Robb Vices Subscription Box Review – August 2015

Robb Vices is a monthly subscription box that aspires to elevate your dining, drinking, and entertaining, by bringing you the finest in hand-crafted, small-batch, gourmet goodness.  They aim to ship boxes of storied treasures.

This isn’t for everyone. This is for the individuals who care about why something is considered great, want to discover the story behind it, and share what they have with those who matter to them.

Brooklyn, New York, is the origin for all the potables and foods in this fine assortment. This was the August 2015 selection, and it shipped in two separate boxes.

The boxes are emblazoned with the logo “Permission Granted,” which about sums up the Robb Vices philosophy.

The first box has the booze and related necessaries.

The kit has pretty much everything you need to start enjoying a stiff drink right away.

Almost everything in the drink box.

Hella Bitters:  This small-batch, all-natural bitters is made in Brooklyn.  Conventional bitters are kicked up with added flavor notes to create a nuanced cocktail that really sings.  Our box contained the Ginger Lemon variety, which should complement the Greenhook well, itself light on citrus and sporting some hints of ginger.

Greenhook Ginsmiths American Dry Gin:  This Brooklyn-crafted gin is made using vacuum distillation and showcases an unconventional flavor profile.  Cinnamon, and lots of floral (elderflower and orris) lend lots of spice and intrigue to this rather hot gin.

Limes (photo licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 2.5 Generic license by Steve Hopson).  We didn’t get quite that many limes in the box, but there were more than a dozen. (This box was sent to our coordinator and the limes expired before the photos).

Pineapple Gomme Syrup:  Three nice bottles of pineapple gomme syrup accompanied our liquor.   This stuff is renowned as an ingredient in Pisco Punch and other classic concoctions.  Gum Arabic lends a creamy, smooth mouthfeel to the syrup, adding another sensory dimension to your drink.

Usagi Copper-Plated 3-Piece Cobbler Cocktail Shaker:  This beast is heavy-duty and yet very pretty.

The top has the traditional strainer mechanism and fits snugly on the base.  The cap holds an ounce of liquor, to aid in measuring.

Though stainless on the interior, the outside is copper plated for a beautiful presentation.  I love the look and feel of this shaker — it is not at all tinny and has a nice, comfortable heft.

The drink and eat portions were packaged separately.

The food portion is as carefully curated as the alcohol.

Again, the Borough of Brooklyn takes center stage.

The info card details the items in both the Eat and Drink boxes.

Everything in the Eat box.

Brooklyn Baking Barons Honey Whiskey Bites:  Sweet and super-moist, these two-bite cakes are incredibly delicious.  The whiskey adds a bit of kick to the flavor, but it is subdued enough to avoid interfering with the sublime sweetness of the cake.   A little sticky and messy, but well worth the trouble.

Mast Brothers Chocolate Dominican Republic Bar:  This single origin bar has a slightly dry and powdery finish, but really lets the beans do the talking.

Made of only cocoa and cane sugar, the bar has a surprisingly fine consistency despite lacking any emulsifiers or milk.

Brooklyn Slate Cheese Board:  This circular cheese board makes a superb and elegant serving platter for cheese, charcuterie, sliced fruit, breads, or just about anything.  At 11″ diameter, it has ample room to host a substantial amount of savories.

The stone wand lets you write directly on the board, primarily for labelling the various components of your cheese course.

In addition to the drawing stone, the tray comes with self-adhesive cork feet to prevent scratching countertops and tables.

I thought the items included were really nice quality, and Robb Vices was able to put together an ensemble of Brooklyn-born items that fit well with the essence of the box.  The drink box could have benefitted from a bit in the way of recipes that used the items together (it may have been omitted from our box?).  It is easy enough to come up with uses for a nice gin, but a recipe with a pineapple gomme syrup and gin pairing (or one using the bitters) would have been grand.  The shaker is absolutely beautiful and display-worthy.  The gin selection is not super pricey ($30 or so for 750 ml), but it comes well-recommended and is hard to acquire outside NY, so it is a welcome choice.  The cheeseboard is amazing — I have another one from the same company, but this thick, round board is really impressive and retails for $40.   All-in-all, this was a really nice pair of boxes with a high value.

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