Original Recipe: The Violet Blue
Recently I read that the blueberry was the healthiest of all fruits. Number one, baby! So I immediately set my mind to thinking about cocktails to take advantage of the humble berry of blue. It’s harder than you’d think; blueberry doesn’t play well with others. Eventually I hit on it. Here’s my concoction, and darned…
Drinkhacker 2007 Vintage Chart / Wine Cheat Sheet
Facing a huge wine list or a silent auction and don’t know if 2001 was a good year for California Cabernet? You can’t exactly whip out a reference book or a laptop at the table and look up the wine. (I guess if you have an iPhone you’re in good shape, but really…) Enter the…
Review: Bacardi Silver Pomegranate Mojito
Pomegranate is the It fruit of the last couple of years, and but do we need to inundate ourselves with the stuff? Bacardi says its Silver Mojito is the #1 selling flavored alcohol beverage (technically it’s a “flavored beer,” hence the category here). The Bacardi Silver Pomegranate Mojito is that, plus pomegranate. Well, sort of.…
Review: Beck’s Oktoberfest
By the time you read this, it will be October, and for beer drinkers, that means a month-long excuse to consume mass quantities of brew. Hey, good for them. Beck’s Oktoberfest is a quite pleasant brew (and I’ve no idea if the formulation has changed for 2007), a dark amber beer with an overwhelming aroma…
New Mixer: Purple
Like most people, I love the idea of “drinking healthy.” I’ve always called the Cape Cod (vodka and cranberry) the “healthy way to drink.” Bloody Marys and Screwdrivers? You bet. But there may be no healthier mixer on the world right now (unless you’re having a wheatgrass and rum, maybe), than the new juice called…
Tasting Report: Bonhams Pre-Auction Event, September 2007
Thirty-six wines in two hours… though we were out in 90 minutes. The trick with big wine events like this is to pace yourself and be able to maintain enough clarity to properly evaluate what you’re drinking, and at a pre-auction event, you have another challenge: There’s only one bottle of each wine available for…
Review: 2005 Willowbrook Pinot Noir Kastania Vineyard
Willowbrook is a relatively new producer of Chardonnay and Pinot Noir wines, and if this bottling is any judge, it’s certainly one to watch. Right out of the gate this Pinot comes on strong. If you’re looking for a lighter, Beaujolais-style Pinot, you’ve come to the wrong place. This Kastania Vineyard (in the southern part…
Review: 2003 Owl Ridge Cabernet Sauvignon Brigden Vineyard
Owl Ridge was so kind to send a bottle of their 2003 Cabernet, following a redesign of their label to give it a little more sophistication and upscale appeal. The label looks good, I think, and the wine isn’t bad either. This Sonoma cab is characteristic of the region, though I am not specifically familiar…
