Tag: Detroit

Barrel Reserve Old Cockney Gin

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Maker: Two James, Detroit, Michigan, USA

Style: Barrel-aged dry gin

ABV: 45.5%

Michigan state minimum: $44

Appearance: Pale gold.

Nose: Alcohol, juniper.

Palate: Sweetness, alcohol, juniper.

Finish: Dry and coniferous.

Mixed: Gives a nice, clean Pine-sol® aroma to classic gin cocktails.

Parting words: This gin is wildly unbalanced. Its sibling, Old Cockney, teeters on the edge of enjoyability, but the barrel-aged version falls right off the cliff. Most barrel-aged gins bring a creamy sweetness to cocktails, but that’s entirely absent here. No mixer can really stand up to the agressive piney-ness of this gin. It leaves all cocktails in ruins, no matter how good or potent the mixers. For $2 less, you can get Valentine’s barrel rested Liberator gin which is superior in every way. Barrel Reserve Old Cockney Gin is not recommended.

Railroad Gin

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Maker: Detroit City Distillery, Detroit, Michigan, USAwp-1466106559159.jpg

Style: London Dry

ABV: 44%

Michigan State Minimum: $35

Appearance: Crystal clear.

Nose: Juniper, iris root, citrus peel.

Palate: Full bodied. Alcohol and sweetness. Nothing else.

Finish: Juniper, orange, burn.

Mixed: Did fine in everything.

Parting words: There are two distilleries in the City of Detroit: Two James and Detroit City. The best way to describe the differences between the two (other than having different names, ownership and locations) is that Two James is a distillery with a bar and Detroit City is a bar with a distillery. The bar seems to be the driving force for DCD. All their spirits are meant to be mixed and are at their best when consumed that way. It’s a fun concept for a bar, but there’s little going on there to excite spirits enthusiasts.

There’s little going on in this gin to excite me either. There’s nothing wrong with it. It bears a resemblance to Beefeater and other big brand gins and performs as well as they do in cocktails. The problem is that this costs $35 and Beefeater costs $19. At $35 Railroad Gin is up against products like St. George’s gins or Hendrick’s. It can’t compete with either of those, even after adding a few extra bucks for the pleasure of supporting a local business. It’s not bad enough to slap with a “not recommended” so Railroad Gin is only mildly recommended.

Sugar House Bar

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Address: 2130 Michigan Ave., Detroit, Michigan (next to Slow’s BBQ)

Hours: Sun-Thurs. 5 pm- midnight. Fri-Sat 5 pm- 2 am

Type: Cocktail Bar

Appearance/atmosphere: On the outside and inside, The Sugar House Bar is contemporary and appealing, if a little dull. Dark paint and exposed brick on the inside. The bar itself is nice and spacious, although the dazzling array of bottles behind it steal the show. Tables are also available. Bathrooms were clean and matched the muted contemporary décor of the rest of the establishment, but they had those weird waterless urinals. For reasons I can’t explain, they give me the creeps. My friend reported that the women’s bathroom was nice.

The atmosphere is fun and casual. It was fairly easy to hear my drinking companion and the bartender.

Service: Service was excellent. Brandon was our bartender and he did an excellent job of suggesting cocktails for both of us. One of Sugar Bar’s specialties is building a drink around whatever mixer or liquor

Menu/Selection:  The drinks menu was nice, and most of my friend’s drinks came off it, while mine were all time-honored standards. I had the three classic whiskey drinks: Manhattan, Sazerac and an Old Fashioned. I took notes on what my friend had but a toddler walked out with them. From what I recall, she had two flip-type drinks and one called a Petruchio. She is in no way shrewish, but she loved it (you’re welcome English majors). She even loved the ones I had, despite repeatedly stating how she doesn’t care for whiskey (due to a HS experience involving Black Velvet and Grape Faygo).

The selection of mixers and liquors behind the bar was impressive. The bourbon and rye was most impressive of all. Just about every major label rye on the market was there: Sazerac, Rittenhouse, Beam, Wild Turkey, Bulleit, the new Woodford Reserve ryes, and even a four year old Willet rye (used to make my Sazerac cocktail). The bourbon selection was vast as well with plenty of sipping and mixing bourbons. There was also a good selection of Mezcal and Islay Single Malts. Not to mention a truly bewildering selection of liqueurs and other mixers including house-made ones.

Prices: The drinks are pretty expensive, most of them being in the low double digits price-wise, but these are craft cocktails and damn good ones. No complaints. We got what we paid for and more.

Transportation: We went on a weeknight, but it still seemed like there would be plenty of parking on Michigan Ave. on a weekend, although a multi-block walk might be in required. The 37 DDOT bus runs the length of Michigan Avenue and is a good option for those in Detroit or even Dearborn. From Dearborn and points west the 200 SMART bus goes down Michigan. Transit from the north is more of a challenge, but if timed right, a transfer or even a walk from one of the Woodward SMART stops should do the trick. Taxis are also an option, of course.

Parting Words: My friend and I had a great experience. Great service, fantastic drinks and good service. The Sugar House Bar gets a big recommendation.