Post #752118 by AdOrAdam on Tue, Oct 6, 2015 3:06 PM

On 2015-10-06 13:34, AceExplorer wrote:
Taylor's, from my recollection, was weak and sugar-syrupy. I really disliked it because it had a very small flavor compared to home-made Falernum, and came across as wasted money in light of how wimpy it tasted. It was "pretend Falernum." A Falernum wannabe.

...I would suggest making a batch yourself and then sharing your thoughts on how it compares to your bottled Falernums. I expect Fee Brothers to rank quite high, since so many speak very highly of it. But I'd enjoy reading your impressions.

A bit of back story:

Yep, I've made falernum at home - it's good but variable over time (ie it lost something). Definitely 'brighter' than Taylors when freshly made.

Falernum isn't actually something I was using a lot of so I found that when I made a batch I'd be trying to 'drink it up' before it went 'less fresh'. So I although I occasionally made fresh, I stuck with Taylors for 'in the cupboard'.

I was happy with Taylors 'in the cupboard' til I discovered Fees. I think it kicks a lot of drinks up a notch. It's definitely the one to use in Mai Kai recipes (& they have made up a good part of my repertoire in the last little while).

I've tried a few methods of making a 'Fees' style falernum but couldn't get the intestity up enough so I just restocked Fees - now I have both on hand & Im happy to use bottled products over homemade.

Truth be told I'm using Fees a lot more than Taylors, but that doesn't mean Taylors doesn't have a place in some drinks.

For example IMO:

• in Three Dots & Dash I use Taylors, Fees is more dominant but also lessened the agricole flavour (which was a shame).

• in the Captains Grog Fees makes it too sweet & intense for me so use Taylors (the other ingredients provide the depth).

• in the Mai Kai recipes, Fees adds intensity & sweetness, Taylors doesn't cut it.

• in the South Pacific Punch (from the Tiki+ app), Fees sings, Taylors falls flat.