Pür Geist Bierbrand and Pür Likör Spice- a German liqueur invasion

Pür Spirits wants you to be drinking German, and they're going all out in their marketing efforts to convert you. Starting with their name, Pür follows in the footsteps of Mötley Crüe (which first recognized the coolness of completely unnecessary umlauts) and added their own umlaut to the German word for pure to garner that extra bit of hipness. Next came a Facebook page and fancy website. They then hit the cocktail and award circuit (winning some medals in the 2009 San Francisco World Spirits Competition) while also trying to get into all the right kind of magazines.

Luckily, Pür spirits are at least quite interesting, making their marketing manuevering feel more earnest than strident. All of the Pür spirits come in thin, very stylish bottles that make them stand out. The Pür Geist Bierbrand and  Pür Likör Spice are two of the more recent releases of the 6 varieties they produce. The Bierbrand is especially unusual, being distilled from Märzen beer, a lager that is aged in a chestnut cask. It's quite light and delicate, with a nice malty, even fruity flavor with a hint of yeast in the finish. Pür likens it to Scotch, though it's much more mellow.

Pür Likör Spice is a blood orange liqueur that smells of cloves and cinnamon. It tastes a lot like a very good mulled wine with plenty of spice and a smooth orangey finish. It's only 25% alcohol as compared to 42% for the Bierbrand.

Both alcohols are quite good just sipping by themselves, though Pür has done an excellent job of compiling cocktail recipes that are customized for their spirits. I've included two that I thought looked especially tasty (and have linked to the cocktail listings)

The Purity of her Principles by A.J. Rathbun, author of 'Good Spirits'

• 1½ oz Pür Geist Bierbrand
• 1 oz Benedictine
• ½ oz freshly squeezed orange juice
• dash of Regan's orange bitters

Fill a cocktail shaker halfway full with ice cubes. Add all of the ingredients. Shake well. Strain into a cocktail glass.

Modern Negroni by Pete Gowdy, Bottle Cap, San Francisco

• 1 ½ oz Plymouth Gin
• 1 oz Pür Likör Spice
• 1 oz Dolin sweet vermouth

Stir or shake with ice and serve up.

Both products are mainly found in the Seattle area.