Tag Archive for: Whisky Cocktail

Whisky Butler Special November Box

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November has come around, and the jingle bells are getting louder as we approach the end of the year. With December and Christmas just one month away, there is no better reason than the festive seasons to wind down and take a well-deserved break.  We have found a great way to wind down – sampling alcohol from Whisky Butler’s monthly box!

The box in November is a special one because it showcases three of the most exceptional whiskies from America and one barrel-aged whisky cocktail! Well, that’s special, isn’t it? Do you remember our experiment from Manhattan Bar? We have shared information about the La Louisiana cocktail and the Sazerac Rye in our weekly updates, and now it has turned fruitful. All Whisky Butler’s members are going to taste it from the November box!

Here are some interesting facts of the four drams that members will get to taste.

  1. Port-washed Sazerac Rye 6-year-old
    The port-washed Sazerac Rye is the highly anticipated whisky in this box because it is part of our experiment with Manhattan Bar. The Sazerac Rye has been placed into a port-laced barrel to age for almost a month before bottling. We have followed the changes of the rye from six days, thirteen days and nineteen days. The changes had been incredible. The finished product is fantastic!
  2. Michter’s 10-year-old Bourbon
    The Michter’s 10-year-old Bourbon has got a complicated history, and that appears to translate to its bourbon. The distillery has made many firsts, including promoting a lady – Pam Heilmann – to be their Master Distiller. That marks the first lady to serve as a Master Distiller in a Kentucky Distiller Association since prohibition. This bourbon is a balanced, caramel liquid that soothes rather than excites. The well-coordinated nose, palate and finish mean that you could probably drink this all day long.
  3. High West Campfire
    High West Campfire is a unique whisky because it is a blend of peated blended Scotch, straight bourbon and straight rye. Inspired by a visit to Bruichladdie distillery, High West founders, David and Jane Perkins decided to create a blend of whisky that transpires both geographic and stylistic borders. The final formula has produced a whisky that is perfect for a campfire, or perhaps a road trip to nowhere.
  4. La Louisiana Cocktail (High West OMG Pure White Rye Blend)
    The last one is the exceptional whisky cocktail that is exclusive to Manhattan Bar. The whisky in this expression is the High West OMG Pure White Rye. What is unique about this cocktail is the marrying of the various spirits in a fresh American oak barrel instead of a shaken one. The barrel acted as a stability cask to blend the spirits and neutralised the jagging notes of each spirit. The outcome is a thick, chewy and sweet cocktail that is pleasing to almost every palate.

Such offerings do not come often, and what’s more with such exotic whiskies to try! As WhiskyGeeks are part of the experiment for the November box, we are extending an invitation to all WhiskyGeeks’ members to sign up for the Whisky Butler’s membership. The first five members to sign up will also be invited to an exclusive pilot tasting session at the Manhattan Bar.

What are you waiting for? Send your contact details to WhiskyGeeks at slainte@whiskygeeks.sg or PM us via Facebook, and we will link you up with Whisky Butler for the membership application!

 

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    What’s brewing at Manhatten Bar? Find out here!

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    We have been telling everyone that something is brewing at Manhatten Bar for a few days now and we are sure many of you are curious about our experiment! Well, let us reveal what’s brewing today!

    Whisky Butler embarked on an exciting journey with Manhatten Bar recently to find out how the profile of whisky changes when matured whisky is put back into a cask for an enhanced finish. WhiskyGeeks goes along for the ride as we know that something amazing is going to come out of this experiment!

    We discovered that there are 2 different experiments as of now. First, there is the Sazerac whisky, an American Rye whisky that is perfect for making the first American Cocktail – Sazerac Cocktail! Instead of making a cocktail, Manhatten Bar put this in a cask that held port wine for a week! Next, we have an interesting combination of Highwest OMG Pure Rye Whisky, DOM Benedictine and Mancino Rosso Vermouth that was married in a cask. As it is not pure whisky, the Manhatten Bar has named it La Louisiane cocktail.

    How did they go? Let’s find out!

    Sazerac Rye Whisky

    Before we go into details about the whisky, let us share a little more about the cask.

    The Cask

    The cask is a fresh American oak that was soaked with a 10-year-old port wine for a week to allow the port wine to penetrate and soak the wood properly. Next, the Sazerac rye whisky is poured into the cask and will sit inside for 4 weeks. The cask has a volume of 13.3 litres and is specially made for Manhatten Bar in a small cooperage located in Minnesota, USA.

    The whisky after 6 days

    WhiskyGeeks get to try the whisky after it was in the cask for 6 days. In comparison to the original rye whisky, we discovered subtle changes! The rye whisky was sweet in nature with some acetone on the nose. It has an oily mouthfeel, maple syrup/caramel palate and is slightly spicy. After 6 days, the nose became sweeter, with sherry influence that converts into caramel and takes on a slight wood spice. The palate is more pronounced with the changes. Sherry influence is strong and reduces the original spice to nothing. It becomes herbaceous and slightly grassy instead.

    What to Expect

    The whisky will stay in the cask for 4 weeks and after that, it will be bottled for Whisky Butler. We will update our members every week on the progress and how the whisky has changed. The whole idea behind this experiment is to find out how a new cask finish can affect a whisky that has already been bottled. This should give everyone some idea of what they can do with their own whisky!

    La Louisiane Cocktail

    What about this amazing cocktail? Let’s explore!

    The Cask

    The cask is a fresh American oak cask of 13.3 litres, charred to #3. That means that the cask can give the liquid put into it a great amount of sweetness in layman terms. It is also made from the same cooperage in Minnesota, USA. This cask is not infused with any liquid before the cocktail is poured into it.

    The cocktail right after mixing

    The cocktail is amazing. The nose is full of cane sugar and sweet vermouth, and the palate reflects the same. It almost tasted like a whisky sour, but the different spirits are not yet fully married. The different characteristics of the 3 alcohols came out individually and are not blended with one another. The sweetness can be overwhelming for some as both the rye whisky and the Mancino Rosso Vermouth are sweet.

    The cocktail after 3 weeks and 6 days

    At this stage, the cocktail takes on deep sherry notes that blends extremely well with the strong cane sugar on the nose. Nonetheless, the sweet vermouth is still evident. The palate is amazing though. The 3 alcohols have blended well together and now the cane sugar mixed beautifully with the vermouth on the tongue. There is no spice at all and the finish is short and refreshing. The overall cocktail is also less sweet.

    The cocktail after 4 weeks and a day

    Ahh…the perfect balance of the cocktail finally surfaced. The nose boasts of a balanced sweetness between sherry and cane sugar. It creates a sweet nose that is not overwhelming anymore. The palate does not change much from the 3 weeks and 6 days version. The only difference is the vermouth giving out some sourish taste that makes the cocktail less sweet. It becomes more like a whisky sour but much more balanced in its flavours.

    The La Louisiane cocktail is a completed product but we feel it can be enhanced further with some bitters. We tried it and it tasted even better. We encourage our members to take a trip down to Manhatten Bar to try this cocktail with some bitters! It is amazing!

    What to expect in the next few weeks

    WhiskyGeeks will continue the coverage of this experiment in the next week and our focus will be on the Sazerac whisky’s progress. There may be other whiskies but we are kept in the dark as well. We love the suspense and the surprise! We may try to arrange for a tasting session at Manhatten Bar further down the road. Let us speak with Whisky Butler and Manhatten Bar and see what we can do to arrange a session for our members. Stay tuned for more!

     

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