Curiosity Cabinet #11 - Tiramisu Liqueur

There are plenty of Italian liqueurs available, from from the nuts and bean of Amaretto or coffee liqueurs to the fruit notes of Maraschino and Limoncello, and more besides. This being the Curiosity Cabinet, however, no normal cherry or almond fare would do and so instead we shall focus on a slightly more unusual example: Tiramisu Liqueur.

Tiramisu is an Italian dessert consisting of coffee and alcohol-soaked sponge fingers that are topped with egg white, mascarpone and cocoa. I had expected this to be an ancient Italian treat, but, although accounts vary, most place it as having between been created 30–40 years ago.

The Tiramisu Liqueur is made in Verona, Italy by G.M. Sommacampagna (VR) Italy and combines the flavours of almonds, cocoa, coffee and various herbs and spices. It is bottled at 24% ABV.

On its own
Nose: Coffee with hints of brandy and vanilla.
Taste: Quite smooth to start, followed by notes of coffee, cream and vanilla; this reminds me of the liquid that Tiramisu sponge is typically soaked in. There are also some chocolatey notes toward the end, making this very much a dessert liqueur that tastes a good deal like Tiramisu.

Floating Tiramisu
[50ml Tiramisu Liqueur, 1tbsp Ice-cream, Top up with soda]
This drink reminds me of a cross between a coffee float and a chocolate soda: it’s very frothy and a bit like an adult milkshake. Good flavour of tiramisu on the finish.

White Italian
[20ml Vodka, 20ml Tiramisu Liqueur, 20ml Semi-skimmed milk]
This is very nice. What can I say? The extra milk transforms this drink into a liquid Tiramisu cake/dessert. The vodka adds some strength, but also reduces the sweetness nicely, making an all-round rather lovely drink: chocolate, coffee and vanilla. Yum!

In Conclusion
The Tiramisu Liqueur is well made, very tasty and I think has applications for both sweet cocktails and puddings (drizzle over ice-cream, etc.). I would also be interested to try it as part of an actual Tiramisu - I suspect that it would either be magnificent or only so-so.

Curiosity Cabinet #9 - Bol's Silver Strike

Most people who have ever been to a night club or teenage/student party will probably have come across Goldschlager (a cinnamon liqueur containing floating, gold flakes) and will probably have found the some plonker who is wielding it, trying to impress people and saying that the gold flakes are there to cut the inside of your mouth/throat so that the alcohol is more quickly absorbed. This is, obviously, rubbish.

Rather, the gold flakes are a reflection of the once widely-held belief that gold has healing properties; as such, it was included for medicinal reasons just like alcohol before its wider recreational use.

The concept of adding gold goes back to Eastern Europe, where products such as danzig goldwasser* and silverwasser were produced. Some of these were sweetened schnapps, but, more often, they were much dryer and more closely resembled vodkas. Sadly, these days, most goldwassers go down the liqueur route and are not at all like dry vodka.

Silverwasser is essentially the same deal, but - yes, you've guessed it - containing silver flakes instead of gold ones. These days, silverwassers (of either the vodka or liqueur varieties) are hard to come by in the UK and all I could find was Silver Star, a product by Bols.

In addition to the historical use of gold and silver flakes, I did notice BlueNun have just brought out a sparkling wine with gold flakes.

1) Own
The silver flakes settle to the bottom and look interesting, but how will they effect the taste? This had a smooth and full texture, was quite sweet and had a strong flavour of  confectionery cinnamon, like a Danish pastry, cinnabon or BIG RED chewing gum; a flavour that I believe Americans describe as "Red Cinnamon". The silver is almost imperceivable in terms of both taste and texture.

2) The Prospector
[Layer 40ml of Rye Whisky on top of 15ml of Bols Silver Strike]

This is the sort of drink that you could imagine was served in a saloon in Silver City; if you can't find silver in the hills, then maybe you can find it at the bottom of your glass!

The whisky is smooth and light and so went well with the cinnamon, without giving it too much burn. Definitely something of a novelty, however.

3) Buffalo Bill
[50ml Buffalo Trace, 10ml Silver Strike, 15ml Red Vermouth - STIR]

This Manhattan-variation is a tribute, not to the dog-toting kidnapper from "Silence of the Lambs", but rather the sharp-shooting showman of the 19th Century.

This Manhattan was stirred** and tastes just like a Manhattan only with a cinnamon kick, making it a touch more warming. The sweet balance is actually quite good and this has a nice, autumnal feel.

In Conclusion

Silver Strike liqueur certainly has its place in cocktails and, whilst I shall politely refrain from labelling the silver flakes as a gimmick, their effect is almost entirely visual and needs to be considered when mixing. I also suggest shaking the bottle before pouring, as the flakes have a tendency to settle.

Bols Silver Strike is available for around £16.25 for 50cl from The Whisky Exchange.

* Not be confused with the brand "Gold Wasser", which is just one variety of the liqueur.
** I stirred this drink, not for some pretentious stuffiness about the horrors of shaken Manhattans, but rather because it's easier to see the silver specks in a transparent drink. I think that if you like your Manhattan shaken, then drink it shaken (and the same goes for Martinis) and don't let any self-appointed expert tell you that you should have it otherwise!

Curiosity Cabinet #8—Scotsmac

For this Curiosity Cabinet I shall look at something that truly is curious, it's called Scotsmac. It's not so curious because of the taste but more because of what it says it is and what it looks like it is.

Scotsmac is described as a blend of Mature British Wine and Fine Whiskey but the label certainly suggest something else, here is an annotated version.

So there is lots pointing to this being Scottish and it could be a blend of British Wine and Scotch Whisky (as the label would seem to imply)—but as the word "whiskey" on the label contains an "e" it can't have anything to do with it, as all Scotch Whisky is spelt without an "e".*

Scotsmac is bottled at 15%ABV. What does it taste like?

Despite my ranting about the label I don't think Scotsmac tastes too bad. It's a bit syrupy, but vanilla oaky elements come through as does a honey/maple-syrup quality, almost as if you should pour it over ice cream. Like a whisky, I prefer it at room temperature, as I find adding ice makes it a bit bitter.

If you approach this as a whisk(e)y of any form you will be disappointed but if you look at it as a whisky liqueur you may be pleasantly surprised and at under £5 for 70cl it's not bad value either.

* In addition to Scotch, it also seems that Japanese, Indian, Swedish, South African, Australian, New Zealand, French, English, Welsh, Canadian and Dutch whisky is all spelt without the "e", whereas American and Irish whiskey include the "e".

Curiosity Cabinet #4 Shannon's Irish Coffee

So I was on a supply run for ingredients to make some more Old Tom Gin & Mincemeat Vodka when I came across a small package of what I initially thought were just two toddy glasses, I was half right. They were toddy glasses but they had been pre-filled with Irish Coffee.

For any vintage nostalgics the box is a treat, picture of 1940s flying boats, old maps a flying cap and gloves all accented by gold and browns. This is not too surprising as, according to the box, this sort of Irish Coffee was served on the 1940's flying boats on the river Shannon.

The box suggests the first Irish Coffee came about:

One night in 1942 when bad weather forced a transatlantic flying boat to turn back to its base. As coffee was served to the bedraggled passengers, a drop of Irish Whiskey was added to their cups.

A surprised American asked "is this Brazilian coffee?" "No" came the reply, "That's Irish Coffee."

Cocktail historians may notice there is no mention of Joseph Sheridan of Foynes one of the suggested creators.

Back to the drink itself, as I said the glasses already contain the separate cream and coffee whiskey and have a foil top. To make the drink hot you pierce the top of the foil and microwave it for 45 seconds.

Hold on! Surely they know you shouldn't put metal in the microwave? Apparently not.

If you do buy this product I strongly urge you to remove the foil and not risk damaging your microwave, try some microwavable cling-film instead.

So avoiding sparking appliances, I had a drink that was as black as Guinness on the bottom with a half inch of light as Bailey's-coloured liquid on the top. (Actually it looked a bit more like evaporated milk.)

As soon as my mouth touch the top of the drink I expected the cream layer to dissipate leaving a curdle-looking mess, but I was wrong, up until the last sip the separation between cream and coffee was maintained. It was quite to pleasant to sip the coffee mixture through the cream as it added a touch of richness. On reflection the drink tasted better than I thought, it was actually quite nice. The problem was that due to it's extreme richness it was difficult to finish, after each sip you felt you probably drawn a bit too much from the glass.

In conclusion, I must admire Shannon's for the technical work in maintain the separation of the light cream and the dark coffee but I must question the wisdom of putting foil in the microwave.

But if you are in the market for two pretty neat toddy glasses, this is quite a nice way to get them.

#3 The Christmas Curiosity Cabinet

#3 The Christmas Curiosity Cabinet

You've finally finished the delayed Christmas Dinner, watched Her Majesty addressing the nation and, as you're cosy and rather full, it's time for a little afternoon tipple before the inevitable turkey sandwiches for supper.

What to drink? Sherry? Port? An Old Fashioned or perhaps an Evans Gin & Tonic? All good options, but what about those beverages that only seem to rear their heads during the festive season; Snowballs, Cherry B and the iconic Babycham? Here is an introduction to these classics so that you can make a suitably informed decision on your holiday beverages.

Babycham (6.0%ABV)

A sparkling champagne perry made in Shepton Mallet under the label of the cider company Gaymers. It was created in 1953 and, by the look of the packaging, it hasn't ever changed. Doing a little digging on the Waitrose website, it seems that Babysham was the first alcoholic beverage to be adevrtised on UK TV and was seen by some as representing a form of feminisim from the fifties in the male-dominated UK pubs of the time. Apparently the "cham" in Babycham comes from their logo, which shows a Chamois (a goat-antelope).

Babycham is a golden colour and not too fizzy; it has a slight smell of pears, mixed with a light maltiness. The initial taste is of perry: basic, but okay. The taste doesn't last too long and is a bit flat. One of its most notable characteristics was a finish which is reminiscent of corn savoury snacks, such as Wotsits.

French 7.5mm*
1 lump of sugar, 3-4 drops Orange Bitters
Juice 1/4 lemon, 15-20ml Gin
Babycham
Add the Orange Bitters to the suagr cube in the bottom of a Champagne Flute.
Add enough gin to cover the sugar cube, add lemon juice, give a little swirl and
top up with Babycham.

In case you haven't guessed, this is a tongue-in-cheek "baby" version of the French 75 (supposedly named after the 75mm artillery piece).

Cherry B. (11.5% ABV)

Served in small, crown-capped bottles, Cherry B is a cherry wine that is best served on ice or with lemonade. As with the other two drinks, this brand is managed by Constellation Europe, a Guildford-based drinks company. Further information on this is thin on the ground.

Cherry B tastes a bit like cherry pie filling. It looks dark and could easily be mistaken for port. On reflection, this tastes predominently of wine and not of cherries. It tastes like it should be more syrupy or sticky then it actually is, which is a good thing. Unfortunately, it has a metallic aftertaste, which easily counteracts any inital pleasant flavours.

Snowball (3.5% ABV)

This a premixed version of the advocat, lime and lemonade cocktail and was made by Goldwell until 1989. It is now made in Shepton Mallet under Constellation Europe (just like Babycham).
The vintage mascot of Goldwell's drink, Susie Snowball, suggests that it "gives you that oooh! feeling", but, judging by the reaction of a friend who tried it yesterday, I would say that it gave him more of an eeew! feeling.

For the record, despite the above, I quite like Snowballs and they are the firm favourite of dear Mumsie and have been for decades. So, on to the taste:

For me, this was unquestionably the best of the bunch. Visually, it reminded me of a light custard or lemon curd. It tastes very sweet and a touch sickly; after the initial sweet creaminess, you feel the bubbles of the lemonade, followed by some citrus notes. I'd like to do a compariosn with this and a freshly mixed snowball. For interest alone, this is recommended.

All three are available from Asda (Babycham is also available here in 70cl) and they cost about £3 for a pack of four.
Tescos sell Babycham and Snowballs for a similar price.

Curiosity Cabinet #4 - Shannon's Irish Coffee

So I was on a supply run for ingredients to make some more Old Tom Gin & Mincemeat Vodka when I came across a small package of what I initially thought were just two toddy glasses, I was half right. They were toddy glasses but they had been pre-filled with Irish Coffee.

For any vintage nostalgics the box is a treat, picture of 1940s flying boats, old maps a flying cap and gloves all accented by gold and browns. This is not too surprising as, according to the box, this sort of Irish Coffee was served on the 1940's flying boats on the river Shannon.

The box suggests the first Irish Coffee came about:

One night in 1942 when bad weather forced a transatlantic flying boat to turn back to its base. As coffee was served to the bedraggled passengers, a drop of Irish Whiskey was added to their cups.

A surprised American asked "is this Brazilian coffee?" "No" came the reply, "That's Irish Coffee."

Cocktail historians may notice there is no mention of Joseph Sheridan of Foynes one of the suggested creators.

Back to the drink itself, as I said the glasses already contain the separate cream and coffee whiskey and have a foil top. To make the drink hot you pierce the top of the foil and microwave it for 45 seconds.

Hold on! Surely they know you shouldn't put metal in the microwave? Apparently not.

If you do buy this product I strongly urge you to remove the foil and not risk damaging your microwave, try some microwavable cling-film instead.

So avoiding sparking appliances, I had a drink that was as black as Guinness on the bottom with a half inch of light as Bailey's-coloured liquid on the top. (Actually it looked a bit more like evaporated milk.)

As soon as my mouth touch the top of the drink I expected the cream layer to dissipate leaving a curdle-looking mess, but I was wrong, up until the last sip the separation between cream and coffee was maintained. It was quite to pleasant to sip the coffee mixture through the cream as it added a touch of richness. On reflection the drink tasted better than I thought, it was actually quite nice. The problem was that due to it's extreme richness it was difficult to finish, after each sip you felt you probably drawn a bit too much from the glass.

In conclusion, I must admire Shannon's for the technical work in maintain the separation of the light cream and the dark coffee but I must question the wisdom of putting foil in the microwave.

But if you are in the market for two pretty neat toddy glasses, this is quite a nice way to get them.

Curiosity Cabinet #2 – Perigan's Cannabis Gin

The Curiosity Cabinet #2

Perigan's Cannabis Gin (37.5%)

OK, OK, calm down: I know that it's a crazy idea, but there is such a thing as a Cannabis Gin and this is the feature of the second Curiosity Cabinet.

Made by Beveland Distillers of Spain, the label makes no bones about what it contains, with the word "cannabis" featured at least four times on the front label, not to mention what appears to be a cannabis leaf dominating the front.

Sharp-eyed readers will note the attempt to add a touch of regality to the product by adding a coat of arms (possibly from clip art), and the border of juniper berries (no doubt to help to remind you that,"Yes, this really is meant to be a gin.").

A quick scout around online shows that Beveland have also made a Cannabis Vodka, a Cannabis Absinthe and a non-cannabis Perigan's Gin.

So is hemp one of the botanicals? No (I'm not sure how well it would work, actually). The gin is cannabis flavoured and I imagine the fluorescent mouthwash-green colour is also introduced during the flavouring process.

The Taste

Neat: The nose is overwhelmingly one of cinnamon. In terms of taste, cinnamon is again at the foreground, with a little juniper at the end. This is not a juniper-led gin.

Gin & Tonic: What's this, another taste of Christmas? Truly, this is the first Gin & Tonic that I have had that tastes of cinnamon. Beyond this, there was a little citrus. (Mrs. B seemed to quite like it though!) A poor example of a G&T, but not a bad drink.

Martini: The drink keeps Perigan's trademark spearmint green colour, but its trademark flavour (no, not cannabis; cinnamon) remains. A very flat Martini.

All-in-all, it seems:

(A) Perigan's doesn't taste of cannabis, and

(B) it doesn't make very good drinks. But, really, what did I expect?

Perigan's Cannabis Flavoured Gin is bottled at 37.5% ABV and Beveland stress that their product was marketed in accordance with the law. However, The Portland Group (a responsible drinking watchdog) investigated the brand after receiving a complaint from a publican in Bristol stating:

"This product is surely in clear breach of the code with, I feel, irresponsible and obvious illegal drug references"

The complaint was upheld and the importers (Ultimate Brands) decided to stop importing the product. I emphasise, though, that the contents of the gin was not in breech of the law.

As a result, it looks like it may be rather difficult to get your hands on some of this in the UK these days. The remainder of mine has been entrusted to the vaults of Plymouth Gin, where it now rests on their Gin Wall.

Curiosity Cabinet #1

A Drink To Get Your Teeth Into

Early fans of The Institute for Alcoholic Experimentation (IAE) may be aware of Mr. Hartley's glass of bacon liqueur to celebrate the founding of our great institution.

Well, I don't have any bacon liqueur, but after someone mistook my mincemeat vodka for beef mince vodka, I started to think of drinks with a little more meat to them.

I started with some bacon, which I fried until crispy. Originally I was just going to use the fat from the pan (the "fat wash method"), but as this seemed rather measly, I didn't think I would have a leg to stand of in terms of giving the vodka any flavour; so, instead, I decided to beef it up a little by adding the crispy bacon, thus the flavouring was a joint effort between the two.

After leaving the meat and vodka to marinate for a while, I gave it a little taste (I didn't want to be called a chicken); it still had some of the fat in it and so wasn't very good.

After a further 6 hours of steeping, the bacon was thoroughly basted by the vodka and so I threw the former out and began to strain the spirit. Amazingly, the liquid began to clear until it resembled apple juice and, for the first time, I thought my experiment might not just be a turkey.

The last 10% of the spirit didn't make it to the final product (I only took the finest cuts), as it was mostly heavy sediment.

As regards the taste, the biggest problem with this seemed to be psychological; meaty alcohol is a bit odd and may turn the stomach of the hardiest. In fact, Mrs. B said it rather slaughtered her taste buds and, when asked if it had any redeeming qualities, not a sausage; not exactly high praise. Although it looks nice, it is merely mutton dressed as lamb.

I did have fun coming up with a cocktail though: the Bacon Sarnie, which consisted of a layer of tomato ketchup, followed by the bacon vodka and garnished with a triangle of lightly toasted bread. This wasn't too bad, but did butcher the Martini.*

I think more experimentation is definitely needed to wrestle with the gristle of meaty drinks, but I would say there is a reasonable steak that something tasty may emerge. Reducing the saltiness of the vodka would be a good start; next stop, the Full English Breakfast Cocktail.

* This wasn't really a Martini, it was just served in a Martini glass.