Review: 2010 Noble Vines 337 Cabernet Sauvignon Lodi
Noble Vines uses cryptic numerology to name its wines… but savvy wine drinkers will recognize these three-digit numbers as grape clone varieties, 337 being a French vine stock from Bordeaux. Transplanted to Lodi, Noble Vines puts 337 to good use. It’s a very food-friendly wine, big raspberry and blackberry on the nose, with a dusting…
Review: Butterfly Absinthe
Based in Switzerland, Alan Moss is the kind of guy who lives and breathes absinthe. He writes about absinthe prodigiously on his blog, and he also makes the stuff (well, his partners do): La Clandestine is easily the best blanche absinthe on the market. Moss has other tricks up his sleeve, it seems, and recently…
Tasting Report: Darioush and Beaulieu Vineyard of Napa Valley, 2013
A recent day trip took me to Napa, where I took the opportunity to visit two of the region’s premier winemakers and see how they’re latest releases were coming along. Darioush and BV were both incredibly welcoming to the Drinkhacker crew. Thoughts on the current releases being poured follow. 2011 Darioush Signature Chardonay / $43…
Recipe: Father’s Day Cocktails 2013
Father’s Day is just around the corner, and what better way to say thanks to the old guy who bailed you out of so much trouble when you were younger than with a nice relaxing drink? You know it’s the right thing to do! Here’s a few suggestions we tested out over the past several…
Vertical Tasting Report: Wines of Zuani, 2009-2012
Patrizia Felluga is wine royalty. The matriarch of a wine dynasty that began in the late 1800s, she is a fifth generation winemaker who decided not to wait around to take over dad’s operation (Marco Felluga), but rather struck out on her own in 2001 to start her own label. Zuani is that wine. Felluga…
Review: Ron Barcelo Imperial Premium Blend 30 Aniversario Rum
Barcelo is a solid but largely unknown Dominican rum producer which we’ve written about in the past. While we’re familiar with the rack versions of its rums, we didn’t know about the special barrels that Miguel Barcelo was setting aside. Well, he’s been doing that for the last 30 years, and now he’s blending them…
Review: Ardbeg Ardbog
Ardbeg lovers likely don’t need me to tell them about the Ardbeg Committee and Ardbeg Day (which happens around June 1), which sees a special release of Ardbeg arriving every year. This year’s is called Ardbog, a play on words which alludes to the origin of peat in Scotland’s many bogs. Ardbog is a 10…
Review: Yellow Rose Blended Whiskey and Outlaw Bourbon
Houston is my hometown, and the one thing it hasn’t had is a distillery. Distilling is surprisingly new to Texas — Tito’s was the sole operator in the state for years — but now folks are diving headlong into their stills here. And now, finally, Houston has its first distilling operation it can call its…
