For Christmas this year, my dad sent my two sisters and I a letter asking if there's anything we'd really like. Each of us is well into adulthood and he mentioned that because he doesn't see us as often as he once did, he struggles around this time of year when thinking about gifts. I responded with one word: booze.
In all seriousness, our home bar has been getting pretty picked over lately and we'd been saving our extra money for Christmas gifts and holiday travel, not on restocking our bourbon supply. So it was such a treat to open a box on Christmas morning with a few new bottles I'd never heard of, namely this Rusty Blade Gin from San Francisco.
The first thing I noticed about the gin is it's brown—it looks like it belongs much more in the whiskey camp than it does the gin camp. As I began to read up on it, my interest was piqued even further. Local fruits and spices are extracted using a three-part distillation process in a copper pot still; the gin is aged in French Oak, giving it time to settle into its characteristic color and warm flavor profile. The result? A gin that still has the botanical flavors I love, but with a heavier hand of citrus, cinnamon and warm ginger. How to use it? I've been using it in cocktails just as you would bourbon, whiskey, scotch or brandy. It's wonderful neat with a little ice or stirred into a Manhattan or Old Fashioned.
Related: Spotlight on Gin: Some New Favorites
(Image: Megan Gordon)
5 Things Paris Taught Me About Travel
Recipe: Ham, Cheddar & Chive Egg Bakes
Good Food to Share 
The Big Book of Small, Cool Spaces 
Apartment Therapy Presents 
The Eight-Step Home Cure 
Bacsac Bacsquare 04...
Apartment Therapy's Sofa Shopping Guide
Nikki’s Sweet and Cheery Print Studio
I cannot help it; "My two sisters and me"........ :)
Thank you, cliokitty. :)
And the gin looks interesting and not at all what I think of as gin. Would it be good at all in a g&t?
Thank you2, cliokitty. From the description, Rusty Blade Gin seems more like a spiced rum than a bourbon or brandy - are the botanicals fairly mild?
it's part of a series of per-prohibition spirits. Old Tom gin is my favorite of them all.
@cliokitty
Assuming you were referring to what is now a corrected first sentence, you were actually wrong; it was correct as it was, because the father was the subject, not the author. To make the decision easy, if you take out the the part about his sisters, you wouldn't say, "my father sent I a letter;" you would say, "my father sent me a letter."
Lots of people overcompensate on this point (including, sadly, teachers), thinking "I" is always correct. In fact, so that people don't mistakenly correct me, I have to say/write things like, "please send the email to Jane and to me," instead of "...to Jane and me."
I got something similar recently, a gin aged in spent bourbon barrels. I haven't experimented much yet, but I like it best straight so far.
https://www.thepartysource.com/express/item.php?id=33665
Sounds like it veers towards Pimm's but not as heavy with the spices? Maybe this would be good mixed with lemonade instead of tonic water.
Thank you, ssmug!!! With so many people backing up cliokitty i was starting to think i had it wrong after all!
ssmug and mh330 - "My dad sent I a letter" is correct? Really?
as an SF resident, I'm excited to get a bottle to try in my home bar. Also, love the classic cocktail cup. Where is the glass from?
I interpreted this whole exchange as ssmug thought that cliokitty was directly quoting a part of the first sentence, "my sisters and me," which the poster then edited and changed to "my sisters and I."
I inferred this from ssmug's phrasing: "Assuming you were referring to what is now a corrected first sentence...it was correct as it was ( I think ssmug thought it originally read as "my sisters and me," which was then changed in response to cliokitty's comment), because the father was the subject, not the author. To make the decision easy, if you take out the the part about his sisters, you wouldn't say, "my father sent I a letter;" you would say, "my father sent me a letter.""
My interpretation is that everyone commenting on this post is actually in accordance: it should be "me." And that grammar errors make everyone a little ragey.
(And I am a teacher who does not overcompensate, as some apparently do.)
And I dislike gin but think that spirit looks intriguing.
How exciting to see a product made just down the street from my house. SF'ers should really come down to Belmont for a tasting... http://oldworldspirits.com/
I use Rusty Blade in drinks that can take a strong gin presence... or drinks that could be whiskey. It certainly isn't Pimm's, this stuff packs a high proof punch! On one giant ice cube with some Gran Classico and Carpano Antica it makes a wonderful Negroni variation.
@cliolitty
@sinnela
I think I see now, that cliokitty was correcting the sentence, but I was thrown off by the next post that said "Thank you," which, for some reason, I thought was the author's.
My apologies! Carry on with your proper use of subjects and objects. :-)
I think some peeps in the comments section could use a dose of the subject.
(then, I suspect mose of us could ;) )
This sounds intriguing, but I'd be careful using a gin like this in a classic cocktail recipe, especially if you normally like gin. I ordered an Old Tom martini at a local pub (it was described as "dry" on the menu, thought it would be comparable to the one I make at home) and was disappointed that it tasted nothing like a martini. I could definitely see this working in a negroni, though.