Tag Archives: whisky

Get Ready to Rumble with Balcones

Balcones, Texas’s original whisky*, and Dude, Sweet Chocolate, Dallas’s signature chocolates, are teaming up. Starting in September, you can now find whisky-infused chocolates at DSC. Our team was invited to be some of the first to check out the partnership … and this was what Tiffany found …

I knew it would be a good time when I was greeted at the door of Dude, Sweet Chocolate with a cocktail. Considering that the late summer Texas humidity was particularly heavy and thick that evening, the refreshing Balcones Baby Blue Corn Whisky concoction was more than welcome.

Toné Castillo, Balcones brand ambassador extraordinaire, was present to tell us more about the Original Texas Whisky from Waco, Texas. Balcones takes great pride in being the first whisky to be legally produced and legally sold in Texas since Prohibition. The distillery has become quite the destination, and tours are constantly at capacity during tasting room hours. I’ve personally never visited the distillery, but after sampling the welcome cocktail and eyeing the whisky pairings that I had yet to try, I felt compelled to plan a trip.
*Note from Susie: I’ve visited. It’s amazing. It’s wonderful. Go. Taste all the things.*

As far as events go, anything that involves pairing Katherine Clapner’s chocolates with the Balcones portfolio you KNOW it’s going to be good. This is especially true when Katherine refers to one of Balcones’ spirits as “the magical unicorn”—not surprisingly, the eponymous Rumble, which is intriguingly made out of fermented Texas wildflower honey, Mission figs, and turbinado sugar. I had never heard of such a creation! And true to the name of the event, the Rumble didn’t just get one pairing this evening; it got TWO: DSC’s Flower Child truffle featuring Earl Grey tea flavors, and the FDA Salami, a playful chocolate comprised of California marizpan, dried figs, dates, cocoa nibs, and chocolate rolled to resemble a savory salami.

Katherine paired the Texas Rye 100 Proof whisky with her Vietnamese coffee house-style Hanoi fudge. I am a sucker for Vietnamese coffee, so this was an easy favorite. The TX Single Malt paired exceptionally well with Dude, Sweet’s Rooibus Chai chocolates with its toasted malt and honey notes and hints of cinnamon and cloves.

However, the showstopper was the last tasting pair: Balcones Brimstone, which tastes of campfire, brûléed sugar, and pepper, paired with BACON. FAT. CARAMEL. SKULLS.

Take a moment to let that sink in.

Brimstone’s intensity was tempered beautifully by the bacon fat and caramel, which coated the tongue like velvet.

The crowd got to walk around from station to station and taste the pairings at their leisure while Katherine and Toné walked around to answer any questions we had. The vibe was super casual and fun, with music, conversation, and laughter punctuating the subsequent hours.

I left with a warm belly, a happy spirit, and of course, a Dude, Sweet bag of goodies that I just couldn’t leave without purchasing. Sweet, indeed.

DUDE SWEET CHOCOLATE
dudesweetchocolate.com
multiple locations

BALCONES DISTILLING
balconesdistilling.com
225 South 11th Street (Waco)
(254)755-6003

Laphroaig 10 Year Old Single Malt Scotch Whiskey

Do you know what a good day is? Getting home to find a bottle of Laphroaig 10-Year Old Single Malt Scotch Whiskey waiting for you. (Talk about a good way to unwind from a rough day.) Having had (and greatly enjoyed) Ardbeg Whisky (Scotch) before, I had a guess what Laphroaig was going to taste like. Since they’re both on the southeastern coast of Islay, part of the Hebridean Islands off the west coast of Scotland, I had high hopes.

I opened the bottle and took a quick smell, and my nose immediately picked up smoke. I poured myself a glass, neat (obviously), and took another whiff. The aroma opened up a bit and I caught the typical earthy/peaty smell that scotch from Islay often bares. (One might question what peat smells like, and I really can’t explain it. But, for those interested here is your science lesson: peat is simply decayed vegetation that occurs in natural areas. Some call those areas peatlands, but just imagine a bog. Very wet, spongy ground, that allows vegetation to decay over time.) Alright, enough science, back to the scotch. It had a heavily peaty aroma because distilleries in this area of Scotland often use peat fires to dry their grains. The scotch then takes on that smoky flavor, which is VERY distinct. The first sip brought the exact same flavor, peaty/earthy, and it was VERY bold.

I put a few ice cubes in the glass to chill the scotch, and as it chilled I noticed a slight spice to the scotch, which really complimented the smokiness. As the ice melted, I added a little bit a water to finish it off, which brought out the spices completely and really opened up the entire bouquet. While the smokiness was still the headliner of the scotch, the spices were just as bold on the finishing end of the drink.

This is Laphroaig’s original “basic” scotch, it has been distilled the same way for 75 years. I would highly recommend this as a staple in your liquor cabinet. Head to the website to see your other options from Laphroaig.

*Side note: last year SDD Contributor Rico reviewed the 2013 Laphroaig Cairdeas: Port Wood Edition. Each year, Laphroaig releases a limited edition to celebrate friendship, Cairdeas in Gaelic. Without going into too much detail that bottle went under a double maturation process in both bourbon and port wood casks to create a unique flavor. For a review of the 2013 limited edition click here.

Twitter: @Laphroaig
Facebook: www.facebook.com/laphroaig

Located at fine retail locations nationwide for around $50/bottle. (BONUS: This also includes a unique code inside each bottle that allows you to register as a “Friend of Laphroaig” and receive a lifetime lease on one square foot of land on the island of Islay, right next to the distillery. How awesome is that?)

**Disclaimer: I received this amazing bottle for free from Laphroaig**

2013  Laphroaig Cairdeas: Port Wood Edition 

Scents: Smoke, Rhubarb, Pepper, Citrus, Berries, Flowers/Potpourri, Peanuts, Chocolate & Cream

Flavors: Smoked Wood, Charcoal, Pepper, Flowers, Cream, Berries, Citrus

Thoughts:  Before I get too deep into this “review”, I must be honest… I am much more versed in the whiskey/bourbon area than scotch. Being that I am a novice in the subject of scotch, my thoughts may seem a bit uneducated to all you scotch connoisseurs out there, but I hope you find this review somewhat useful.

My first thought at the crack of the bottle was how intense the aroma of the scotch was. I could almost immediately recognize several of the distinct flavors from the scent like smoked woods, charcoal, fruits, flowers and more. The color the scotch is similar to numerous whiskey and bourbons I am used to with a slight pink hue to it. After my analysis of the sights and smells, I was ready to have my first sip!

Along with several coworkers, I, generously, poured the scotch over some ice. The scent seemed to open up quite nicely at this point. Once it touched my lips, I immediate felt the power of this scotch! The peat “explosion” was very intense and hit very fast. This took me by surprise, so I had to have another sip just to truly analyze how it is tastes. Intense smokey peat was the first flavor to hit, then the peppery, fruity yet floral-esque cream flavors piggy-backed the end of the peat explosion. That may seem weird to list all those things, but they all truly fight for your attention (even though the peat wins every time in my book).

This seems like a scotch I would enjoy after eating a hardy steak, BBQ or any smoked meal. I can imagine sitting around a campfire with some bros and drinking this with a cigar in hand after eating some BBQ. Check it out and judge for yourself. Needless to say … this’ll get ya drunk.

(Source: http://instagram.com/)
Reviewed by Enrico DeLeon III (of Brunch Bros fame)