Review: 2007 Viu Manent Secreto Viognier
This Chilean viognier (85 percent, the other 15 percent is mystery juice) is a lighter style than you usually find from California viogniers: Perfumy, with light peach and apricot notes. There’s a vague meatiness underlying the fruit flavor — which is more than a little strange in a wine like this — and the finish…
Original Recipe: Christmas in Rio
I created this dessert drink to highlight the vanilla and cinnamon notes in the Oronoco Rum, reviewed below. Christmas in Rio 2 oz. Oronoco Rum 1/2 oz. chocolate liqueur 1/2 oz. Licor 43 1/2 oz. half and half Shake with ice in a cocktail shaker and strain into a cocktail glass. Sprinkle with a light…
Review: Oronoco Rum
This distinctively packaged rum comes from the mountains of Brazil, a land known mainly for cachaca, not rum. It’s a pity: Based on Oronoco’s showing, Brazil really ought to be making more of the stuff. This white rum is exceptionally smooth and creamy, offering an immediate vanilla nose. On the palate is offers a big…
Photos from La Soiree 2008
This weekend we dropped by the French American Chamber of Commerce’s La Soiree event. Quite a hopping event — a soiree, even — packed with people and with some interesting wines on hand to try. (I even managed to hunt down an unusual and rare Audry cognac.) As for the food, well, this being a…
Review: Crown Royal Cask No. 16 and XR “Red Label”
Two additional Crown Royal bottlings for your consideration. This classic Canadian whisky continues to expand its portfolio upward and onward, with rarer and more expensive blends. (See also our review of Crown Royal Reserve.) Both of the below whiskies land at a perfectly accessible 80 proof. Crown Royal Cask No. 16 – This is a…
Review: Parasia Digital Wine Thermometer with LED Light
Many wine bottles and reference guides helpfully offer an “optimum” temperature at which a wine should be served. Sticking the wine in an ice bucket is easy. Actually measuring the temperature it’s at is the hard part. Parasia’s Digital Wine Thermometer looks a lot like an oversized pen. Uncap it and dip the probe in…
Review: 2004 Santa Rita Pehuén Carménère
What the heck is Carménère, you ask? It’s a wine grape that, if importers have anything to say about it, will be taking the States by storm in short order. (Of course, they’ve been saying that about Grüner-Veltliner for at least six years now, and look where that’s gotten to.) Carménère is mainly a blending…
Review: Nine BenRiach Scotch Expressions (2008)
Nine tiny bottles representing the heart of BenRiach’s line of Scotches have been staring me down for weeks now. Finally I’ve embarked on the massive tasting effort to review each of them. Also known as “The BenRiach,” this Speyside outfit produces at least 18 regular bottlings, plus dozens of special, limited releases. The nine reviewed…
