It goes like this; first, Simple Syrup…easy, and quick, and tasty. And then, trying something a little more challenging and varied, you make grenadine…still easy, and tastier, and superior. Great! Then you decide to get all esoteric and historic and brave. A few skinned knuckles and ruined cheese cloths later you have Falernum (this despite the fact it’s not often used outside tiki drinks, but the Corn and Oil is a MIGHTY nice parting gift)…a little more difficult and cumbersome, but unique and rewarding and a great way to dazzle friends. Then, you go mildly insane, much like our mariner friend here…

I made my first batch of Pimento Dram (Allspice Liqueur) last Fall and, given that it takes a month-and-a-half to make it properly, set it on the shelf, tried the occasional tiki drink that called for it, added it to a batch of Egg Nog or two (delicious), but otherwise found it a fantastic ingredient for which I had yet to find a natural, recurring, and fitting home for. Until, that is, I came upon the Ancient Mariner in Jeff Berry’s Grog Log. This is the rare life-changing drink. My secret shame is that it’s taken me this long to write about it and Pimento Dram¹ . Let’s look at the secret weapon of the drink, the Pimento Dram, first.

I’ve used the recipe presented by Paul Clarke in his post Adventures in Kitchen Mixology: Pimento Dram which is also the same recipe he presents in the July/Aug 2007 issue of Imbibe as ‘Chuck’s Pimento Dram No. 3’. So, between Dr. Cocktail’s, Paul’s, and Chuck Taggart’s endorsement, I figured it was a helluva safe bet. You can find alternatives like Darcy O’Neil’s, Robert Hess’s, and Rick Stutz’s which mainly vary the type(s) or rum, add citrus, or add and change up the spiciness of the liqueur to various degrees. Try them all and write the definitive Allspice Liqueur showdown, I dare ya.

Chuck/Paul’s Pimento Dram 3.14159265

• 2¼ cups 151 Demerara Rum
• ½ cup whole allspice berries (crushed)
• 3 cups water
• 1½ lbs. brown sugar

Step 1:
Crush the allspice berries (I’ve tried using a blade coffee grinder and a mortar & pestle, go with the mortar & pestle) and add to a sealable jar with the rum and let steep for at least ten days (I get the best results when I push that out to 14 or so). Shake the mixture daily and then strain through as fine a strainer as possible, pressing the solids to extract as much of the liquid as you’re able. Then, strain that through a coffee filter to remove sediment. Plan, more accurately, to use about 5 coffee filters.

Step 2:
Make a simple syrup with the sugar and water by heating them until all of the sugar is dissolved. Once it’s cool then add the resulting infusion from step 1 and allow to sit, sealed, for a month or more. Put it into whatever jars or bottles you like.

If you taste this immediately upon mixing you will question not only your own, but all of our judgments in suggesting you go through the process of making this. It’s quite harsh and, while not unpleasantly spicy, simply doesn’t seem like it belongs anywhere near a drink that depends on balance for it to be classified ‘non swill’. Taste it, but trust the process and come back to it a month or more later and it’ll be much more refined and friendly.

Some notes on this:

The Rum: Since I don’t have regular access to Lemon Hart Demerara rum my first batch was made with Wray & Nephew White Overproof Rum which, besides its high proof, has a rich and almost musty character not unlike a cachaca. Once I got my hands on Lemon Hart 151, though, I was able to compare the two and found the Lemon Hart lends a much spicier and biting profile to the liqueur. Not a bad thing, but it needed a little more rest before serving than the Wray & Nephew did. I refuse to go near Bacardi 151 for this, I just think it’s awful.

The Sugar: With this much sugar your choice has a lot to do with how the final product comes out. I’ve used both brown sugar and, because I had to use Wray & Nephew in my first batch but wanted to assure a Demerara character, I have also used Demerara sugar. I highly recommend the Demerara sugar if you can get it. It makes it even more itself versus simply acting as a sweetener. And, if you’re unable to get Demerara rum, I suggest using it even more strongly.

Everything else is time, or in the case of the alternate recipes, taste. Now, on to the Ancient Mariner:

Ancient Mariner

• 1 oz 80-proof Demerara rum
• 1 oz dark Jamaican rum
• ¾ oz fresh lime juice
• ½ oz grapefruit juice
• ½ oz simple syrup
• ¼ oz pimento dram

Combine all ingredients in a mixing glass and pour into a double old-fashioned glass filled with crushed ice. Garnish with a lime wedge and a sprig of mint.

This is simple to build but suprisingly complex and deep. As I mentioned earlier, this drink rocks my socks and has kept a standing order for grapefruit on the grocery list for the past half year because there’s a certain blend of complexity and balance that you rarely get in a drink. I mean, I love a good Negroni or Bronx or Pink Lady as much as the next guy, but they’re not particularly complex; distinctive, yes. The Ancient Mariner is both. Also, if you’re throwing a party and really want to show off your pimento dram ‘killer app’ usage, it’s extremely easy to make a pitcher of these and let the ‘oooooooohhs’ and ‘aaaaaaahhhs’ commence. Making a pitcher is also serves to tear through your pimento dram because, seriously, you end up making a lot of it and it goes slowly at ¼-1/2 oz per drink (it easily overpowers a cocktail so it’s almost always used sparingly).

I thought I’d be clever and up the pimento dram proportion in this because, hey! more of a good thing, right? Wrong, it completely kills it. Follow those damned proportions above, they’re fer yer own good, ya bastard. That being said, not everyone can get their hands on Demerara rum, myself included² . The best combination of dark Jamaican and non-Demerara rums I’ve found thus far are Coruba (though Appleton will do) and Angostura Gold (a very molasses-profiled rum). Barring Angostura Gold, go with Cruzan. It’s light and sweet and stays out of the way, though it gives the drink less zing.

The only thing I’ve found that improved on this drink is using simple syrup made from demerara sugar (a tip I picked up from David Wondrich in his wonderful book, ‘Imbibe!: From Absinthe Cocktail to Whiskey Smash…’). It adds a little more intensity and rich spiciness to the drink and helps makes up for the lack of demerara rum. Other than that, muck about with this drink at your peril. Oh, and pay attention to that crushed ice thing. It’s important. I let my Ancient Mariner sit and think about just what he did wrong for about a minute before devouring him. Sometimes I pretend I’m Davy Jones while doing it, too.

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For other great uses of Pimento Dram, see these fine local retailers:
Paul features it in Lizzie’s Pippin
Rick struggles with the Pearl Diver’s Punch (buttery)
Slakethirst features The Pie Slinger
The Georgia Thunderstorm is featured at Scofflaw’s Den

The Ancient Mariner Rating: ³

Now, don’t even get me started on the Amer Picon I’ve made.

1. It’s featured by Ted Haigh in the March/April ’08 issue of Imbibe, excellent taste, that man [↩]
2. getting the one bottle of Lemon Hart was a minor act of [insert deity here] [↩]
3. it barely misses 5-stars because it’s very delicate and, therefore, an inconsistent drink-even the season of the lime will throw this into just better than average terrotory [↩]