Bootlegger Phil's Expedition of Spirits

Intro

Like I said I needed to kill that bottle of rye-finished Bacardi 8 and this is how I did it. I started with the Surf Liner as a jumping point and mingled it with a bit of inspiration from the Temple of the Forbidden Rye since I really wanted to add some spicier notes to accent the rye base.

Rye Liner

Ingredients

1 oz. rye whiskey (Old Overholt Bottled-in-Bond)
1 oz rye-finished rum (Bacardi Ocho Rye Cask Finish)
1 oz. pineapple juice
.75 oz. fresh lemon juice
.75 oz. orgeat (macadamia is what I had on hand)
.25 oz. allspice dram (St. Elizabeth’s)
.25 oz. falernum (Tropical Standard’s recipe)
2 dashes Peychaud’s bitters

Garnish: False Idol swizzle stick to celebrate their recent 10 year anniversary. There in spirit!

Nose

Initial scent of lemon-washed sweet cherries with a hint of warm baking spices afterwards.

Mouth

Creamier texture than you’d expect, tastes like a cinnamon and allspiced-lemon creamsicle. The rye comes through as the first note and fades away to pops of ginger, clove, allspice.

As dilution sets in the pineapple and rye shine through as a fused flavor combination, which is a really nice rally between juicy and spicy, kept in check by the tang from the lemon. The baking spice notes play more as background music, weakened by the ice.

Verdict 7/10

This one could use some evolution. Honestly as first sip I thought not bad but it’s unremarkable. As it diluted though I began to appreciate it more since the rye started to come through more. It’s a nice easy drinker for someone newer to cocktails.

In a next iteration I’d probably could cut the pineapple a bit to let the spirits shine through and maybe I flew too close to the sun by throwing both allspice dram and falernum into one drink, I’d probably just focus on the allspice and drop the falernum.