I’m going to start out by saying that there is no other whiskey on the market that compares to Leopold Bros. Three Chamber Rye Whiskey. There’s an excellent short documentary about it on Youtube, which […]
Author: Jim Bethune
Coffee-Flavored Booze – Allen’s & Rhine Hall Compared
There are plenty of different ways to get that coffee flavor in a cocktail. There’s cold brew, which is a way to impart a concentrated coffee kick (as in one of my faves, Lost Lake’s […]
Pineapple Juices Face Off: Dole, Trader Joe’s, and… Trader Joe’s
Pineapples are one of those things I really, really don’t want to juice myself. It’s not a “cut in half and squeeze” type fruit – it’s a whole operation. At minimum you need to cut […]
Review: Havana Club Selección de Maestros (2018 Limited Release)
Havana Club is the “big” Cuban rum brand, so that’s where I wanted to start with my journey to try some Cuban rums. Havana Club was originally produced by the Arechbala family in Cuba, but […]
Review: Ron Santiago de Cuba Carta Blanca
In my quest to see what cocktails were like back in the early days of tropical cocktails (“tiki” cocktails), I recently obtained some Cuban rums. One of these was the Ron Santiago de Cuba Carta […]
Review: Samaroli 2002 Demerara Rum
When Lost Lake reopened for pickup after being closed for months due to coronavirus, I biked up there at my first opportunity. While I was ordering a few cocktails to bring home, I noticed a […]
Review: Bacardi 1909 Limited Edition Heritage Pack
This one required a bit of digging to find. I recently sampled the Bacardi 1909 Limited Edition Heritage Pack. This was a rum released a few years back to celebrate the fact that 2012 was […]
Ginger Beer Review and Comparison
Mixers in a cocktail have just as much impact on the end result as the spirits, but reviews and comparisons are a bit less celebrated online. Given that, I thought it would be worthwhile to […]
Recipe: Navy Grog (Donn Beach version)
I was in the mood for a Navy Grog on Friday, since I haven’t done proper tiki drinks in a while. The Navy Grog is pretty typical of tiki drink flavor profile, with a mix […]
Review: Samaroli Caribbean Rum
I originally had the Samaroli Caribbean Rum rum when I was in San Diego for Tiki Oasis in 2019. I went to False Idol the night before to sit alone at the bar and read […]
The Hooch Herald 