Everybody wants to be the favorite.  Maybe you want to be the favorite guy at the office always getting the promotions.  Maybe you want to be that hot chick you know’s favorite booty call.  Maybe you want to be the bartender’s favorite patron always getting the free drinks.  These are all noble desires, and Disaronno is no different claiming to be “The World’s Favorite Italian Liquor”.  While we cannot validate that, we can determine if it is Boozebasher’s favorite Italian liqueur, and it has some stiff competition considering how much we like Galliano.

   The origins of Disaronno Amaretto reach all of the way back to 1525 during the Italian Renaissance when Bernardino Luini was commissioned by the Santa Maria delle Grazie to paint a fresco of the Madonna.  Needing a model of appropriate beauty, he called on an innkeeper he had met on a previous trip to Saronno Italy.  I hardly think I need to mention that their relationship was a bit more than business.  Once the “Adoration of the Magi” fresco was complete, she presented him with a concoction to express her gratitude and affection.  This elixer contained brandy, apricot kernels and her own recipe of spices.  It is that same recipe used in every bottle of Disaronno Amaretto on the shelves today.  Disaronno is a time capsule reaching back almost 500 years, and you don’t even have to be a famous dead painter to get your hands on it.

   ILLVA, the producers of Disaronno, combine burnt sugar, alcohol, apricot kernel oil, and a secret recipe of 17 herbs and spices to produced this almond liqueur that is loved worldwide.  It does not take a real Einstein to figure out if you will like Disaronno.  Do you like almonds and apricots?  If so, then you are probably going to like this almond-apricot flavored liquor.  If you think almonds and apricots are best used for flinging at the neighborhood children playing on your lawn, then I suggest you look elsewhere.  The initial flavor is dominated by smooth almond and fades into a hint of bitterness before the sweet apricot takes over and lingers for an exceptionally long time.  Beware, this is one sweet liqueur and the first 3 drinks on the rocks are quite enjoyable.  However, I find that the fourth is just too cloying to get down with a smile on my face.  Fortunately for us, some intrepid drinker invented the Amaretto sour and Disaronno makes one fine Amaretto sour. 

   One major drawback to Disaronno is the fact that it is only 56 proof.  So, while it mixes well with a number of things, we suggest you mix it with a little more potent booze if you expect to get very tipsy.  Their website has a number of cocktails if you are looking from some inspiration.  Don’t get too carried away though, as the sugar content of any amaretto can leave you regretting the previous nights consumption the morning after.

    There are a variety of amaretto liquors available at your local liquor store and at $26 a fifth, Disaronno is definitely not the cheapest.  However, only one can claim they are still using the 500 year old originale recipe.  If you are a fan of almonds or apricots, we suggest you give it a try.  Hey, it has to be the “The World’s Favorite Italian Liquor” for some reason.

Sipability - 8.0

Mixability - 8.5

Drunkability - 3.5

Hangover-ability - 6.5

Bang for the Buck - 6.5

Overall - 6.5 

     The Liquor Gods must be smiling down on us because they have bestowed upon us, Trago Silver.  Actually, the wonderful people that produce Trago tequila were kind enough to provide us with a bottle of their Silver ultra-premium tequila for reviewing.  I was lucky enough to have the honor of reviewing it.  The members of the Boozebasher crew were all impressed with the samples they provided and were instant fans.  Trago tequila is produced by the Los Alambiques Distillery located in central Mexico.  Trago Silver is produced using 100% blue agave that is grown in the high-altitudes of the Jalisco mountains.  The rich soil and higher elevation produces an agave plant this has a higher sugar content which imparts a richer flavor to the tequila.

    Trago Silver comes in a very distinct bottle, that is quite catchy and allows you to admire yourself in its shiny, silver cap.  Removing the cap gives the bottle a whole new character.  While it may look awkward, it’s actually an ideal shape for pouring.  Pour it with the sloping side down and you’ll have a nice even pour every time.  Esthetically pleasing and functional!  Always a plus in my book.  Enough with the looks, let’s get to the taste.

     I always take a good sniff of my liquor before I enjoy it.  What I get from Trago Silver is a sweet citrus aroma with a hint of pepper.  Everyone is different, but I like to enjoy my tequila neat; no ice to get in the way of me and my tequila.  The first sip is extremely smooth.  It goes down so easy, with a slight bite at the back of your throat and warm burn on the way down.  You immediately get the full flavor of the tequila enhanced by wonderful pepper notes.  The spice lingers just long enough on your tongue and the roof of your mouth and then has a light, fresh agave finish.

     My tequila mixed drink of choice is a traditional margarita.  The citrus and pepper flavors of Trago Silver mix well and make for a very tasty margarita.  There is just something about lime and pepper that goes so well together.  I was able to down four of them rather easily with each one tasting better than the previous.  That might have been the alcohol playing tricks on me because this tequila managed to be me drunk in a hurry.  Trago Silver is no slouch weighing in at 80 proof and it flexed every bit of it’s alcoholic muscle.  The only downside to the whole experience is the same that plagues any tequila… the hangover.  The next morning I was in pretty rough shape.  It was nothing that the three S’s couldn’t help to make me feel better.  The upset stomach that accompanied the hangover killed my appetite for a while, but I got over it soon enough.

     So, you may ask, how do I go about getting a hold of this magic elixir?  Well, you can pick up a bottle for around $55 at an increasing number of liquor stores.  Trago tequila is fairly new to the market, but it’s certainly making big strides in the world of ultra-premium tequilas.

Sipability - 7.5

Mixability - 8.0

Drunkability - 9.0

Hangover-ability - 7.0

Bang for the Buck - 3.5

Overall - 8.0 

        The BoozeBasher crew is back at it again with the blind taste-testing.  This time, we decided to give it a try with a number of silver tequilas.  In a lesson we learned from our blind vodka tasting, we decided to stick with all the same level of liquor and dropped the number sampled down to four.  In this case, we went top-shelf with all of the tequilas around the $50 mark.  The cast members for this show were Cabo Wabo, Don Julio, Patrón, and Trago.  Going into the tasting, we already had some preconcieved notions, namely that Cabo is fantastic and Patrón is garbage.  
Results by Reviewer

Tequila	Kevin	Hunter	Wade	Dan	Robert	Average
Trago	1	1	1	1	4	1.6
Patrón	2	2	3	4	1	2.4
Don Julio	4	4	2	2	3	3
Cabo Wabo	3	3	4	3	2	3

     Really there are not losers in this group, but we did come out with a clear winner.  Trago dominated the rest of the competition, taking first place in everyone’s, except for Robert’s, opinion.  Robert’s big gripe with Trago was the strong initial peppery flavor that was just too overpowering to enjoy.  Ironically, it was that same peppery flavor that drew the rest of us to mark the Trago as our favorite.  Unlike vodkas, the tasting of tequila is extremely subjective because each offers a distinct flavor, so opinions of these tequilas may be vastly different.

    Once again, our opinions based on the labels were smashed like a bug on a windshield once the result were revealed.  Patrón finished in a solid second place.  Hunter and I even had a tough time deciding on the ranking between the Trago and the Patrón resulting in multiple revisits to figure it out.  Cabo Wabo was tied for last place with Wade actually cursing its existence.  If he could have rated it lower, I think he would have given it about 8th place.  The BoozeBasher staff was split on Don Julio.  Hunter and I were not big fans of the finish and aftertaste.  However, Dan and Wade were singing its praises, despite its cheap, fake plastic screw-on cork.

    We made it through the tasting without burning down anyone’s house, shooting our pistols into the air, or dancing on any tables.  With this much tequila in one place, all of the above was a distinct possibility.  All of these tequilas were actually pretty good, and they should be at their price point.  Of course this is just our inexact opinion of these liquors.  I suggest you give them a try and vote on your favorite.  Really, who couldn’t use a little more tequila in his or her life?