Review: Brody’s Cocktails – Air Mail, Black Orchid, and Touch of Grey
Review: Brody’s Cocktails – Air Mail, Black Orchid, and Touch of Grey
Brody’s Cocktails have had quite a rewarding year, having won numerous spirits awards recently. They offer five varieties of ready-to-drink / ready-to-mix cocktails in 375ml bottles that tout masterful blending and no artificial sweeteners. The backstory is simply of founder Cristy Neunson’s quest to simplify making quality cocktails at home, and filling what seemed to be an underserved niche in the ready-to-drink market.
If you’ve been keeping an eye to the market the past couple of years, the RTD category is showing no signs of slowing down and the bandwagon is starting to get a little full. So let’s see how well Brody’s sits in this expanding field with three of their offerings.
Brody’s Air Mail Rum Cocktail – Straight out of the bottle, this is a thick, robust, flavorful drink made with honey, lime, and aromatic bitters, with no artificial sweeteners. Clearly this is purposely concentrated to be diluted either with soda water, ice, and/or water, and when poured over a healthy pile of ice, it strikes that perfect balance of sweet, tart, and punchy rum: very well done and satisfying. This is definitely a sweet drink and the rum is more than generous, but the drink manages to sit on that fine line right before it gets too sweet and too alcoholic. The flavor and kick evokes being, ahem, air-dropped into a bustling club or trendy island bar. The 375ml bottle provides for 5 servings. With the generous dose of rum bringing this to 20% abv, the serving size is spot on and recommended to be followed. 20% abv. A-
Brody’s Black Orchid Vodka Cocktail – With its opaque lavender hue, this cocktail is a more sophisticated offering than the Air Mail, but with no less gusto. With black raspberry as the featured flavor, this drink is softer and more subtle, but the cocktail still has a lot of body and does not fall into the common conundrum of berry-forward drinks that leave you itching for just a tad more flavor. It is accented with lemon, orange, and violet, which together contribute to bringing some sparkle to the berry base. I did enjoy this one chilled and neat for a few more sips longer than the Air Mail, but it was quite refreshing and pleasing to linger over when added to lots of ice. The vodka is also more subtle than the rum in the Air Mail, and the drink comes off as detectable and balanced. There is a pronounced, herbal, minty finish which just seems to cleanse the sensory palate and makes you want to go back for another sip. Another winner, and also another one to be mindful of the five serving suggestion. 16% abv. A
Brody’s Touch Of Grey Gin Cocktail – No need to belabor the point, this cocktail is another superb offering from Brody’s. Aptly named Touch of Grey due to the black tea and bergamot base, it is then accented with black raspberry, lemon, and honey. The pleasant, familiar dryness of the “earl grey tea” foundation is spruced up with a lemon and black raspberry pairing that sparkles and soothes at the same time. This one is a tad less sweet than the other two, and it would not be a stretch to compare this to an elegant Long Island iced tea. Another mature cocktail to be imbibed prudently at 16% abv. A
Without caveat or conditions, the Brody’s line of ready-to-drink cocktails can be served confidently at any gathering, for any purpose — casual or grand. A little can go a long way with the level of concentration in these mixes, making them a wonderful way to enjoy mixologist-quality cocktails in the comfort of your own home. Final analysis: Brody’s is a solid contender in the RTD category.
each about $16 per 375ml bottle / drinkbrodys.com
Brody's Black Orchid Vodka Cocktail
$16
