One of several Nalewki (homestyle vodka infusions) I picked up on a recent trip. The look of this stuff is intoxicating and inviting - it pours a cloudy mahogany-orange, and sparkles pink in the light. It smells not at all like cherries, but instead has strong notes of bulgur wheat, black soil, and a decent whiff of fusel-oil funk. The first sip isn't so much a flavor assessment as it is a reminiscence of an assault - the acidic tang of tart, underripe cherries hits like a slap, on a thick boozy body with notes of marzipan, old honey, and more of that baffling bulgur wheat taste. As a shot, bad idea - too much of a good thing left my tongue numb, mouth sticky, and my stomach sour. This tastes EXACTLY like a homemade cherry vodka infusion, complete with reminder that those cherries were only under-ripe before you let them sit in the bottle for a whole month. The label says that this is a "cherry cordial", but let's be real, this is the closest thing to a Nalewka from babcia's basement that you can spend money on. This is by no means high quality, but it is remarkable that it even exists at all. I wouldn't recommend it to most people, but for the right ones, I will heap praise and urge them to grab it. This stuff is a truly sublime ingredient in high-end cocktails, since the flavor complexity and unplaceable funk of its old-school production are utterly unlike any other cherry cordial I've ever purchased. (highly reccomended - 1 shot Wisniowka, 1 shot Zubrowka, 3 shots dry hard cider). You might make an even better alternative by infusing it yourself, but no freaking way will you do it for $15.
Reviewer: Sam W.