Adam Seger's Hum spirit

Had the pleasure of trying this newly-released spirit last night at Pops For Champagne and thought it was excellent. It's a 70 proof, rum-based spirit, infused with ginger, hibiscus and cardamom. It's got a striking red color and it's sweet but it's not too sweet. Because of its complex finish, it's completely suitable for sipping and I imagine that a lot of cocktails can be built around it, as well. Last night at Pops, the guest bartenders from Prairie Grass Cafe combined it deftly with pomegranate puree, Woodford Reserve bourbon and Cava. A very nice libation.

I'm guessing that Hum probably won't be available on a retail basis, at least not in the short term. But according to Chicagoist.com, certain bars/lounges in Chicago and London will have it on hand. If you're into this sort of thing, you may want to ask for it the next time you are out for a drink.

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Pops for Champagne
601 N State St
Chicago, IL 60610
(312) 266-7677

A quick search shows that it is available at Lush and Drinks over Dearborn. Info can be found here:

http://www.lushwineandspirits.com/

http://drinksoverdearborn.com/

Hum is my new favorite cocktail plaything. Following suggestions on their web site, I've made margaritas adding Hum along with the tequila. I've also tried their suggested take on a Negroni, replacing the vermouth with Hum. My guests enjoyed both drinks and I thought they were mighty tasty as well. And they were gorgeous to look at - an intense pink-red on the margarita and an almost neon red on the Hum Negroni. Apologies for not taking pics, but I was busy shaking and stirring and being a hostess. Based on how much I loved Hum in the margarita, I think tonight I'll see how it works in a Paloma. It may go nicely with grapefruit and tequila, it may be weird. We shall see. Hum is fun!

Perhaps I'm just not very imaginative, but after much excitement (I love ginger and hibiscus as cocktail ingredients) when I tried Hum I was disappointed. Personally, I found it exceptionally sweet, cloying even. Even in dash increments it quickly overpowered cocktails.

I know that Hum is also being used in cocktails at In Fine Spirits, and may be available in their shop as well.

I can see how Hum wouldn't be everyone's cup of tea. I've told people if they don't like cardamom, they like won't like it as I think it's rather pronounced.

The Hum Paloma was quite delicious and pretty to look at. I have to say I really like the tequila/Hum combo, whether with lime juice or grapefruit.

Palmoma w/Hum pic

Any recent experiments to report? I received a bottle as a gift and would love to showcase it in a cocktail this weekend.

I've had about one Hum Sling per month at Pops, and I love it. It's Hum, white vermouth, cava, lemon juice and a lemon twist. No idea about proportions, but there's enough bright lemon flavor to balance the deep, herbal hum flavors, and the bubbles help bring it into even further balance. It's a hell of a drink.

Thanks Kenny! I ended up improvising with what I called a Humdinger (surely someone else has already used the name), which sounds very similar to the sling: lime juice, fresh ginger zest, and prosecco. The results were pleasing - spicy ginger and tart lime and bubbly bubbles moderated the intensity of cardamom and hibiscus.

Libertad in Skokie uses Hum in several cocktails, as well as on their Camarones.
I had the "Not a Cuba Libre" and it made a floral, gingery not-quite rum and coke.

A couple notes updating Ronnie's original post: The botanicals include keffir lime leaf (although I didn't detect it specifically), and their website also indicates that it's available at Binny's. I may pick some up on my shopping trip today.

Recently enjoyed a cigar-infused Manhattan with Hum at Nacional 27:



I always order Manhattans, and although I prefer the traditional, some variations like this one are very good.

My enthusiasm for Hum has diminished a bit since it was first released. It is very, very strong and tends to overpower the other ingredients in most cocktails in which I've tried it. It's got a very distinctive flavor, which works best as the base spirit, if you're in the mood for that flavor. Lately, when I use it, it's from an eyedropper (rinse glass before building a drink or float it on top at the end) because a few drops go a long way.

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ronnie_suburban wrote:My enthusiasm for Hum has diminished a bit since it was first released. It is very, very strong and tends to overpower the other ingredients in most cocktails in which I've tried it. It's got a very distinctive flavor, which works best as the base spirit, if you're in the mood for that flavor. Lately, when I use it, it's from an eyedropper (rinse glass before building a drink or float it on top at the end) because a few drops go a long way.

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I've seen Seger make drinks with Hum a few times, and he uses an eye dropper, too.

During Hum's rollout I attended an event where Seger was giving a "class" making Hum drinks -- he did not use an eyedropper, but there were so many ingredients in his concoctions (many that were available only online) that the Hum was sufficiently downplayed. I talked to one bartender about Hum once, and he said he won't use it -- dubbing it "kryptonite" in the drink. At the event I attended, Seger recommending using it in a Negroni on a 1:1:1 ratio in place of the vermouth. I poured several incarnations down the drain before deciding that its correct use (for my tastes) in the drink was as a rinse in the glass. It is a very overpowering - but interesting - spirit.

I like Hum a lot, but agree that it can overpower other ingredients. The eye dropped idea is good.

Mainly I use hum as a replacement for Campari in a Negroni. If the Hum is too strong, you can veer away from the equal proportions of Gin, Sweet Vermouth, and Hum/Campari. I also like it on the rocks.

I've only had it the one time (at Libertad, mentioned above), but liked the flavors (SueF did not like it at all). I looked into buying a bottle, but $35 for something I'd use by the thimbleful didn't seem smart, especially as infrequently I imbibe at all.

Maybe we need a "small bottle of booze exchange" event? I've got some "Rumona" liqueur from Jamaica (Rum and Honey), and probably a couple other exotics to trade. Does someone have a bunch of empty airplane booze bottles we can use for trading?