Hail The King

I love ginger.  The aroma, the spice, the slight hit of heat...and the way that it matches well with so many other flavors.  As a result, in the early stages of building up my collection of spirits and liqueurs, a bottle of the ginger profile was a necessity on the list.  And while it took a little longer than planned, I finally secured it.  I spent some time debating between two of the most popular bottles, Domaine de Canton and The King's Ginger.  While both were liqueurs that I had enjoyed in a variety of cocktails, I ended up going with The King's Ginger for a couple of reasons.  Perhaps most importantly, the more mellow and rounded ginger flavor of King's.  True, it lacks the brighter, more pungent, and slightly sweeter profile of Domaine de Canton, but I figured a touch of ginger syrup could help provide that additional fresh kick if I really needed without a bottle of Canton on hand.  Another noticeable distinction between the two lies in their composition.  While both begin with their ingredients in a base of neutral grain spirit, King's distillate of fresh ginger and lemon is finished off by the addition of a single malt whisky (82 proof).  On the other hand, Canton's recipe of crystallized ginger, orange blossom honey, and vanilla is finished with a V.S.O.P. cognac base (56 proof).  At the end of the day, the higher proof King's Ginger had the more straight-forward profile I was looking for, so the decision was made.  And while Domaine de Canton will likely be added to my shelf at some point, there is always the option of making your own version, an endeavor I'm sure I'll be taking on in the near future.

So with the bottle in my possession, what to do with it?  A cube of ice along with a dash or two of Angostura and/or orange bitters wouldn't be offensive, but certainly more intriguing cocktails could be composed.  To begin, I considered the solid pairing of King's Ginger with bourbon.  In this case, I went with a high rye bourbon, Four Roses Yellow Label...and for a bit more depth and slight bitter edge, Ramazzotti amaro.   With hints of orange and galangal (an Indonesian relative of ginger), I figured this would match well with the sweet spice of the bourbon and ginger....along with a couple dashes of Regan's No. 6, this was the result.


Eastern Exposure
2 oz Four Roses Yellow Label bourbon
1 oz The King's Ginger liqueur
1/2 oz Ramazzotti amaro
2 dashes Regan's orange bitters

Stir all ingredients in a mixing glass with ice until well chilled.  Strain into a chilled rocks glass with a cube of ice.

Eastern Exposure

The next source of inspiration was provided by the recent theme of 'Gin and Juice' at the Mixoloseum TDN (Thursday Drink Night).  As luck would have it, my wife had the juicer out and I opened the fridge to what appeared to be a carrot coup d'état targeting my vegetable bins.  Too easy...in slightly culling the carrot population, the resulting juice was now a somewhat unconventional cocktail ingredient for the evening.  The rest came together rather easily as spiced carrot came to mind.  Along with the botanicals of gin and the King's Ginger, a bit of lemon helped counter the sweetness of the carrot, and a heavy-ish hit of Angostura rounded it out with some spice.  


Stick and Carrot
2 oz Leopold's gin
3/4 oz The King's Ginger liqueur
1/2 oz carrot juice
1/2 oz lemon juice
4 dashes Angostura

Shake all ingredients with ice, double strain into a chilled cocktail coupe.

Stick and Carrot

One of the most recent cocktails I've devised with King's Ginger is paired with tequila.  The idea first surfaced with the mounds of clementines we've been getting from the grocer.  They are fantastic (most times)...juicy, sweet with a ton of flavor, and a slight parting tartness.  I figured I could pair this well in a cocktail and went the tequila/citrus route.  For an additional light and crisp component, I went with Cocchi Americano...and finished it with the spicy citrus notes of Bitter Truth Jerry Thomas bitters.


El Rey
1 oz Jose Cuervo Tradicional Reposado tequila
1 oz The King's Ginger liqueur
1 oz Cocchi Americano
1/2 oz lemon juice
1/4 clementine, unpeeled 
2 dashes Bitter Truth Jerry Thomas bitters

Muddle clementine, bitters, and lemon juice in a mixing glass.  Add remaining ingredients with ice, shake, double strain into a chilled cocktail glass.  

El Rey

And with that, you have it...three very different cocktails which feature the rich ginger profile of The King's Ginger liqueur.  It is a great product, but to be certain, I will be giving Domaine de Canton it's fair share once I acquire a bottle, hopefully in the near future.