Christian offers a perspective of cigars ranging from vintage pre-embargo smokes, hard to find cigars as well as current releases. His 22+ years of smoking and love of travel have taken him on cigar journeys here and abroad. From smoking HERF’s in friends backyards to smoking Montecristo No. 2s on the terrace of the Hungarian Palace Hotel in Lido Italy, Christian takes the “everyman” approach to cigar smoking being it all about taste and enjoyment of where you are or who you are with.
From the brainchild of Richard Stabile of Long Island Distillers makers of LiV vodka, Rough Bourbon and Pine Barrens Single Malt comes one of the best Rye’s I’ve tasted all year. What makes this rye so special is its aging and select finishing in wine barrels. The spirit is first aged for a minimum of four years in newly charred American oak casks. After aging it’s then finished in selected merlot and chardonnay casks. The result is a rye with a tremendous depth of flavor and a lingering finish. Speaking of “finish’, I just finished another bottle myself and the results are thus. Enjoy!
APPERANCE: A light copper color with legs that scurry down the glass. Swirling gives a nice feel of the depth of the spirit within.
NOSE: Initial flavors of oak, vanilla and spicy heat emerge. Second nose gives toasted wood, bread and some dried fruits.
TASTE: First sip is buttery with apricot some caramel and “merlot” flavors in its expression. The mouth feel is rich with flavors that demonstrates its balance. Both sides of the cheeks are coated with butter and spice that caress not overpowers the senses. The finish goes on forever with a velvety texture and flavors of caramel, toasted oak, butter and heat all at once. This is one of the most balanced and complex Rye’s I’ve tasted.
CONCLUSION: With Bull Moose Three Barrel Rye Long Island Distillers has produced probably my favorite spirit to date. This Rye delivers a cacophony of flavors on the palate and lingers on and on. This exceeded my expectations of rye and what can be done with it. The finishing in wine casks creates tastes and nuances that makes this a true sipping spirit. I’ve enjoyed most everything Rich Stabile has been putting out as of late but if I had to venture off with the “Rough Riders” and could bring only one spirit, this would be the bottle that I’d saddle up with.
The newest small batch of Long Island Distillers Pine Barrens Single Malt Whisky is back with its 8th rendition of their premium blend. What makes this particular batch even more special is that Richard Stabile is now using his own crafted beer as the base for his Single Malt Whisky. For all the previous batches Blue Point Brewery’s Old Howling Bastard was utilized and the distilling and aging was done at Long Island Distillery. With Long Island Distillers controlling the entire process they can enliven their single malt with the exact flavors they are looking for. The result is quite possibly the finest batch yet. Enjoy!
APPERANCE: A beautiful copper/gold color with delicate legs that took their time running down the glass. The rich hue of this whisky reminded me of an aged French wine with that certain level of sophistication and quality.
NOSE: Initial flavors of cinnamon, spice, medicinal and heat come to the forefront. A second swirl reveals grains and some banana notes.
TASTE: This Single Malts comes at you with cinnamon/spices blending with banana and sharp oak on the tongue then developing into a sweet maltiness. The mouthfeel is lustrous and velvety with a lingering finish of hops, nutmeg, caramel and allspice. The finish literally “pops” and continues to develop on the palate. A complex Single Malt for what is considered a young whisky. A true connoisseur’s spirit.
CONCLUSION: Having visited Long Island Distillers several times I can attest to their quality and attention to detail. Richard Stabile continues to develop high quality spirits and pushes ahead as to what flavors and textures can be achieved in a true small batch environment. I’ve been fortunate enough to sample other batches in the past and feel this one delivers the most unique and pronounced flavors yet. So get on their website, harass your local liquor store and get your hands on Pine Barrens Single Malt #8 before its gone!
If you haven’t been enticed by flavored spirits whether it be you don’t enjoy the overly sweet taste that tends to accompany them or you simply feel they’re not “Manly” enough, this particular spirit and cocktail might change your mind. So man up, and read on…
I’ve been a huge fan of spirits in the 20+ years of my drinking life. My tastes have changed through those years from swigging down Old Crow at adolescent parties to sipping Pappy Van Winkle in my study. During the turbulent times vodka had been that clear spirit you either took shots of or used blindly as a mixer in some concoction your friends would make. I owe many harrowing mornings to that grainy spirit although in reality it was the cheap sugared mixtures that wreaked havoc within me upon my midafternoon awakenings. As a result unfairly I might add, my tastes drifted to the darker spirits and all but shunned the vodkas of my yesteryear. It’s these days that I’ve returned to the product that has more taste and versatility then I had previously experienced.
Enter premium vodka; Long Island Distillers which was made famous for their LiV vodka made from Long Island potatoes and local ingredients caught my eye not long ago. After tasting their vodka which had such depth and body to it I was hooked. Richard Stabile president of Long Island Distillers made me a believer. I now had a new found appreciation for vodka and its craft as a handmade quality product. After touting the virtues to all that would listen and drink I was now a premium vodka advocate. After thinking I had conquered the spirits world completely Richard threw me for a loop with his flavored line of premium vodkas.
Currently Long Island Distillers produces a series of natural ingredient flavored vodkas. I’m not talking about your artificially manufactured “flavorings” in vodka that so many companies pump out ad nausem; I’m talking about natural real ingredients. This is where LiV Sorbetta Strawberry Vodka comes in. Ingredients on bottle; Vodka, Fresh Strawberries, Sugar. Simple. All real, all natural. The result is a refreshing vodka with just the right balance of spirit meets ripe fruits. Here are some of my tastings straight and as a cocktail. Enjoy!
LiV Sorbetta Strawberry Vodka straight:
I always like to taste a spirit I’ve never had straight. No ice, no mixing, just the booze. I need to establish a baseline of its taste without anything to dilute or take away from its natural state. This helps me in developing a “flavor recall” for when it’s mixed or I drink another version of the product.
Nose: Sweet wild berry upfront.
Taste: This vodka starts off with a blast of fresh strawberry sweetness followed by a weighty mouthfeel of the potato vodka itself and vanilla notes. The finish lingers with a hint of wild strawberry flavor. With the second sip the sweetness is less pronounced while still keeping that crisp strawberry taste. Midway it develops into a cool aromatic spirit finishing with those subtly sweet wild strawberries. Unlike artificially flavored spirits that are sugary-sweet and one dimensional throughout, this vodka has complexity. Very pleasant and refreshing.
To keep it manly I decided to make a martini and drink it as a cocktail. My mixology skills are limited in that making a mixed drink to me is usually putting a single ice cube into my bourbon. I can however follow a martini recipe rather well. Here is the recipe I followed for those that would like to try it:
Manly LiV Strawberry Vodka Martini
Ingredients:
Ice
1 ounce simple syrup (2 parts sugar, 1 part water, heated, mixed, then cooled)
2 ounces LiV Sorbetta Strawberry vodka
½ oz. Dry Vermouth (Boissiere Extra Dry, Italy)
Combine ingredients and 4 ice cubes in a shaker. Shake vigorously and strain into a martini glass.
Nose: A hint of fresh picked ripe strawberries and slight citrus/ floral notes from the vermouth.
Taste: The first sip brings the vodka upfront with an invigorating strawberry flavor that feels like biting into freshly picked fruit. Dryness of the vermouth comes into play and some floral alcohol moves forward. This martini delivers sweet ripened berries and a crisp angular finish. The chill from the shaken ice really gives a nice aroma to the cocktail. Each sip gave me a perfect balance of alcohol and fruit flavor. Delicious. So man up! Try LiV Sorbetta Strawberry Vodka and while away a sunny afternoon in style gentlemen. Cheers!
It’s well known and through great sacrifice I‘ve spent years testing the theory that spirits and cigars go hand in hand. A fine Scotch or Cognac can bring out the nuances of a cigar just as a premium smoke can enhance the flavors of your drink of choice. Two great pleasures in harmony with each other are what I call relaxation. This weekend I had the opportunity to sit back and do just that with one of my favorite bourbons of late and a Cuban regional cigar from Portugal. My findings were interesting to say the least. Enjoy!
First, the bourbon:
Bourbon: Rough Rider- Long Island Distillers
Being a fan of this bourbon already I knew what to expect. Nose of sweet vanilla, toasted oak and the first sip hits you with some lovely cinnamon spice, and maple wood. The finish coats the palate with a butteriness that lingers on. Further tasting, the Rough Rider develops toasty notes with traces of candied fruits and some nice heat on the way down. The buttery finish along with the toasted wood are the lingering factors with this bourbon that keeps you wanting more. I am really looking forward to their next batch as soon as it hits the shelves. Long Island Distillers focuses on small batch releases so they can spend more time on maintaining quality. I’ve visited the distillery and it is quite a hands on and expertly run facility.
Cigar: Cuban Punch Descobridores Exclusivo Portugal
Blend specifics
4 7/8″ x 50
Wrapper: Cuba
Binder: Cuba
Filler: Cuba
The dry draw on this cigar has hearty flavors of fresh tobacco and an earthy quality. Upon lighting the full draw yields toasty notes with a bit of leather on the finish. The first third gives leather, earth and a bit of spice on the retrohale. Lots of rich tobacco taste which shows me the quality and care in the blend which doesn’t always happen in regional cigars. A lot of ER’s that I’ve smoked can be a bit of a crap shoot in terms of decent blends and properly treated tobacco. This cigar has been a pleasant surprise and of exceptionally quality. Midway the Punch offered more toasty flavors and graham cracker. The last third gave a salty taste with more of that full tobacco engulfing the palate.
The Pairing:
As I drank and puffed the interplay with the spirit and cigar where quite appealing. The toasted oak of the bourbon further enhanced the Punch ER’s lush and toasty tobacco flavor. The spice from the bourbon added a nice kick to the tobacco flavors. The buttery finish of the Rough Rider bourbon balanced the savory leather notes of the cigar exceptionally. As the earthiness of the Punch came through the Rough Rider bourbon came back with that finished oak which took the cigar and spirit to another level of flavor and pushed them both to their peak performance. Both cigar and bourbon left me satiated with a resonance of flavors. A truly perfect pairing.
When I pick a cigar and spirit I try to go by what I know of both in terms of flavor and look for complimentary contrasts or balance. There are times like this when I haven’t had the cigar and like I said with the ER’s you don’t know what you can or will get in terms of flavor and blend. Fortunately I struck gold with these two as they not only had balance but their contrasts raised the bar of both their flavor profiles. If you can grab this ER it’s a worthwhile smoke and you should treat yourself to some Rough Rider bourbon even if you can’t find a Punch Descobridores Exclusivo to pair with it. So, my strenuous efforts continue to support the theory that cigars and spirits work oh so well together. All In the name of science.
Be sure to pick up a bottle of Long Island Spirits’
Rough Rider Straight Bourbon Whisky for this upcoming weekends Kentucky Derby!! While you’re out east, stop by the Tasting Room and sample the Rough Rider, LiV Vodka, and Sorbetta Liqueurs!
2.5 oz. Rough Rider Straight Bourbon Whisky
2 tsp. water
1 tsp. powdered sugar
4 fresh mint sprigs
Muddle mint leaves, powdered sugar, and water in a collins glass. Fill the glass with shaved or crushed ice and add Rough Rider Straight Bourbon Whisky. Top with more ice and garnish with a mint sprig.
Serve with a straw.
Take a sip and enjoy as you watch the long shot you just bet
