Review: Prairie Fire Hot Cinnamon Flavored Whiskey
A Prairie Fire is actually a cocktail: A shot of whiskey with hot sauce in it. OK, not much of a cocktail, but it’s an alcoholic beverage of some sort. Prairie Fire, the bottled spirit, is made with this cocktail in mind. Eschewing hot sauce for cinnamon, this product from the Iowa Distilling Company wants…
Review: George Dickel White Whisky Foundation No. 1
Just when it seems that everyone who’s anyone in American distilling has launched a white whiskey, well, you realize there’s room for one more. The latest coming out the gate is Dickel, which is bringing its Tennessee Whiskey — bourbon-style mash of 84% corn, 8% rye, and 8% malted barley, but charcoal-filtered before bottling —…
Review: Big House Bourbon and Big House Tupelo Honey
Underdog Spirits, in Livermore, California, brings you these two spirits, crafted to order by LDI. For the base bourbon, the 60% corn, 35% rye, 5% malted barley mashbill is aged for 6 years before bottling. Thoughts follow. Big House Straight Bourbon Whiskey – At first blush, there’s quite a harsh nose here; I get some…
Review: Anchor Distilling White Christmas White Whiskey 2013
Here’s a first: A limited edition white whiskey, created by San Francisco’s Anchor Distilling exclusively for the 2013 holiday season. It’s a neat idea. Every year Anchor’s brewing arm cooks up a special — and always unique — Christmas Ale. 2013’s White Christmas whiskey is distilled from the 2012 Christmas Ale, hence the whiskey’s subtitle, “The Spirit…
Review: Cruzan Velvet Cinn Horchata and Rum Liqueur
Would you believe there is more than one horchata-plus-rum liqueur on the market? It’s true. Velvet Cinn is Cruzan’s spin on a spiked version of the classic Mexican rice-meets-almond-meets-cinnamon beverage. The almondy nuttiness comes through clearly on the nose here, along with cinnamon notes. The body is very sweet and cinnamon-fueled, with an authentic-feeling sweet…
Review: Samuel Adams Utopias (2013 Release)
Sam Adams continues its annual release of Utopias, a barrel-aged, mega-alcohol, highly expensive brew that stands as one of America’s longest-running “extreme beers” (and which is made without the freeze-and-skim technique that most other high-booze beermakers rely on. For 2013, Utopias has been “blended with Samuel Adams Kosmic Mother Funk (KMF), a Belgian-style ale barrel-aged for…
Review: Le Grand Courtage Sparkling Wine, Brut and Rose
Look closer: Le Grand Courtage (“the great courtship”) is sparkling wine made in Burgundy, not Champagne, which means it’s made from different grapes… and priced at about $20 a bottle. Thoughts follow. NV Le Grand Courtage Grande Cuvee Blanc de Blancs Brut – A blend of Chardonnay, Chenin Blanc, Colombard, and Ugni Blanc. Lots of tart,…
Review: Willa Vodka
A craft vodka made with Italian grain and water from Nantucket, where this vodka is created, Willa is part of the “low-cal” spirits trend. What that means in practical terms is it’s lower in alcohol — 70 proof vs. the standard 80 in the industry. Very little about Willa enchanted me. The nose is charcoal…
