Spirited Cocktails

The best part of writing a blog about spirits and cocktails is the opportunity that it creates to taste lots of new spirits and cocktails! Seems obvious, I suppose, but it means more than you might think. The opportunity to try something new is great, but the opportunity to do so along with other people whose company you enjoy and whose opinion you respect – that’s much more meaningful.

This past week, I joined some of my favorite people – fellow bloggers @nybarfly, @lincolnwrites, @selenawrites, and @sweetblogomine – to taste Harlem, a new spirit distilled in Holland (named after the Dutch town Haarlem), and based on an herbal blend that the Dutch call Kruiden. At first blush, one might notice some similarities to Jagermeister, in that Harlem is definitely a dark, herbal spirit, intended to be poured as a shot, and definitely best served ice cold.

However, while I’m not really a “shot person” either way, I found Harlem to be much smoother than Jager; certainly herbal, but more well rounded with a nice citrus finish (the result of a strong presence of mandarin in the blend.) We tried Harlem in a few different combinations, include as a straight shot, on the rocks, and blended with common mixers like Cola and Ginger Ale. (I actually found the Harlem and Ginger Ale to be my favorite!) These mixed variations could be served either as shots (1oz Harlem and .5oz cola, for example), or over ice as a tall drink.

While Harlem has been a closely held family recipe for decades, they’re just in the process of launching in the US now. It has started to show up in major markets, and will be rolled out across the country in the coming months. The suggested retail price is around $22 for a 750ml bottle.

Unfortunately, our resident blogger/mad scientist @halw (of amuddledthought.com) wasn’t able to join us for the tasting, but I’m looking forward to seeing what kind of cocktails he can whip up with Harlem. Stay tuned.

Cheers!

Josh