Re-Review: Zyr Vodka
So here’s a first on Drinkhacker: A second review of a spirit, four months after our initial coverage. The folks at Zyr vodka thought I was off base with my original review — which was a lofty A- rating — but which ZYR felt should be even higher. They sent a new bottle. Who am…
Review: Mekhong Liqueur
Complicated and heavily spiced liqueurs are always a difficult bag. They tend to blend poorly with other spirits and on their own can be imbalanced. Put it this way: No matter how much you like spiced rum, when’s the last time you had it mixed with anything other than Coke? Mekhong is an unusual spirit…
Democrat vs. Republican: Who’s the Better Drinker?
Beam Global sent this curious (and a little bizarre) press release today about the politics of drinking. Based on a survey of 100 Washington, D.C. area bartenders about the political preference and drinking habits of their patrons, Beam attempted to find out how drinking differs between the parties: “Democrats are seen as better tippers, have…
Review: Glayva Liqueur
Hardly a household name, Glayva’s another spin on sweetened-Scotch-as-liqueur, much like Drambuie. Sorry, did I say “sweetened?” The 70-proof Glayva is damn sweet. Dripping with honey, cloves, and cinnamon, you could put this on French toast if you wanted. It’s quite overpowering on its own when served on the rocks, even as the ice starts…
How Restaurant Wine Pricing Works
Great piece in the Wall Street Journal, which asks why a 2004 Opus One costs $195 at Houston’s in San Francisco but $425 at NoMI in Chicago. Lots of reasons are in play: The fancier the restaurant (and fancier the wine service), the more you’ll pay. The more competition for high-end wine there is in…
Red Bull May Not Give You Wings After All
Sorry, club kids. This just in, and it’s kind of gross. According to the latest research, the popular energy drink Red Bull can increase the risk of heart damage. The participants of the study were university students aged between 20 and 24. Researchers found that just one sugar free can of Red Bull raised the…
Review: Mount Gay Eclipse Silver, Eclipse Gold, and Extra Old Rum (2008)
Tomorrow (August 16) is National Rum Day, so what better way to celebrate than to sip a little Mount Gay, the first commercially produced rum (per the company), continually produced since 1637 (though the bottles say 1703). They even say George Washington drank this stuff on a stopover in Barbados (my favorite island, by the…
Review: 2005 Sean Thackrey Orion
When last I drink Orion, it was the 1995 vintage, which I rated a (very) rare A+. I thought I’d never have Orion again, but then I was surprised with a whole case of 2005 Orion (plus a bottle of that ’95). I cracked open bottle #1 tonight to see what might have changed in…
