Peachtree

“DeKuyper Peach Schnapps Liqueur, A classic. This liqueur is bursting with the taste of tree-ripe peaches and makes a mean cocktail.”

The Peachtree mini (50 ml) comes in an ordinary, amber plastic bottle. Cracking it open reveals an amazing peach fragrance and I swear I can even smell the peach fuzz! Nice! And the first sip reveals – wow! I think I can taste the peach fuzz! Which is weird because nobody likes to taste actual peach fuzz… Hmmm… Anyway, I digress. I could drink this stuff straight quit easily, oh yes. Peachy keen, I love it! Are all Schnapps this good? Why haven’t I tried these before?

Apparently it’s a keeper…

Pouring it over ice in my rocks glass shows it to be a clear liquid. I pour in about as much orange juice as there is Peachtree and stir with my yellow “Stolen From Joe’s Crab Shack” crab opener thingy and viola! This stuff is delicious, hallelujah! Oh boy, I could drink a lot of this far too easily… Let’s go find some recipes!

Peachy Burbon Bellini

• 1 part Jim Beam® Bourbon
• 1/2 part DeKuyper® Peachtree®Schnapps Liqueur
• 2 Dashes Peach Bitters
• Sparkling Wine (Serves 6)

HOW TO

1. Add ingredients to an ice-filled shaker.
2. Shake and strain into a flute.
3. Top with sparkling wine.
4. Garnish with a mint (optional)

SKILL LEVEL:

Beginner
Banana ‘Nana

• 1 1/2 Parts DeKuyper® Creme de Banana
• 1 Part DeKuyper® Peachtree®
• 5 Parts Pineapple Juice

HOW TO

1. Build over ice, stir gently, and serve.

SKILL LEVEL:

Beginner

Peachtree & Honey Slushie

• 2 cups White Wine
• 1/4 cup JDK & Sons™ O3 Premium Orange Liqueur
• 1/4 cup DeKuyper® Peachtree®Schnapps
• 2 tbsp. Orange juice
• 2 tbsp. Lime juice
• 2 tbsp. Honey
• 4 cups frozen peaches
• (Serves 6)

HOW TO

1. Pour all ingredients into a large blender and top with the frozen peaches.
2. Process in the blender until smooth.
3. Pour into mason jars or similar size glasses.
4. Garnish with orange or lime slices

SKILL LEVEL:

Intermediate
Ha, ha! I love that they put the skill level on their drinks! I wonder what goes into an expert drink… let me see if I can find one… Hmmm, they call them “Advanced” and it just seems to be more ingredients, not any special techniques to making the drinks. Meh, whatever.

This is Great Stuff, I can’t wait to try the other flavors! Now on to the nuts and bolts of it:

Bottle Esthetics: Amber plastic, very ordinary. A solid “Meh”.
Scent: A lovely peachy, super peachy scent. Mmmm…
Viscosity: Water thin.
Taste: Even better than it smells. Like a fresh peach.
Versatility: Extremely. Great on it’s own or in any mixed drink that would benefit from a peach flavor.
Alcohol Content: 15%
Overall Score: 10/10

Chambord

“All-Natural Raspberry Liqueur” “Because No Reason”

Oh Chambord, my Chambord… This one is my very favorite, the biggest reason I started trying alcohol at all after I became single – and this one I actually discovered while I was still married. In fact, I may or may not, have a small Chambord problem, mmmm….

Oh, and by the way, a Chambord bottle has the perfect size neck to put dimes into, ahem…

The Chambord mini (50 ml) comes in a super-cute, round glass bottle with a gold label around the middle proudly displaying “CHAMBORD” in elegant lettering. Cracking the lid – which in the full-size bottle is a lovely golden cap with a very pretty raspberry jewel-toned design – immediately releases a very pleasant fragrance of raspberries.

I pour enough into my rocks glass to cover the giant ice ball and I take a sip. Oh my, that’s the stuff right there. Fruity, not too sweet, not too much alcohol taste. Aaahhhh…

My best friend Nikki taught me something about the Chambord – which I turned her on to shortly after I discovered it – Chambord has legs! I didn’t know drinks could have legs, apparently it’s more of a wine thing but Chambord has it too, woo woo! From the moment I first tasted it I knew I could drink this by itself – I believe that’s called neat, look at me learning new terms! – and indeed, I have. It was probably most of three years before I even considered mixing it with another drink but once I did I found a few I really enjoy but I think my absolute favorite is… <drumroll please> Ruby Red Squirt! I pour enough in my glass to make a 50/50 mixture and stir it with a pair of scissors.

Oh sweet Jesus! You have no idea how happy this stuff makes me… give me a lifetime supply of Chambord and I would live blissfully ever after. Obviously it’s a keeper eh? And judging by all the empty bottles I have it’s a solid must-have. 😀

I went to the Chambord website to find cocktail recipes and so far they have the most fun alcohol website ever! Here’s a few drinks I’ll be trying in the near future:

HOW TO MAKE A FRENCH MARTINI

½ oz Chambord Liqueur
1½ oz vodka
2 oz pineapple juice
Raspberry or lemon twist to garnish
Handful of ice

Pour the Chambord, vodka and pineapple juice in a shaker.
Add ice and shake like a tambourine. Strain into martini glass.
Top with a raspberry. Or a lemon twist. As you like.

HOW TO MAKE A BLACK RASPBERRY MARGARITA

¾ oz Chambord Liqueur
1½ oz el Jimador Tequila
¾ oz pomegranate juice
½ oz lime juice
Raspberry and/or lime to garnish

Take a cocktail shaker filled with ice.
Pour in Chambord, tequila, pomegranate juice and lime juice.
Now shake, shimmy and strain into margarita or martini glass. Whatever takes your fancy. Add raspberry. Or lime. Or both, mon Cherie.

HOW TO MAKE A CHAMBORD MANHATTAN

½ oz Chambord Liqueur
1½ oz Woodford Reserve® Bourbon.
Dash of bitters
Maraschino cherry

Take a cocktail shaker filled with ice.
Pour in Chambord, bourbon and a dash of bitters.
Strain into a fancy glass. Top with a fancy cherry.
Voila, the Chambord is ready for the occasion.
Yuppers, those are on my list of things to try very, very soon. <sigh of contentment>But on to the technical details…

Bottle Esthetics: Glass, super cute. I have several on my windowsill… uuhhh, yeah…
Scent: Sweet, fruity.
Viscosity: Thin but not quite water thin.
Taste: Medium sweet raspberry fruit flavored.
Versatility: Probably not something you could put in absolutely everything but there’s only a few things I absolutely wouldn’t try it in at least once.
Alcohol Content: 16.5%
Overall Score: 10/10

UV Blue Raspberry Flavored Vodka

“UV Blue is naturally flavored with vine-ripened raspberries for just the perfect touch of sweetness.”

The UV Blue mini (50 ml) is a clear plastic bottle with a black label showcasing an almost electric blue liquid.  Oh my goodness!  This stuff smells like a snow cone, woo woo!  A sip doesn’t taste too bad either – I can taste the blue raspberry for sure.  A burning blue raspberry, lol, although the fire isn’t bad so either this isn’t as strong as some of the things I’ve tried or I’m getting used to it???  Hee, hee…

Pouring it over ice in my rocks glass – look at me being all technical, I know what a rocks glass is now, yay!  It’s actually very pretty.  It’s not bad straight but today I’m going to add orange juice, here goes…  watching the orange juice streak down to the bottom of the glass, winding it’s way through the ice reminds me of those sand pictures that you flip and the colored sand pours from the top to the bottom and makes fresh patterns every time.  Stirring the mixture with a popsicle stick creates the most vibrant, granny apple green color.  Huh, I’m beginning to understand the reluctance of that poor fellow in Green Eggs and Ham, ha, ha!  Skipping to the end of the book and trying it I find I actually really like it.  Raspberry orange juice with a little kick.  Nice!  I think this is another keeper.

Their website had some recipes that look fabulous:

Blue Frost

1 part UV Blue
1 part raspberry sherbet
1 part lemon-lime soda

Serve over ice in a lowball glass.
Berry White

1 part UV Blue
1 part creme de cacao
1 part triple sec
1 part lime juice

Shake with ice and strain into a martini glass.
Blue Velvet

2 parts UV Blue
2 parts pineapple juice
1 splash of grenadine

Serve over ice in a highball glass.
So this is a fun one, I’m enjoying it!  Here’s my funny little analysis list:

Bottle Esthetics:  Clear plastic bottle with a somewhat interesting label.  At the top of the “Meh” category.
Scent:  Sweet, exactly like a blue raspberry snow cone.
Viscosity:  Water thin.
Taste:  Blue raspberry and alcohol.
Versatility:  This would be good in a lot of things, any fruity cocktail or fruit juice.
Overall Score 9 out of 10.

Piehole Apple Pie

“Piehole Whiskies were inspired by our Grandma’s favorite pie recipes, served up in a delicious blend of Canadian whiskey and tempting pie flavored liqueurs.  So slice off a shot and share some with your friends – you may never want to eat pie with a fork again.”

Well then!  the Piehole Apple Pie mini (50 ml) bottle is clear plastic with a traditional, old-fashioned bottle shape with a light golden liquid inside.  Cracking the lid reveals a delightful apple pie fragrance, mostly apple and cinnamon.  A sip is quite pleasant tasting, like liquid apple pie!  Not too much whiskey, a perfect amount of apple and just enough cinnamon to change it from just an apple whiskey to drinkable pie.  Nice!  I could totally drink this straight but I had already poured myself a glass of half apple juice and half apple cider so in it goes and I stir it with a clean toothpick.

Really nice!  The alcohol flavor, which was not strong to begin with, is barely there now and the apple flavor completely melded with the apple juice, leaving a stronger cinnamon flavor.  Mmmm…

Their website shows three flavors, Apple Pie and Pecan Pie (which my liquor store carries minis of) and Cherry Pie.  Whaaaaa???  I want some Cherry Pie!  Huh.  I may have to track that one down…  Recipes as follows, although I think drinking it neat may be the way to go myself:

Aaaand… nope.  The recipes on their websites are not allowing me to copy and paste them so you don’t get any, you’ll just have to look them up for yourself.  But neat is definitely great.  Since I don’t actually love apple pie in it’s solid form it’s not a keeper for me but it is something to put on my list of things I would drink if offered to me.

The technical bits and pieces:

Bottle Esthetics:  Cute but plastic, the interesting label brings it just above the “Meh” level to a “Welll…”
Scent:  Just like apple pie!  Apples, cinnamon and somehow I even smell the pastry of the crust.  Quite lovely!
Viscosity:  Water thin.
Taste:  Again, just like apple pie – I taste apples and cinnamon but not necessarily the crust.  The whiskey flavor is less than the apple pie taste which makes me very interested in it.
Versatility:  Maybe a lot, maybe a little, I’d have to play around with it so I’m not completely sure right now.
Overall Score:  8 out of 10

 

Grand Marnier

“The Unexpected Blend of Cognac and Orange”

The Grand Marnier mini (50 ml) is a cute little amber bottle with a bell-shaped bottom and some graceful curves at the neck along with a red wax seal above the label.  It smells… warm.  Deep.  I really thought it would smell more like oranges, huh.  Pouring it into a glass reveals a golden liquid.  A sip, oh Lordy that’s strong, that burns alllll the way down.  A sip reveals, once the strength of the cognac has died away, that the orange is in the flavor, even if it’s not in the scent.  It’s a pleasant orange flavor, not too sweet, not too bitter.  But it’s so strong – people drink this straight?  Uff dah…  I guess it is 40% alcohol, I should probably start paying more attention to that number, lol.

Just a question, their website has a recipe for – wait for it – “Grand Marnier Neat” and Grand Marnier on the Rocks”.  Really?  An actual recipe with directions on how to make those?  lol.  Okie dokie, but here’s some of their other recipes and honestly, they’re super simple.   Basically just add the Grand Marnier to something else and add some form of lime or orange slices, these aren’t very original, just sayin’:

Grand Ginger

• 1 ⅓ OZ. GRAND MARNIER®
• 4 OZ. GINGER ALE
• A WEDGE OF LIME

IN A TALL GLASS, POUR GRAND MARNIER® OVER ICE CUBES THEN FILL WITH GINGER ALE. SQUEEZE A WEDGE OF LIME OVER THE GLASS AND THEN TOSS WEDGE INTO GLASS.
Grand Cran

• 1 OZ. GRAND MARNIER®
• 3 OZ. CHILLED CRANBERRY JUICE COCKTAIL
• 1 ½ OZ. FRESH LIME JUICE (HALF A LIME)

COMBINE INGREDIENTS IN A COCKTAIL SHAKER, ADD ICE AND SHAKE VIGOROUSLY. STRAIN INTO AN ICE-FILLED HIGHBALL GLASS. GARNISH WITH A LIME WEDGE. ALSO DELICIOUS BLENDED WITH ICE FOR A REFRESHING FROZEN COCKTAIL.
Grand French Coffee  (just out of curiosity, what makes this “French”????)

• 1 ½ OZ. GRAND MARNIER® (WARMED)
• 3 ½ OZ. HOT COFFEE
• WHIPPED CREAM

POUR GRAND MARNIER® AND COFFEE INTO A MUG AND TOP LIGHTLY WITH WHIPPED CREAM.
I have both ginger ale and Cranberry juice in the fridge.  I’m going to try ginger ale since I like that better, however I am shy on limes so I’m not quite making the “Grand Ginger” recipe…

I pour in slightly more ginger ale than Grand Marnier and stir it with what I think is some sort of weird, plastic avocado knife.  Unlike some of the other liqueurs I’ve sampled the alcohol flavor remains and the orange flavor is diminished this time.  Ugh…  Oh my, this may be the first of my blog drinks that I don’t actually finish.  Not. A. Fan.  Why would you ever put this in coffee?  I can see maybe hot cocoa but coffee?  Now to be fair I’m not really a coffee drinker anyway  but I have some really good foo foo coffees every now and again and the thought of putting this in coffee just makes me…  Ewww…

Well, since I can’t make it any worse I’m going to pour some cranberry juice in with the ginger ale and see if that helps.  Now I have a mixture that’s about 1/3 Grand Marnier, 1/3 ginger ale and 1/3 cranberry juice.  Another stir with the weird avocado knife thingy and… muuuuch better.  The cognac is now tolerable and the hint of orange flavor improves the cranberry juice.  A Lot.  The whole thing is also a pretty, burnt orange color in my glass.  I try a few more drinks and find it’s not completely unpleasant.  Okay.  So not a keeper but drinkable with enough other stuff in it.  I’m kind of sad I don’t like it more because there’s a Grand Marnier gift set at work with some really pretty shot glasses in it but no way do I want a full sized bottle of that for myself.

They do have a Raspberry Peach variation that the restaurant/liquor store I work at does not carry a mini for.  I’d like to try it but I have no wish to buy the full sized bottle for 50 some dollars, I’m not rich here, folks.  I’ll keep my eye out for a mini of that and see if maybe then can special order me one.

At any rate, here’s the technicalities on Grand Marnier:

Bottle Esthetics:  Really appealing bottle design.  I like it a lot and it will go on my windowsill.
Scent:  A deep, warm, alcohol smell.  Not much orange fragrance.
Viscosity:  Water thin with that hint of essential oiliness.
Taste:  Sharp, deep burning fire with an aftertaste of oranges, delightfully well balanced.
Versatile:  Apparently the makers think you can put it anything.  I think not so much.  Only somewhat versatile.
Overall Score:  4 out of 10

Hpnotiq

“A Refreshing Blend of Premium French Vodka, Exotic Fruit Juices and a touch of Cognac”

My friend Marie suggested I blog about this one next and she’s right, it’s a good choice!

The Hpnotiq mini (50 ml) is a robin’s egg blue liquid in a frosted bottle with a wide bottom that flutes up to a long, narrow neck with an attractive swirly design printed above the name.  It smells like a sweet, tart fruit that I feel like I should know the name of but can’t quite remember.  A sip proves I’m right, it tastes like lightly spiked fruit punch and I still can’t identify the fruit… frustrating.  But it’s so easy to drink it’s hard to believe that it’s 17% alcohol, it tastes like what my youngest daughter calls a “bitch beer”.

Their website doesn’t say what exotic fruit juices they use, I’m sure it’s a closely guarded secret, but I did get a few recipes from them:

Blue Breeze

• 2 OZ. HPNOTIQ
• 1 OZ. PREMIUM COCONUT RUM
• SPLASH OF PINEAPPLE JUICE

SERVE OVER ICE IN A ROCKS GLASS.
Berry Blue

• 2 OZ. HPNOTIQ
• 1 OZ. RAZZBERRY OR STRAWBERRY VODKA
• SPLASH OF LEMON-LIME SODA

POUR OVER ICE IN A ROCKS GLASS.
Peachy Keen

• 2 OZ. HPNOTIQ
• 1OZ. PEACH SCHNAPPS
• 1OZ. PREMIUM VODKA

SERVE OVER ICE IN A ROCKS GLASS AND GARNISH WITH LEMON TWIST.
So virtually every recipe says to add the Hpnotiq to a vodka or some other alcohol with very little mixers so I’m feeling like this is more of an alcoholic mixer that you put with harder liquors???  Hmmm…  Whatever, it’s really good on it’s own.

I think I’ll try it with some ginger ale.  I pour in not quite as much ginger ale as there is Hpnotiq and stir it with my finger.  That’s yummy!  The ginger ale makes it just a hair sweeter.  And now, just to mess with it a bit, I’m going to add a splash of cranberry juice.  Ooooh, well that’s fascinating…  The cranberry juice went from the top, where I poured it, to the bottom of the drink which gives it this pretty ombre color fading from cloudy white to a deep red.  More finger-stirring makes the drink a pale reddish pink again and adds just a hint of flavor to the drink.  Honestly, this is the kind of thing you could probably add any fruit flavored juice or alcohol to it and it would taste good.  This liqueur would be hard to ruin I think and that makes it a fool-proof, go-to party drink.

It’s not my favorite fruit flavor and it’s more tart than sweet so it’s probably not going to be one I keep for myself but I think it will be first on my list of things I grab when I need to bring alcohol to a party for sure!

The technical bits:

Bottle Esthetics:  Frosted glass, elegant design, bold letters… earns it the rating of “Attractive” and a place on my windowsill.
Scent:  Fun, fruity, tart.
Viscosity:  Water thin.
Taste:  Tart, fruity, not much alcohol flavor.
Versatility:  Very.  I think you could put just about anything i this and have a great drink.
Overall Score:  7 out of 10

A Mixed Drink! Marie Squared…

So tonight I changed it up a little bit.  I met my co-workers and daughter at a local bar, ostensibly to play pool but we wound up watching one of us play pool and the rest of us visiting.  My co-worker, also named Marie, bought me a drink and it went something like this:

Peach Schnapps, Raspberry Absolut, ginger ale with a splash of 7 up.

It was fabulous!  Made for a Marie by a Marie so she called it Marie Squared.  I could taste mostly peach, a wee bit ‘o raspberry and the ginger ale.  I even finished the whole glass – a first for me.  In fact, this entire night was a complete first.  Never have I ever been to a bar to have a drink and play pool.  Well, I guess I still haven’t played pool in a bar but that just means I’ll have to go back, uh huh…

Drambuie

According to their website “The taste of Drambuie is the result of infusing a unique blend of aged Scotch whisky with a secret combination of spices, heather honey & herbs. Its origins can be traced to a secret recipe created for Bonnie Prince Charlie by his Royal Apothecary in the 18th Century.”

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A Drambuie mini (50 ml) looks like a short, fat, clear plastic beer bottle with a pale golden yellow liquid that I would hesitate to describe as caramel colored.  Oh yep, there it is, the bottle says it “contains caramel and saffron color”.  So yes, more yellow than gold.  Once I get past the alcohol smell there is something warm in it’s scent.  Must be the herbs and spices since I don’t think it’s honey I’m smelling.  A sip of it is, oh God, wow, whoo!  I took too big of a sip there, dang!  Okay.  Once I’m past what must be the whiskey bit of it there’s quite a bit of flavor here.  But I can only take the tiniest of sips, just enough to wet my tongue.  I can absolutely taste the honey, it’s nice with just enough sweet to not be overwhelming.  There’s definitely some other flavors there that I can’t identify but they’re good, perhaps a hint of anise?  I wonder if this is what they mean by a sipping whiskey?

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Next step, on the rocks, since I like my drinks cold.  That’s good too.  Cuts down on the whiskey part of it, or maybe I’m just getting used to it, hee, hee…  still a lot of flavor in spite of being watered down a bit by the ice.  Curious as to what sort of drinks a person would put this in I turned to their website and found these, with more fun names!

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Hootenanny

1 part Drambuie

Cubed Ice

2 parts Grapefruit Juice

4 Mint Leaves

3 parts Weissbier

Lightly shake Drambuie, grapefruit juice and mint leaves together, then add beer to the shaker before straining over ice. Garnish with a mint sprig.

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Elixir

3/4 part Drambuie

1 Large rock of ice

3/4 part Pink Grapefruit juice

3/4 part Strong Brewed Coffee

3/4 part Tequila

Build into a rocks glass over ice. Garnish with a grapefruit twist.

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Modern Manners

3/4 part Drambuie

3/4 part Gin

3/4 part Kirsch

1/2 part Lime Juice

garnish with a Maraschino Cherry

8-10 Tarragon leaves

Shake all ingredients and fine strain into a small fluted wine or grappa glass. Maraschino cherry to garnish.

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Allrighty then.  Since several of their recipes call for grapefruit juice I’m going to try it tonight, here goes…  Maybe 1/3 ruby red grapefruit juice to my Drambie mini goes into my rocks glass and I stirred it with my McDonalds straw like the classy lady I am.  A sip through said straw proves that the ruby red was a good choice.  I don’t taste the honey so much now or the whiskey hardly at all but the herbs and spices are still there.  It’s not an amazing drink but it would be good to have every now and again.  Probably not a keeper for me though…

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For the scoring:

Bottle Esthetics:  Another “Meh”.  Nothing special here.
Scent:  The alcohol hits me first, then the herbs and spices.  It’s a warm scent with a little sharpness and a hint of sweet.
Viscosity:  Water thin with just a tiny bit of essential oil-like slipperiness.
Versatility:  This is a very distinctive flavor that while it could probably be used in a lot of drinks will definitely make an impact on the overall flavor sooooo pretty versatile but bear in mind it’s always going to be a major player in any drink you use it in.
Overall Score:  6 out of 10

Disaronno

Ok, so I’m cheating a little bit, I already know I like this one but since I haven’t blogged about it yet I’m going to do it now.  😀

The Disaronno mini (50 ml) comes in an attractive square, textured clear glass bottle with a black, square cap displaying DISARONNO on all four sides and a crest on the top.  Research (and previous experience) tells me that this is an amaretto liqueur.  The liquid inside is a medium gold, something I’m realizing is called “caramel” in this industry.  Pftt.  Whatever.

Opening the bottle is hard, the square edges of the cap hurts my hand.  Every. Single. Time.  So I wrap the corner of my soft, fluffy blanket that I keep on my favorite chair around the cap and get the darn thing off.  The sweet almond fragrance wafts up to my nose and brings me back to my childhood when I first added almond extract to something I was baking.  Mmmmm…

This I could drink straight because it’s more flavor than burning alcohol on my tongue.  A sip gives me a sweet, light almond flavor.  I’ve tried this before with cranberry juice and while that was okay it wasn’t amazing, despite my friend Aaron the bartender’s recommendation… maybe it’s more because I’m not a big fan of cranberry juice?  Anyway, Aaron said it tastes like candy but I just couldn’t get into it so tonight I’m going to try it with cream soda.

My cream soda, which had been sitting peacefully on the table for the last 24 hours just spit foam everywhere, whaaaa???  Excuse me for a moment while I clean it up.

Back on track.  The cream soda and the Disaronno are the same color.  I put about as much soda in as the liqueur and stir it with my dinner fork.  Huh.  That is actually not as good as I thought it would be.  It’s not bad but it didn’t improve the liqueur even a tiny bit, I think I’d rather drink it straight.

I’m actually kind of sad, I think I’ve ruined this drink with the cream soda, boo!

Next test, eating some chocolate fudge – with walnuts, of course – while drinking my concoction.  Better, but the last time I had the fudge and the Disaronno together they were Ama-Zing!  Okie dokie, well, now I know!

The Disaronno is definitely a keeper and once they stop making the full-size bottles with the limited edition wrappers that I don’t think are pretty I’ll buy one to keep on hand.

Their website gave several recipes that look like they might be worth trying and Disaronno apparently likes to give their drinks fun names, oh goodie:
The Godfather

• 25 ml DISARONNO
• 50 ml Whisky
• Orange twist

Pour over large ice ball and stir. Garnish with orange twist.
Jamaican the Italian Crazy

• 35 ml Disaronno
• 25 ml fresh Lemon juice
• 50 ml Mango juice
• 2 slices of fresh Cucumber muddled
• 5 ml Passion fruit syrup
• Pineapple Leaf
• Mint sprig
• Passion fruit

Shake all ingredients, pour over cubed ice into tiki cup. Garnish with pineapple leaf, half a passion fruit, add mint sprig.
Italian Lady

• 25 ml Disaronno
• 10 ml Dry Vermouth
• Prosecco
• Orange twist

Build in champagne flute with ice. Garnish with orange.
So, those look like fun but I have a feeling that this is going to be one of those I drink straight, oh wait, I mean neat.  I’m learning the jargon here too, yay!

The technicalities:

Bottles Esthetics:  Elegant, classy, pretty both empty and full.  Earns it the Raised Eyebrow of Interest and a spot on my windowsill.
Scent:  Sweet, light almond.  Brings back childhood memories
Viscosity: Thin with a slight oily feel.
Taste:  Sweet almond.  Not too light, not too heavy on either the sweet or almond.
Versatility:  I’m thinking this one is not terribly versatile as almond doesn’t go with everything but I like it so much I don’t really care…
Overall Score:  9 out of 10

Tuaca

“A tempting blend of Italian brandy, Mediterranean citrus and vanilla spice.”

I have to say this one was fun!  I’ve decided to start working my way through Liqueurs first since they’re generally more flavored than say just vodka or whiskey, lol.

The Tuaca mini (50 ml) comes in a clear plastic bottle somewhat reminiscent of a wine bottle that shows a light golden liquid inside.  It smells, to my untrained nose, like alcohol, ha, ha.  A sip sets my mouth on fire but once the burning dies down I think I taste a hint of vanilla but it may just be wishful thinking…

I decided to try it with ginger ale in about a 50/50 mix, with ice – I believe that’s called “on the rocks” – and I stirred it with a plastic knife.  I like this one very much!  I think we have another keeper!  It’s light and refreshing and the ginger ale lets the vanilla and citrus flavors shine through much clearer while cutting down on the sharpness of the brandy.

So look at me being all adulty, sitting in my favorite chair, drinking a grown-up drink, watching my favorite show and eating Chicken in a Biscuit – I mean my fancy cheese and expensive crackers, ahem…

Their website gives us the following recipes:
Tuaca Pineapple Spritzer

2 oz TUACA
4 oz pineapple juice
1 ½ oz of lemon-lime soda

Pour all ingredients in a tall glass filled with ice. Stir gently and garnish with a pineapple and lime wedge.
Tuaca Toddy – for my sister who likes hot drinks!

1 oz TUACA
Apple Cider
Cinnamon
Nutmeg

Add TUACA to warm apple cider. Sprinkle a pinch of cinnamon and nutmeg on top.
Tuaca Whiskey Punch

1 oz TUACA
1 oz Buffalo Trace Bourbon
1 oz orange juice
1 oz cranberry juice

Pour ingredients into a rocks glass over ice and stir. For a group, change ounces to parts and add slices of oranges.

 
Those definitely look interesting and I’m going to have to get me some pineapple juice… uh huh…  Here’s my handy dandy personal assessment:

Bottle Esthetics:  The clear plastic shows through to a pretty golden liquid and the label is busy on both sides of the name with fancy lettering, a stylized lion and lines.  It holds my interest enough to earn it a “Hmmm…”
Scent:  Warm with a intriguing hint of vanilla.
Viscosity:  Water thin.
Taste:  Warm – I’m guessing that’s the brandy? – then vanilla.  Maybe, just maybe, a hint of orange.
Versatility:  Judging by the number of recipes on their website there must be many ways to use this one but I’m really enjoying it with the ginger ale right now.
Overall Score:  8 out of 10