Notes: A new unfiltered type of ginger liqueur using fresh ginger soaked in unaged white rum for 30 days, sugar, and filtered water and nothing else – no chemicals,extracts or other shortcuts.

Appearance: Slightly cloudy, translucent, ginger fiber yellow,On Swirling it leaves a medium coat on the glass which rapidly subsides i a very even manner receding without leaving droplets or forming legs in the process – we have very rarely seen that before.

First Impression: Fresh ginger with hints of sugar cane, grassy,vegetal notes mixed with a ginger sweetness remind one of old fashioned ginger candied or crystallized ginger.No over the top chemical ginger unlike a number of other ginger or spice liquors.Very refreshing .

Taste: Rather sugary sweet entry followed by a pleasantly intense flush of ginger to the tongue, sort of like a slow motion dawn. A second sip and the sweetness is less apparent and the ginger more so in a pleasant kind of old fashioned ginger candy sort of way

Drinks: Works well in the drinks they have on their website. While there is not a huge call for ginger liquors, this one does serve well.

Bottle: A clear glass cylindrical style bottle with a wire toggle stopper top with a plastic and rubber stopper. Fairly plain paper label with black background and a smallish red rectangular printed box with the word intense picked out in ginger yellow make it easy to spot on a store or bar shelf.

Other: Certified Kosher and Gluten Free. Shake slightly before opening to mix as some sediment may be at bottom ( we don’t consider that a fault but a mark of the liqueur not being filtered to death and possibly losing flavor for the sake of appearances.

Final Thoughts: This ginger liqueur joins a few other notable ginger liqueurs  such as G.E. Massenez Crème de Gingembre  , a clear colorless French ginger liqueur, and Domaine de Canton, also French but using a cognac base and slightly yellow ginger colored but clear. This one is a bit more rustic in appearance, which is charming in a way, and seems a bit more fitting in a Tiki type cocktail then the first two (OK it also uses a rum base) .

Website: http://barrowsintense.com

Nicely done in some ways, but the smart alec “if you want a good read go to a library” rather than providing real information on ingredients and technique is a bit off putting. Good cocktail and cooking recipes with photos and a product finder make this a well organized and useful page – skimpy details notwithstanding.