Review: 2004 Ruffino Romitorio di Santedame Toscana
Ruffino is a name loaded with history — but most people probably know it from seeing it on the shelves of their local supermarket, where Ruffino is invariably one of the few Chiantis available. But Ruffino makes some fancier bottlings too, including this Romitorio di Santedame. What is it? It’s a blend of colorino (60%)…
Review: Eric Kent 2008 Chardonnay and Pinot Noir
Two hot-off-the-bottling-line wines from long-time favorite Eric Kent Wine Cellars. 2008 Eric Kent Chardonnay Russian River Valley is a wonderful Chardonnay for the non-Chardonnay drinker. Crisp on the attack but with a big and buttery body, it keeps the oak level to a minimum and lets lots of apple and grapefruit character come forth instead.…
Review: Grey Goose La Poire Vodka
Pears are a tricky beast. Who eats pears on their own? Or even in a recipe? And yet here we have pear flavored vodka from the mammoth success that is Grey Goose. What exactly does one do with it? I’ve been toying with Grey Goose La Poire for a few weeks now and I’m still…
Review: Mount Everest Whisky
Chances are you’ll never encounter Mount Everest Whisky*, lest you decide to hike to Base Camp 1 by yourself. I certainly didn’t, but somehow this bottle made it back despite my laziness, and it’s sat unopened in a Marin cottage for years undisturbed. Naturally when I encountered it over Easter weekend I had to crack…
Q&A: Does Zinfandel Make You More Drunk?
Reader Sara writes: I hear drinking zin will get me drunk faster. True or false? In the wine world, zinfandel has a bad reputation for making grown men and women into slobbering fools. Frankly I think the zin people enjoy this rep, but if you really look at the science of the issue, there’s not…
Review: 2006 Blason d’Aussieres Corbieres
A Languedoc wine from the Barons de Rothschild (Lafite) empire, this dark red is composed of syrah, mourvedre, grenache, and carignane grapes. Nothing very special, Lafite says it chooses the grapes for this wine to be “mature, fresh, supple, and fleshy” — terms which don’t mean a whole lot and which are a little contradictory,…
Review: Super Sake Smackdown, 2010 Releases
Is sake making a comeback? For whatever reason, Drinkhacker HQ has been flooded with the stuff of late. The intricacies of sake styles are too involved and complex to go into here, so if you’re interested in the differences between, say, junmai and ginjo, I’ll refer you to this Wikipedia article. Here’s our look at…
Review: 2007 J Vineyards Pinot Noir Russian River Valley
Textbook California pinot. Fresh cherries, just a hint of earth and stone, and a lightly floral finish. Somewhat thin body, and light on the tongue, but great on its own, especially as an appetite-whetting aperitif. Really worth a try. A- / $35 / jwine.com Related posts: Review: 2019 J Vineyards Pinot Noir Russian River Valley…
