Unpopular Tiki Opinions - General Tiki

A AceExplorer Grand Member (8 years) Deep in the Jacksonville Flori-duh jungle. Joined: Apr 03, 2008 Posts: 2566	A AceExplorer Posted posted on Sun, Jan 6, 2019 6:32 AM Here's one that I hold and definitely think is unpopular, and is posted in the spirit of friendly discussion. Please hang in there with me - I'll make my statement and offer explanations and some examples of my position. "Velvet Falernum" is not the real deal flavor-profile wise. Per conversations I have had with others who are WAY more knowledgeable than me, I came to understand we should all be using almost any falernum product other than "Velvet." Yet the "Velvet" version is continually gaining acceptance despite having a very tame flavor profile, and it's actually having the unfortunate effect of changing the recipes posted online for some classic tiki drinks. Privately, the "Velvet" has been described by some as "the Coors Light of falernums." Does Velvet work? Sure. Is it authentically close to what was being used many decades ago? Based on taste tests, I maintain the position that it does not. For authenticity I have always been referred to Paul Clarke's #8 or #9 recipes, or similar store-bought, like B.G. Reynolds, or Fee Brothers. To be fair, the roots of falernum are in the home-made versions which are traditional in the Caribbean countries, so variations have always existed. My goal is to make my drinks with the appropriately similar falernum flavor profile which approaches those used for the real classic tiki drinks. "Velvet" just doesn't come close to the same impact and effect. Now, having said all that, is there a need for more than one falernum? Sure - strong and weak can definitely be incorporated into our bars. I'm just trying to reduce casual blurring of the line between the newer less-bold variant and the older more-bold original flavor profile. Here are examples of what led me to write this post: The Bum's recipe for the bourbon-based tiki drink "Western Sour" specifies "falernum" or "Falernum #9." I take this to mean the bolder expressions -- home-made #8, #9, and store-bought Fee's, Reynolds, etc. https://www.3stofthemonth.com/ourrecipes/2014/9/24/western-sour takes the Bum's recipe and they state they "adapted" it with Velvet specified. I think this is not a correct adaptation, but for those who choose not to make falernum, they can easily find the mass-produced "Velvet" at their local big liquor store. Similar is true here https://kindredcocktails.com/cocktail/western-sour but they are a bit more clear -- "falernum" or "Velvet falernum" -- indicating possibly that they recognize the differences in flavor between the products. In other words, this supports my assertion that "Velvet falernum" is not the same as "falernum" in general. There is a difference, and these differences definitely impact our drinks, and taste-tests have confirmed this. And since falernum is so awesome of a tiki ingredient, I'm very careful with it and the recipes that use it. While I try to be flexible, and appreciate innovations, I do exercise more care with classics and the classic ingredients needed to fully enjoy them. In general, I think it's good to build awareness of the expanding range of the falernum flavor profile in our day and age. It's time-consuming and a challenge to make - even for the pros. But "Velvet" is a shortcut - it gets you there, but not with much authenticity. And I do recognize that not everyone wants to take the time to make the good stuff, so store-bought is their preferred or only option. But "Velvet" is SO much less than the others that I think we're at a point where we have to be more careful about differentiating between the "weak" and "strong" variations. I know there are one or two threads here discussing this, but there is conflicting information posted there. "Velvet is awesome." "Velvet is not awesome, use Product X." I think this is going to come up more frequently in the future. It's just not talked about very much - maybe its not politically correct to hold this opinion despite taste tests confirming my opinion. Do try the Western Sour though. It's bourbon-based and has the blessing of a number of tiki folks. Cheers! [Edited to fix a few typos, and to more clearly state a couple of concepts.] [ Edited by: AceExplorer 2019-01-06 07:08 ]

Here's one that I hold and definitely think is unpopular, and is posted in the spirit of friendly discussion. Please hang in there with me - I'll make my statement and offer explanations and some examples of my position.

"Velvet Falernum" is not the real deal flavor-profile wise. Per conversations I have had with others who are WAY more knowledgeable than me, I came to understand we should all be using almost any falernum product other than "Velvet." Yet the "Velvet" version is continually gaining acceptance despite having a very tame flavor profile, and it's actually having the unfortunate effect of changing the recipes posted online for some classic tiki drinks.

Privately, the "Velvet" has been described by some as "the Coors Light of falernums." Does Velvet work? Sure. Is it authentically close to what was being used many decades ago? Based on taste tests, I maintain the position that it does not. For authenticity I have always been referred to Paul Clarke's #8 or #9 recipes, or similar store-bought, like B.G. Reynolds, or Fee Brothers. To be fair, the roots of falernum are in the home-made versions which are traditional in the Caribbean countries, so variations have always existed. My goal is to make my drinks with the appropriately similar falernum flavor profile which approaches those used for the real classic tiki drinks. "Velvet" just doesn't come close to the same impact and effect.

Now, having said all that, is there a need for more than one falernum? Sure - strong and weak can definitely be incorporated into our bars. I'm just trying to reduce casual blurring of the line between the newer less-bold variant and the older more-bold original flavor profile. Here are examples of what led me to write this post:

The Bum's recipe for the bourbon-based tiki drink "Western Sour" specifies "falernum" or "Falernum #9." I take this to mean the bolder expressions -- home-made #8, #9, and store-bought Fee's, Reynolds, etc.
https://www.3stofthemonth.com/ourrecipes/2014/9/24/western-sour takes the Bum's recipe and they state they "adapted" it with Velvet specified. I think this is not a correct adaptation, but for those who choose not to make falernum, they can easily find the mass-produced "Velvet" at their local big liquor store.
Similar is true here https://kindredcocktails.com/cocktail/western-sour but they are a bit more clear -- "falernum" or "Velvet falernum" -- indicating possibly that they recognize the differences in flavor between the products. In other words, this supports my assertion that "Velvet falernum" is not the same as "falernum" in general.

There is a difference, and these differences definitely impact our drinks, and taste-tests have confirmed this. And since falernum is so awesome of a tiki ingredient, I'm very careful with it and the recipes that use it. While I try to be flexible, and appreciate innovations, I do exercise more care with classics and the classic ingredients needed to fully enjoy them. In general, I think it's good to build awareness of the expanding range of the falernum flavor profile in our day and age. It's time-consuming and a challenge to make - even for the pros. But "Velvet" is a shortcut - it gets you there, but not with much authenticity. And I do recognize that not everyone wants to take the time to make the good stuff, so store-bought is their preferred or only option. But "Velvet" is SO much less than the others that I think we're at a point where we have to be more careful about differentiating between the "weak" and "strong" variations.

I know there are one or two threads here discussing this, but there is conflicting information posted there. "Velvet is awesome." "Velvet is not awesome, use Product X." I think this is going to come up more frequently in the future. It's just not talked about very much - maybe its not politically correct to hold this opinion despite taste tests confirming my opinion.

Do try the Western Sour though. It's bourbon-based and has the blessing of a number of tiki folks. Cheers!

[Edited to fix a few typos, and to more clearly state a couple of concepts.]

[ Edited by: AceExplorer 2019-01-06 07:08 ]

Post #792287 by AceExplorer on Sun, Jan 6, 2019 6:32 AM