After being away from Finn's Corner (660 Washington Avenue, Brooklyn NY 347-663-9316) last week, I come back to work to find that we have a new selection on the Irish Whiskey shelf. Boy is it a doozy of a Whiskey.
Finn's now carries the Redbreast 12-year Cask Strength Irish Whiskey which comes in at a whopping 118.4 Proof aka 58.2 avb. 👀👀👀 Yup, while I try to stay away from the supercharged spirits, the times that I have had anything over the 110 proof range, it has never ended well for me. From getting demolished drinking Navy strength gin, overproof Madagascan rum or unwittingly doing a shot of bathtub moonshine and having to walk around in a t-shirt in the middle of a freezing February day because I was burning up, drinking the overproof stuff. Luckily I have learned from those experiences and just had a little sip of this powerful bird 🐦. In case you aren't familiar with this product, let's go straight to the source.
According to the Redbreast listing for their Redbreast 12 Cask Strength Irish Whiskey, this Redbreast 12 in its natural, full flavored state. Straight from the cask, unfiltered, no water added. In comparison, the standard Redbreast 12-year comes in at 80 proof aka 40 abv. I can't come up with the notes, the nose or any of the descriptions that those who review spirits come up with. I only had a wee sip. But I'll let you watch Mark Gillespie from the Single Pot Still Irish Whiskey YouTube channel give you his review on the Redbreast 12 Cask Strength:
What I can say is I am surprised that I didn't get much of a burn both on the lips and the tongue that I probably would have expected. And it was very flavorful. So maybe at some point when I can sit back and fully give the Redbreast 12 Cask Strength the time it deserves for a tasting. Still, at 118.4 proof, its probably not a good idea to do so while behind the bar.
But don't let me stop you. Roll on through to Finn's Corner on a Tuesday and I'll be glad to pour you one...or a few if you are daring.
Hey peeps. Welcome back to SiscoVanilla Serves and Drinks. I know, its been a while since I've posted anything to this blog. It's been a real busy stretch lately both in the café and the bar. Free time has been very few and far between. But I wanted to bring to your attention to a new set of Whiskeys that we have in stock at Finns Corner (660 Washington Avenue, Brooklyn, NY).
We have the new Deadwood Rye and Straight Bourbon Whiskeys which are made and sourced in small batches. The whiskeys are made by Proof and Wood Ventures who are known as the distillers of the Redemption line of Whiskeys. The whiskey is named after the famed Wild West town of Deadwood, South Dakota and features the infamous poker hand known as the Dead Man's Hand. Why is it known as that? Well, read on true believers and find out.
He was killed on August 2, 1876 in Nuttal & Mann’s Saloon when Jack McCall shot him from behind while playing poker. When he died, Wild Bill was holding a pair of aces and eights, that series of cards became known to poker players all around the world as the “Dead Man’s Hand.”
The hand specifically refers to a pair of Aces and Eights both of spades and clubs. No one knows that the fifth card dealt Hickok was, so that card will be held for the grim reaper. But there's a bit more behind the murder of Wild Bill Hickok.
The event occurred simply enough with a poker game being held on August 1, 1876 at the aforementioned Nuttal & Mann's Saloon when a man named Jack McCall entered the room. As Hickok and others played poker, McCall got increasingly drunk, which according to legend he was prone to do. When one of the players in the game Hickok was engaging in left, McCall took his seat and proceeded lose all his money to Hickok. Now we'll never know if this was done with malice or intent to insult, but it is believed that Hickok gave McCall some money to get something to eat and advised him to not play cards again. While McCall took the money offered to him by Hickok, he apparently was insulted by the act.
On the next day at the same saloon, Hickok was again at the poker table. Here is where a simple decision leads to one of the "What if"?" moments in history. For this one, I'm going to quote Jack McCall – Cowardly Killer of Wild Bill Hickok from the Legends of America website:
The next afternoon when Wild Bill entered Nuttall & Mann’s Saloon he found Charlie Rich sitting in his preferred seat. After some hesitation, Wild Bill joined the game, reluctantly seating himself with his back to the door and the bar—a fatal mistake. Jack McCall, drinking heavily at the bar, saw Hickok enter the saloon, taking a seat at his regular table in the corner near the door. Seeing an opportunity to avenge himself of the insult, and perhaps to make a name for himself, McCall came up behind Hickok, pointed his .45 caliber revolver at the back of his head and pulled the trigger as he shouted, “Damn you, take that!” Hickok, holding a hand of Aces and Eights, fell instantly dead to the floor.
This really hits home with me. For many a year, after working as a bouncer, I couldn't go into bar or restaurant without checking to see where the emergency exits were. Shit, I couldn't sit with my back to the door as well. That's relaxed somewhat in the last couple of years. But I get where Hickok was coming from. Maybe it was a case of it was his time but "What if?" he was able to sit in the manner that he was accustomed to, would there be something of a Dead Man's Hand in poker? We'll just have to leave that in the air since there's no way answer. And I am digressing way too much from the Deadwood Rye and Straight Bourbon Whiskeys.
As for the whiskeys, the Rye Whiskey comes in at 41.5% (83 proof) and is aged in full sized American Oak barrels for at least 24 months. The Straight Bourbon comes in at 40.5% (81 proof) and is aged in New American Oak barrels for at least two years. So how do they taste?
I tried the Rye first. I love a spicy Rye whiskey. The spicier the better I say. Deadwood's offering doesn't disappoint. I felt the on the front and back of my tongue and the rye went down nice and easy with minimal burn and harshness. The aroma was also very pleasing on the nose.
Next came the Bourbon. Similar to the Rye, the Bourbon had a nice aroma to it and while not as spicy as the Rye, the Bourbon was also smooth going down.
