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The wonderful universe of Spirits is so diverse and exciting, one lifetime is barely enough to experience them all (and keep a working liver). This Tasting Box focuses on the fiesta-time realm of Rum, elegant world of Brandy, and no-nonsense landscape of Irish Whiskey.

The first Filipino sipping Rum, Don Papa Small Batch, is a premium and pristine Spirit with rich and tropical profile; Château de Lacquy Reference is a prestigious Armagnac from the southwest of France; and Jack Ryan is a one of a kind Irish Whiskey.

Each Spirit is an epitome of its genre, wildly different from the other two, but with one common feature: striving for excellence and quality. If this is your first contact with Rum, Brandy or Irish Whiskey, there are no better ushers out there.

Don’t waste your time on second-grade booze. Cheers!

 

 

Smartass Corner:

1) Château de Lacquy is the oldest family-owned estate producing Armagnac, one of the most renowned types of Brandy. It’s been a family affair since 1711 (the time of Louis XIV, to put it into perspective) and the present owner Gilled de Boisseson is the 10th generation to run Château de Lacquy.

2) Jack Ryan ‘Haddington’ Single Malt Irish Whiskey was named after Haddington Road — the address of the company in Dublin. So, you know it’s something they are exceptionally proud of.

3) Don Papa’s Rum is a global collab: the bottle is French, the cork Portuguese, the label Italian, and the Spirit itself Filipino. The award-winning brand design was created in New York by Stranger & Stranger.

4) Brandy was invented in the 16th century by a sneaky Dutch merchant who learned how to remove water from Wine and save cargo space. He then added water again and called it "Bradwijn," which means "burned wine".

5) Rum used to be known as a cheap drink in the Philippines, but when Stephen Carroll, ex-exec of Remy Cointreau, visited the country and realized they have the best sugarcane around, he set up show there in 2011 and started producing premium sipping Rum, basically reinventing the brand of Filipino Rum.

6) Whiskey was invented by Irish monks in the 12th century, when they realized the imported perfumes give you a nice buzz. They reverse-engineered Chanel No.1 and created uisce beatha – water of life.

7) Brandy can be found anywhere in the world but the two most renowned ones, Cognac and Armagnac, can only be produced in their respective regions. Armagnac comes from Gascony in the historic region of Armagnac, which was one of the first ones in France to distill Spirits. Among other differences, Armagnac is produced in smaller volumes than Cognac and sold by small producers rather than the big players in the Spirit industry.

8) The Royal Navy gave its sailors a daily ration of Rum (also known as "tot") from 1850 to 1970 to prevent scurvy. Rum itself didn't actually scare away the condition - it was lime that was added to the ration. Government-issued tipple ended when the Navy realized soaking the buccaneers in alcohol wasn't the safest idea.

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