Review: D’usse Cognac VSOP
This new Cognac is being launched by Bacardi and endorsed by Jay-Z. The package is one of the snazziest I’ve seen in a long time, and the name, pronounced “dew-say,” is exotic enough to pique anyone’s interest. Produced by a 220-year-old Cognac house, Otard, D’usse is a premium-priced VSOP but is intended mainly as a…
Tasting the Wines of Languedoc, 2012
We’ve covered the Languedoc — the area in the south of France that borders the Mediterranean — before. Recently we had a chance to sample a variety of wines from the region, known both for its affordability and the eclectic nature of the grapes grown and wines made there. Enjoy this semi-random walk through the…
Tasting Report: Wines of Castilla-La Mancha U.S. Tour 2012
We’ve covered this land of Don Quixote before, a vast region in central Spain that stretches from Toledo to Albacete where 46 grape varieties are grown and a staggering variety of wine styles are produced. A recent roadshow brought what seems to be the vast majority of them to San Francisco, where I was delighted…
Review: Jellybean Wines
This new brand is attempting to muscle its way into the mass-market wine space (Yellow Tail, Cupcake, Barefoot, you know the ones), choosing to head to the ever-popular “desserts” branding strategy for its identity. Jellybean wines come from just about everywhere. We reviewed two of the company’s offerings, with predictable results. 2011 Jellybean Berry Smooth…
Review: Lost Spirits Distillery Leviathan I Cask #3 Heavily Peated American Whiskey
Recently we featured Lost Spirits Seascape, a peated American single malt whiskey. Now we’re back with what may be the company’s flagship dram: Leviathan I. Leviathan is bottled as a single-barrel release of heavily-peated (110ppm phenol, or thereabouts) single malt whiskey, aged for under 4 years in casks formerly used for late-harvest Cabernet Sauvignon. The…
White House Beer Recipes Are Finally Here
Obama’s homebrew recipes are finally available to the public. And here they are! White House Honey Porter Ingredients 2 (3.3 lb) cans light unhopped malt extract 3/4 lb Munich Malt (cracked) 1 lb crystal 20 malt (cracked) 6 oz black malt (cracked) 3 oz chocolate malt (cracked) 1 lb White House Honey 10 HBUs bittering…
Whisky From Space?
Space whisky? Not exactly, but Ardbeg is releasing an homage to a grand experiment going on with space-based whisky maturation in this limited-edition bottling. Read on for the full press release. Ardbeg Galileo launched to celebrate Scottish distillery’s “world first” experiment in space Limited Edition of legendary Islay Distillery pays tribute to Galileo, the father…
Review: Scotch Malt Whisky Society Late August 2012 Outturn
Keeping up with the SMWS is going to be tough, but we’re up to the task. Here are thoughts on the four newest releases from our “secret whisky” friends. This outturn covers the second half of August 2012. SMWS Cask 4.153 – 11 year old Highland Park from Orkney – Very hot HP, at a…
