Vermeer Dutch Chocolate Cream Liqueur

...now browsing by category

 

Mounds Bar

Thursday, February 18th, 2010

Mounds Bar

1 oz.     Bols Creme de Cacao (Dark)
1 oz.     Malibu coconut rum 

Place the ingredients in a cocktail shaker with ice. Shake and serve in a shot glass. Enjoy !

It’s been a little while since we shared a shot where it’s supposed to taste like a delicious food. Today we believe we have a pretty good one for you. Previously, we shared a recipe for Liquid Snickers. It received a 5 on our scale of 5 and tasted awesome. Today we present to you the Mounds Bar.

Now in that December 30 recipe for Liquid Snickers, I said that I absolutely love a Snickers bar. More than Mounds or Kit Kat. And that is true. But don’t get me wrong; a Mounds Bar or an Almond Joy are pretty freakin’ good too ! And I’ve never been one to turn my back on a Watchamacallit either. Or even just a regular ol’ Hershey’s Bar. Or M&M’s.

But I digress.

With its tasty combination of chocolate and coconut, a Mounds Bar has always been a sweet snack or lunch dessert. And the simple ingredients in today’s recipe do a really admirable job of capturing this fine confection. All you need is Malibu coconut rum—which just about any self-respecting home bar should have on its shelf. And you need a good label of creme de cacao (the dark variety). While the posted recipe calls for Bols Creme de Cacao, you can also feel free to use the slightly more expensive Marie Brizard Creme de Cacao. Both will suffice just fine for this scrumptious shooter.

And as simple as this 1-2 punch is, the panel positively loved it. The coconut and chocolate meld together to taste like a melted (or liquid) Mounds candy bar. It is pretty sweet tasting without being overwhelming or too rich. It goes down very smooth, although I myself am not even sure you need to shake it over ice. It tastes wonderful chilled…..and I know many people keep candy bars in their refrigerator….but I think it would be just as delicious if it were served at room temp. Just as many people keep their candy bars in a cupboard and eat them “warm” —-for lack of a better term.

Either way, this shot was enjoyed by all. However, we feel we can only give it a 4 on our scale of 5. That mark is almost entirely based on the awesome taste. But you’d have to drink a number of these to light your fire. And while the two-ingredient combination is interesting and a touch creative, it is still only two ingredients. The Liquid Snickers employed four components. We simply felt that of the two, the Liquid Snickers deserved a slightly higher mark for its creativity and multiple ingredients. But we certainly wanted to reward the Mounds Bar fairly for being as good as it is.

So if you are having a little dinner party with friends who would enjoy a sweet dessert shot, make up a batch of each. Let them decide which one is better. It would generate some fun conversation and you’ll save money on getting a more expensive traditional dessert.

Cheers !!

Posted in 4 Star Shots, Bols Dark Creme de Cacao, chocolate cream liqueur, coconut rum, comfort shots, creme de cacao, dessert shots, flavored rum, Godiva Chocolate Cream Liqueur, Lady Godiva chocolate liqueur, Malibu Rum, Marie Brizard Creme de Cacao Dark, rum, Vermeer Dutch Chocolate Cream Liqueur | No Responses »

Coup de Gras

Wednesday, January 20th, 2010

Coup de Gras (or Coup de Grace)

1 oz.           Skyy vodka
1 oz.           White Godiva chocolate cream liqueur
1 oz.           Dr McGillicuddy’s peppermint schnapps 

Pour all three ingredients into a cocktail shaker with ice and give it a few gentle shakes. Just enough to create the slightest froth. Pour it in the shot glass. Enjoy !

The exact translation of the term coup de grace is ” blow of mercy “. It specifically means delivering a death blow intended to end the suffering of a wounded animal or creature. However the phrase can extend to include friends or enemies (as in battle)—given with or without their permission. In more everyday language, it is often used figuratively to describe the last of a series of events; to bring about the end of something. Some cooks refer to adding the final ingredient of a delicious dish as the coup de grace. Or a waiter may use the phrase in reciting a meal of many courses. But the real definition is to carry out the blow of mercy to put something or someone out of their misery.

Pretty serious shit, huh?

So when we heard about this recipe and the origin of the phrase from research and development, a couple of taste team members squirmed in their seats a little bit. Then we were told the ingredients.

Reluctance and fear soon turned to anticipation and thirst. This Coup de Grace sounded pretty damn good !

The combination of chocolate liqueur and peppermint schnapps conjured up visions of a spoonful of chocolate mint ice cream or a candy bar. And the vodka didn’t sound intimidating; it sounded like the power punch complementing the dessert imagery.

Before we get to the taste and the grade this shooter earned, let’s quickly address the ingredients. There is only one deviation we will approve of when it comes to both the chocolate liqueur and the peppermint schnapps. You want the chocolate liqueur to be creamy and top shelf. White Godiva is an outstanding brand and you should try and stick with that label. However, we have used Vermeer Dutch Chocolate Cream liqueur in prior recipes and that is also a terrific brand. So if you have Vermeer behind your bar already and don’t want to buy a special bottle of White Godiva, then we approve of it as a suitable substitute. But if you have neither and need to buy one or the other, then purchase the White Godiva per the recipe.

And when it comes to the peppermint schnapps, the only substitute for Dr McGillicuddy’s that earns our approval is Rumple Minze. You want the peppermint schnapps to be powerful in both its taste and its kick. Don’t go with a cheap peppermint schnapps on this one.

Finally, you can use any really good vodka that you like. Go with Skyy, Absolut, Ketel One, Thor’s Hammer, or Grey Goose. Any of those labels will suffice here.

The shot was magnificent. The taste team loved it and had 5 rounds before we pushed ourselves away from the table. The combination of a strong peppermint schnapps and the chocolate cream liqueur was as good as anticipated. The vodka and the schnapps combined to pack enough of a wallop to give us a slight buzz after the fifth round. Which is why we called it quits there. We’re a taste test team doing scientific research….not trying to get shit faced.

ShareMyShot gives this mercyful shooter a 5 on a scale of 5. It had a chilled creaminess that almost resembled a York Peppermint Patty. It combined a few delicous ingredients and could qualify as a dessert shot. But it still had enough of a kick to earn our highest mark.

If this is a “mercy blow” designed to put me out of my misery, well then thank you sir…..may I have another?

Cheers !!

Posted in 5 Star Shots, Absolut, chocolate cream liqueur, comfort shots, dessert shots, Dr McGillicuddys peppermint schnapps, flavored liqueurs, flavored schnapps, Godiva Chocolate Cream Liqueur, Grey Goose Vodka, Ketel One vodka, Lady Godiva chocolate liqueur, liqueurs, peppermint schnapps, Rumple Minze, schnapps, Skyy vodka, Thor's Hammer Vodka, Vermeer Dutch Chocolate Cream Liqueur, vodka | No Responses »

Mint-chip Backdraft

Tuesday, November 10th, 2009

Mint-Chip Backdraft

1/3 oz.     Godiva Chocolate Cream Liqueur
1/3 oz.     Dr. McGillicuddy’s peppermint schnapps
1/3 oz.     Bacardi 151 rum 

Pour each ingredient into a shot glass in the order established. Allow it to settle a bit; the chocolate cream liqueur will rise slightly in the glass. Shoot when ready.

A few weeks ago, we tried to suggest some recipes that had more of a Halloween-theme to them—whether in the name, or their serve-ability at a party, etc. And then last week, we tried to introduce you to some higher quality liqueurs that are worth the price and the effort. Perhaps we should call this the week of the dessert shot.

I only posted yesterday’s recipe for the Drunken Bunny because I was introduced to it during yet another John Lennonesque “lost weekend”. But in discussing that shot, someone in the office suggested this savory flavored shooter and most of us were intrigued. Now we find ourselves on a mini dessert shot streak. Although this sweet little confection could have made last week’s list as well for fine liqueurs.

That’s because of the chocolate cream liqueur element.

Per my colleague in the office, the recipe calls for a high quality chocolate cream liqueur. A few of the more recognized and delicious brands include Godiva and Vermeer. These labels can run you in the neighborhood of $35-40 for a 750ml bottle. But again, these are two of the leading brands on the marketplace. And having one of them behind your bar is a treat. A treat in that you can make a Mint-chip Backdraft whenever you have a hankering.

But you could pretty much get away with perhaps the most identifiable name when it comes to chocolate liqueurs. To many, this Creme de Cacao. It is found in most every liquor store of value and is a bit less expensive than the forementioned brands.

As far as the peppermint schnapps, all of us at ShareMyShot encourage you to stick with Dr. McGillicuddy’s brand. In many other shots calling for a peppermint schnapps element, we have been open to a substitute label. But in this shot, there is an attempt to capture a mint-chip flavor. And chilled Dr. McGillicuddys has a sweetness to it that other peppermint schnapps are sometimes lacking. I only drink Dr McGillicuddys chilled from the freezer. It goes down so easy and doesn’t burn the back of your throat. It’s more like a cold candy cane.

So if you start with a fine chocolate cream liqueur like Godiva or Vermeer—-and then stick with Dr. McGillicuddys schnapps—-you have your mint-chip flavor. Factor in the Bacardi 151 and you have a pretty damn good dessert shot here. Honest injun.

With the chilled peppermint schnapps, it tastes like a spoonful of mint-chip ice cream. The Bacardi makes it an adult shot. Without the rum, kids could almost drink the mint-chip combo. I said almost. But it is a terrific shooter for a small dinner party and would go awesome with a small dish of ice cream. There’s your dessert: a small dish of vanilla ice cream and a Mint-chip Backdraft.

We at ShareMyShot give this frosty flavored treat a 4 on a scale of 5. It is really, really delicious. Very pleasant to the palate. DO ALLOW the chocolate cream liqueur to rise a little bit. It does make its way to the top which helps the drinker to experience the flavor better. So even though it looks delicious, hold off for for a damn minute. Let the freakin’ thing backdraft, will ya?

Cheers !!

Posted in 4 Star Shots, Bacardi 151, creme de cacao, dessert shots, Dr McGillicuddys peppermint schnapps, DuBouchett peppermint schnapps, flavored liqueurs, Godiva Chocolate Cream Liqueur, Hiram Walker peppermint schnapps, Hiram Walker schnapps, liqueurs, peppermint schnapps, rum, Rumple Minze, schnapps, Vermeer Dutch Chocolate Cream Liqueur | No Responses »