Bonanza!
Exciting times are soon to be had by all obscure classic cocktail drinkers in the State of Washington. Eric Seed of Haus Alpenz was in town yesterday and has informed me that the following products are either in Seattle already (waiting to go on shelves) or on the way. Even better, they are all reasonably priced from $15.78 – $31.56 (the eau-de-vie being by far the most expensive, but worth it as it is darn tasty).
1. Zirbenz Stone Pine Liqueur of the Alps
2. Rothman & Winter Orchard Apricot Liqueur
3. Rothman & Winter Crème de Violette
4. Rothman & Winter Orchard Pear Liqueur
5. St. Elizabeth Allspice Dram
6. Hayman’s Old Tom Gin
7. Pear Williams Purkhart Alto Adige Eau-de-Vie
8. Blume Marillen Apricot Eau-de-Vie
9. John D. Taylor’s Velvet Falernum
10. Batavia Arrack van Oosten
11. Lauria Alpensahne Alpine Cream Liqueur
12. Nux Alpina Walnut Liqueur
Look for them on your shelves at a store near you (or at the very least at Store 101 in Seattle) and start making proper Aviations, Self-Starters, Corn N’ Oils, None But The Braves, Boomerangs, and finally, at long last, an Old Tom Martinez.
On another note, a little birdie told me that Robert Cooper of St. Germain Elderflower fame will be releasing his Crème Yvette and Forbidden Fruit very soon, and that some of it will be available at this year’s Tales of the Cocktail.
I almost forgot, Ted Breaux was also in town yesterday with news that his Jade Nouvelle-Orleans absinthe will soon be available in the US. To find out about the twenty-something other absinthes that are already here or on their way, click here.
Exciting stuff indeed!
Crappy picture taken in dark bar by:
Jamie Boudreau
.
SpiritsAndCocktails.com 
While my wallet gently weeps…
Exciting times. I think I’m going to have a bring a separate suitcase with me to the States just for all the Haus Alpenz products I want to bring back with me.
What do you make of Hayman’s Old Tom Jamie? Now the novelty has worn off, I’m finding myself a little disappointed by it. It doesn’t seem much more than a sweetened dry gin, though a perfectly tasty one, and I guess I was hoping for something more distinct…
Eureka!!!!!!!
Woot! And I was just about to give in a make a big order from somebody online. After having violette-containing Aviations at Vessel and Zig Zag, it’s just not the same without. And I can’t wait to try Old Tom gin!
What Erik said.
I wouldn’t count on it. I stopped by at the sodo liquor store and the manager not only had never heard of any of these but that he had no plans of ever getting them because there’s no distributor in Washington.
evil:
Trust me, they are here and just waiting to get on the shelves. I’ve seen the SKU numbers as well as the regular and Class H prices. An uninformed liquor store employee seems to be the norm in this State. I also know for a fact that they have a distributor (I met him) and while ALL the products aren’t in the warehouses yet, some are and are just waiting to be shipped to the stores and put on the shelf. Mary at 101 has said she will stock them. I was told that they were supposed to arrive today, but it doesn’t surprise me that they weren’t there. I’d hazard a guess that it may happen after the 4th, given how the State liquor store employees “work”.
Jay:
The fact that I can try the Old Tom in all those classic recipes is exciting enough for me. As I do not have another Old Tom gin to compare it to, I cannot really make a statement one way or the other about it.
I will say this though: it made a better Martinez than Beefeater (which is the same house).
Jamie, I most certainly trust you. 🙂 It’ll probably be after the 10th the way things work around here.
A pallet containing all but the Scarlet Ibis, Punkt Genau and Old Tom (arrives into US in late July) sit in a warehouse in Seattle. The distributor is exceptionally good with special order turnaround, though much depends store to store. Mary at Store 101 has had the full dog & pony show, so you won’t get runaround there. Other goods to follow. It’s so very nice in Seattle and Portland – can’t wait to go back.
We’ll talk more on the HOTG later…
As of two days ago nothing has yet shown up at the 4th ave store (which I believe is #101) but I also got confirmation from one of the employees that at least the Creme de Violette is definitely on the way. (I think she said 20 cases or something??)
having never had a _proper_ old-school Aviation I am pretty excited about this. 🙂
I am a bit dismayed that there were only two bottles of Luxardo Maraschino left the other day, and no Maraska in sight. I’m trying to keep two bottles of both at home at all times so I grab one whenever I see it.
The Creme de Violette is *on the shelf* at the 4th ave store #101.
Nothing else has shown up yet.
It’s about $25 for 750ml.
In addition to the Creme do Violette, Store #101 now has Plymouth Sloe Gin, Velvet Falernum, St Elizabeth Allspice Dram, and the Batavia Arrack “on the shelf”. No word on the Old Tom….