kilo Kai Spiced Rum and the St Nicholas Abbey Plantation.

Vintage Scotch from 1966 and 1968

And I haven’t even got to the Whisky! The show was full of tables of great whisky.  The Tullibardine Brand Ambassador James Robertson, (See my Interview with James Robertson) brought in some extra special bottles, the 1968, and the 1966 Tullibadine.  The 1966 bottle was scored in Jim Murray’s Whisky Bible at 94 points, and I believe it is only available here in Alberta.  James gave me a small sample of a new a 1987 Vintage Single Cask Bottling of Tullibardine Single Malt Scotch which tasted just awesome. It is a bottling from a single sherry cask brought into Alberta by Andrew Dunn of Gold Medal Marketing Inc.

I received news of a new 12-year-old Single Malt from Diageo, The Singleton of Glendullan, (an awesome malt based upon my sample). Then I learned that Forty Creek Confederation Oak Reserve will soon arrive in my Province.  As for bourbon, the Jefferson Reserve shocked me with its wonderful flavour goodness, and I also tried some wonderful Maple Whisky from the guys at Highwood.

Anyway the show, as I stated above, was an absolute blast and it would be impossible for me to list all of the booths I was treated well at, or all of the spirits which I learned were being brought into my market.

Truly, if you are an aficionado of quality spirits, Alberta is a great place to be!