Highball: Summer 2017

Highball S P I R I T S

M A G A Z I N E

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S U M M E R

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HOT FOR RUMCHATA I S L AY S C OTC H B R E A K D OW N

Brrrrring on the frozen cocktails

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Highball is a quarterly

IMBRRR-IBES Chilly frozen drinks are ripe for summer.

publication of ABC Fine

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Wine & Spirits. Copyright 2017 ABC Liquors, Inc. All rights reserved.

RUMCHATA PSA: RumChata was made for summer cocktails too.

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Not all products are

ISLAY SCOTCH Breaking down Islay Scotch.

available in all stores. If the

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product you’re looking for isn’t available, ask us to order it for you!

ABSOLUT ELYX Absolut has partnered with Water For People to improve the quality of water in countries

Meghan Guarino

worldwide.

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Editor meghang@abcfws.com

EL DORADO RUM 12 YEAR Silky smooth and

Allie Smallwood

satisfyingly sweet, this rum

Contributing Editor

is best sipped straight—but we won’t stop you from

allies@abcfws.com

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mixing it in your cocktails.

COCO DREAM COLADA

CUBA LIBRE

3 oz Master of Mixes Piña Colada Mixer 1 oz Vanilla Vodka 1 oz Orange Juice

2 oz El Dorado Rum 1 Lime Cola

Combine ingredients in a mixing glass. Fill with ice, shake and strain into a chilled glass.

Squeeze a lime into a glass then add 3 ice cubes. Add rum, then drop in lime wedges. Pour soda over to fill the glass. Stir.

M E G H A N G UA R I N O

RUMCHATA

RumChata is known for a lot of things: its likeness to Cinnamon Toast

Maas and team settled on a Caribbean rum that was distilled at

Crunch, its ability to create an incredible pumpkin pie martini and its

a high proof and aged about six months to mellow the flavors.

creamy (but still light!) mouthfeel. One thing RumChata is not typically

The key to the final product is the delicate balance of rum, cream,

known for is its adaptability to warmer weather, but that’s about to change.

cinnamon, vanilla and sugar. After two years of recipe revisions and

As founder Tom Maas exclaimed, “Creams don’t sell in the summer?! When

blending blunders, the RumChata recipe was finalized.

do you sell all the ice cream?!”

Since its launch in 2009, this cream liqueur has been celebrated in cooler

Tom Maas retired from the industry after 25 years in the liquor business.

months for its cinnamon palate and silky mouthfeel. But these attributes

“Retired” is a loose term, though, because shortly after calling it a day, Maas

are exactly the reasons why RumChata should be present in your poolside

was itching to start another project. “When I retired, I got bored,” Maas

cocktails as well. Tropical rum flavors and light cream mix well for smooth

said. “So I was looking for new ideas, new adventures and I stumbled on

and refreshing summertime sippers. Try RumChata as the cream to your

horchata—the flavor of horchata.”

iced coffee or mixed with root beer for an easy root beer float.

A veteran of new product innovation, it was natural that Maas was so

Our favorite summertime

intrigued by a flavor that he began brainstorming ways to create an alcoholic

cocktail is the RumChata

version. The first step? Sending his son out to get samples of horchata from

Iced Coffee.

five different taco stands. “We got a recipe from one of the taco stands we

Try one today and get

really liked and tried to match that flavor,” Maas said. Instead of the usual water-based versions that are ubiquitous in Latin America, he tweaked the traditional horchata recipe to be cream-based to that it had a luxurious, smooth finish. He also made it with one-third less fat than standard creams so it was lighter and more drinkable than the average cream liqueur. The next step, deciding which alcohol would go into the product, was still in progress when the name was decided upon. RumChata was tossed to Maas by a friend who was working on the package design.“It just sounded good,” Maas explained. And, as it turned out, it tasted good too.

“Rum has notes of vanilla in it that really push out the flavor of the horchata,” Maas said. “I tried tequila and tequila didn’t work at all. Vodka didn’t push anything out, it just gave it heat. Bourbon wasn’t bad, but bourbon just overtook it.”

RUMCHATA Iced Coffee 1 1/2 oz RumChata 1 cup Coffee, cooled 1 cup Ice Pour RumChata over cold coffee and stir. Fill the glass with ice and serve.

hooked on this liqueur’s mixability, adaptability and most of all, flavor.

IMBRRR-IBES A L L I E S M A L LW O O D

Pool days, lake days, beach days and Sunday Fundays lie ahead of us for miles with this sunshine-y season upon us. When it comes to fueling those days, beer cans are good and pre-mixed cocktails are better; but imagine what a freshly prepared frozen cocktail could do for a perfect summer’s day? Frozen cocktails, despite their bad reputation for being sugary slushies with cheap alcohol, are the only answer to summer’s hottest days. And they don’t have to be difficult, monotone or flavorless.

This little collection is one of decadence, refreshment and complex flavor – a pool/lake/beach-side sip for every palate.

If you have a blender, you’re ready to make these drinks. Nothing refreshes like a huge sip of sorbet-based frozen sangria or tantalizes like frozen, boozy Mexican hot chocolate. These swigs will elevate any summer day or night.

Frozen Spiked Mexican Hot Chocolate 1 oz Chocolate, chopped 2 tbsp Dark Cocoa Powder 2 tbsp Sugar 1/2 cup Heavy Cream 1 1/2 cups Whole Milk 3/4 tsp Cinnamon 1/8 tsp Cayenne Pepper 1-3 tbsp Cuesta Mesa Gold Tequila 2 cups Ice

Mix first 7 ingredients over low heat in a saucepan until the sugar, chocolate and cocoa have dissolved.

Adjust cinnamon and cayenne to taste. Remove from heat and cool. Chill until very cold.

Add 2 cups ice, chilled hot chocolate and tequila to blender. Blend until desired consistency. Pour into glasses and serve topped with whipped cream, cinnamon and chocolate shavings.

Adapted from the wellflouredkitchen.com

Frozen Negroni 4 1/2 oz Los Apostoles Gin 2 1/2 oz Campari 2 1/2 oz Sweet Vermouth 3 cups Ice Orange Slices, for garnish

Combine gin, Campari and sweet vermouth in an airtight container. Place in freezer and freeze for at least 8 hours (up to 3 days).

When ready to serve, add chilled alcohol and ice to blender. Blend on high speed until smooth, about 30 seconds. Pour into rocks glasses or a wine glass. Garnish with an orange slice and serve.

Adapted from seriouseats.com

Frozen Peach & Coconut 6 oz Club Caribe Silver Rum 4 oz Coco Lopez Coconut Cream 2 oz Simple Syrup 2 Ripe Peaches, cubed 8 dashes Angostura Bitters Ice 1 oz Cayman Reef Spiced Rum, divided Ground Cinnamon, for garnish 4 Cinnamon Sticks, for garnish

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Combine silver rum, coconut cream, simple syrup and bitters in a container. Cover and refrigerate at least 8 hours (up to 12 hours). To serve, transfer the rum mixture to a blender and add 3 cups ice and peaches. Blend at high speed until well mixed and thick, about 45 seconds. Pour into 4 glasses and top each with 1/4 ounce dark rum, a dash of cinnamon and a cinnamon stick.

Adapted from seriouseats.com

IA (makes FROZEN SANGR lend

4 servings)

ed B meter Black R 1 2/3 cups Peri eau 1/3 cup Cointr erries 16 oz Frozen B ed 1 Orange, peel ice Ju e 2 tbsp Lim rup or Simple Sy 1 tbsp Honey Ice ooth. d pulse until sm an d en bl a in dients e.

Combine ingre Adjust to tast en, if desired. k ic th to e ic Add Adapted from

gimmesomeove

n.com

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An Irishman Looks to Islay W I D K E V E R , I V – W I N E & S P I R I T S S P E C I A L I S T, N E W S M Y R NA B E A C H

There aren’t many words in the whisk(e)y

malts with aromas of heather, orchard fruit, toffee

vernacular that leak pure hedonistic joy inside of

and soft sea air.

my heart quite like the words Islay malt. It is here,

Bunnahabhain’s southern neighbor, Caol Ila is

on Islay (EYE-luh), where Scotland inherited her

fiercely peated. Sitting very close to the channel

whisky tradition from the explorative Irish monks,

separating Islay from Jura, Caol Ila is reminiscent

sailing north from modern-day County Antrim in

of honey, charcoal, peppercorn and hyacinth—

the north of Ireland right into the quiet, protective

expressive if not a bit intimidating.

bay of Islay. These 14th century monks found here,

Continuing south to the northern edge of Loch

on this fairly barren, mountainous, wind-lashed isle, all the raw materials they needed to introduce a

Lagavulin Distillery

culture of whisky distillation: sweeping barley fields,

Indaal sits Bruichladdich (BROOK-laddy) and its sister Port Charlotte. Like Bunnahabhain, Bruichladdich gave up peated malts in search of

peat beds, pure, peat-filtered water and a bay for the Ardberg Distillery

mooring of boats. This combination was fortuitous.

From this humble, ancient place the fervor for

purity. These malts are generous, floral, saline and abundantly fruity. To maintain a peated malt,

whisky production spread as quick as embers in the

Bruichladdich purchased Port Charlotte distillery,

wind; by the mid-1600s, the whole of Scotland was

where they’ve blown out all the windows to produce

engulfed in the fire of Scotch distillation.

a malt likened to charring apples and smoking fish over peat fire.

Islay is situated off Scotland’s western coast at the southern end of the Hebrides islands that lie

Directly across Loch Indaal there is Bowmore.

disbanded in the northern Atlantic. The island

Protected from the region’s fierce weather and wind,

herself and her residents are known for their

this deeply-fruited malt is only medium-peated and

adherence to history, stubbornly rebuking any

is a great ‘starter’ expression for Islay malt.

modern amenity that might prove life on this frozen, sea-swept island any easier. Islay is stuck in time—an irony these days, considering that her malts are among the most prized and sought after in the world.

She is a home of wind, fog, brine, smoke and peat—the peat beds still vast, quiet, deep. And while many places around Great Britain have done away with the ritualistic cutting of peat, in Islay, where its number one export is directly affected by the acrid, oily smoke of a peat brick, men young and old stand shoulder to shoulder in cold, damp bogs cutting turf from the earth. Peat also remains a primary source of fuel and heat on the island—a testament to the island’s perseverance to remain unchanged.

For its small size, Islay is home to eight of Scotland’s most recognizable malts. And these malts are known for being the most complex, mind-bendingly peaty, smoke-ridden, salted, sticky malts there are—in

many a first quick sip of Islay Scotch by the novice is as quickly spat from the mouth. These are not for the faint of palate. They bruise quickly and without apology. They singe the mind into believing that one is standing inside a peat hearth, chomping on smoked herring wrapped in seaweed, dipped in sea water. The experience is unmatched and not for everyone. That said, Islay’s reputation precedes its quality, its status likened to that of Grand Cru Champagne or classed Bordeaux.

Looking at a map of Islay, the general rule is the malt becomes more peated the further south one goes. The northernmost distillery is Bunnahabhain, the queen of the north. Once considered so peaty as to resign herself undrinkable, the ‘Bunny’ gave up peated malts many years ago preferring instead to focus on the freshness of the malt and its

Then there are Islay’s three southerly battleships— the brash, brut-like, intoxicatingly peated malts of the southern shore: Ardbeg, Lagavulin and Laphroaig. Here the spirit of Islay rips from the glass in unapologetic roars of smoke, peat, brine and oak. These legendary distilleries sit as ramparts in defense of some foreign invader. The Atlantic winds whip salt air into all exposures. The brine invades everything it touches, from the grain stores to the malting floor, in through the storehouse and into the oak staves themselves. What is left is a finished whisky with pronounced saline notions— an anointment from ancient, oceanic gales.

All malts included herein are available at many of your local ABC Fine Wine & Spirits. Get out and dare yourself to explore the history of Scotch distilling in a way only Islay can!

surroundings. This is the most delicate of all Islay

fact, they can be so peaty, so seaweed-esque, that

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Port Charlotte

WAT E R F O R T H E P E O P L E A L L I E S M A L LWO O D

Bet you didn’t think vodka could help change the world, did ya?

ABOUT ABSOLUT ELYX

Yep, Absolut has partnered with Water

LAND

For People to do something good

All the winter wheat used to make Absolut

where people might least expect it: the spirits industry.

Water For People is one of the most respected water organizations in the

Elyx comes from one farm, the Råbelöf Estate in southern Sweden. This farm was selected for its quality and strong

world – a United States registered 501(c)

environmental ethics. Waste stillage from

(3) charity dedicated to finding water

the distillery is used to feed more than

solutions for everyone, forever. Water For People works with governments,

7,000 animals on the estate, whose waste in

communities and other NGOs on the

turn provides one third of the fertilizer for

ground across nine countries worldwide

the wheat crops. The farm operates as close

to ensure that the water solutions they put in place have support systems to last for

as possible to environmental equilibrium.

generations to come.

AIR

They believe that “it is the responsibility

Absolut Elyx is 100% carbon neutral in

of everyone – including brands like Elyx – to tackle the tough issues like the global

the production of both the liquid and the

water crisis, identified as the biggest threat

bottle. Additionally, over half of the local

facing our planet.”

transport of raw materials is carried out

For every bottle of Absolut Elyx sold in

by trucks running on biodiesel and Absolut

the United States, one week’s supply of

aims to increase this to 80% by 2020.

safe water will be provided to someone in need.

WATER

Absolut realizes the need to not only fill

While Elyx is produced in a water

our glasses in developed countries, but

abundant region, Absolut doesn’t take

to help fill the glasses of those lacking the most important liquid in the entire world.

it for granted. No artificial irrigation is

And because of that, they’re on a five-

used to grow the wheat, no waste water

year mission with Water For People to

is returned to the environment untreated,

provide 100,000 people with access to safe water for generations to come. While the

and even the rainwater runoff from the

water infrastructure is left to the experts,

distillery is captured and offered back

Absolut helps to market this incredible

to the farmers for local agriculture.

commitment to humanity and to raise awareness of the global water crisis and the message of Water For People.

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Highball

8989 South Orange Ave. Orlando, Florida 32824

S PI RIT TO S IP:

B O D Y :

C O LOR :

Golden caramel O N

THE

NO S E:

FRUITY WITH AN UNDERTONE OF VANILLA AND HONEY; RICH MOLASSES, BAKING SPICE AND CITRUS O N

THE

PA L AT E:

Soft and rich; baking spice, orange peel and fruit with caramel throughout

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El Dorado Rum 12 Year Well-balanced and easy-drinking F I N I SH :

Smooth with minimal burn; oaky with spice in the end P R O O F :

80°

TASTING TIP:

Sip on the rocks or in your favorite cocktail