my homemade allspice syrup/pimento dram tasting experiments - Tiki Drinks and Food

A AdOrAdam Member Wolverhampton, UK Joined: Jun 16, 2013 Posts: 630	A AdOrAdam Posted posted on Mon, Apr 7, 2014 4:03 AM TikiTacky ~ no pimento dram?! You are missing out! I respectfully disagree with your comments 'In other words: don't bother making your own pimento dram unless you live in a place where you literally can't buy it anywhere' :wink: Homemade can be better & there are more recipes than just thePorpoise's! Heed my experience: I hadn't found any in the UK so when I saw some I brought made by Bitter Truth. IMO it isn't very good - it's not an even flavour & it doesn't mix well. To have something to compare I followed this recipe: http://www.seriouseats.com/recipes/2012/02/diy-allspice-dram-make-your-own-st-elizabeths-pimento-dram-recipe.html & scaled it down. First I made 100ml total (as a test) using Cruzan White & a little Woods 100 - good stuff, even flavour & streets ahead of the Bitter Truth. Second I made 500ml using good ol' Captain Morgan & a little Woods 100 again - at first it was not quite as good as the first batch I made (it had a slight bitter edge) but still pretty good. That was about 6 months ago, it has now 'matured' & is great. Of course, your tastes & results may vary. Saint Elizabeth or the Taggart recipe may be better than my homemade stuff. I understand your hesitation to splash out, but as you say 'as any good tiki experimenter will tell you, all those odd ingredients and top-shelf liquor that are "crucial" to the creation of a drink' (yes, the cost does add up fast). Although it is still a little while off, I would not hesitate to buy Saint Elizabeth (it has the best reputation) or to use top notch stuff to make my next batch (LH151, an Appleton as pimento dram is jamaican). My advice would be to make a small batch (100ml?), the anticipation is worth the wait. It does mellow over time but I think the for the better. The Montego Bay & Three Dots & a Dash are two of my favourite drinks :wink:

TikiTacky ~ no pimento dram?! You are missing out!

I respectfully disagree with your comments 'In other words: don't bother making your own pimento dram unless you live in a place where you literally can't buy it anywhere' :wink: Homemade can be better & there are more recipes than just thePorpoise's!

Heed my experience:

I hadn't found any in the UK so when I saw some I brought made by Bitter Truth. IMO it isn't very good - it's not an even flavour & it doesn't mix well.

To have something to compare I followed this recipe: http://www.seriouseats.com/recipes/2012/02/diy-allspice-dram-make-your-own-st-elizabeths-pimento-dram-recipe.html & scaled it down.

First I made 100ml total (as a test) using Cruzan White & a little Woods 100 - good stuff, even flavour & streets ahead of the Bitter Truth.

Second I made 500ml using good ol' Captain Morgan & a little Woods 100 again - at first it was not quite as good as the first batch I made (it had a slight bitter edge) but still pretty good. That was about 6 months ago, it has now 'matured' & is great.

Of course, your tastes & results may vary. Saint Elizabeth or the Taggart recipe may be better than my homemade stuff.

I understand your hesitation to splash out, but as you say 'as any good tiki experimenter will tell you, all those odd ingredients and top-shelf liquor that are "crucial" to the creation of a drink' (yes, the cost does add up fast).

Although it is still a little while off, I would not hesitate to buy Saint Elizabeth (it has the best reputation) or to use top notch stuff to make my next batch (LH151, an Appleton as pimento dram is jamaican).

My advice would be to make a small batch (100ml?), the anticipation is worth the wait. It does mellow over time but I think the for the better.

The Montego Bay & Three Dots & a Dash are two of my favourite drinks :wink:

Post #713228 by AdOrAdam on Mon, Apr 7, 2014 4:03 AM