Review: Le Gin 13
Le Gin 13, as the “Le” might suggest, hails from France — specifically the cellars of Châteauneuf-du-Pape-based maker of the wines Les Cailloux and Cuvée Centenaire, André Brunel. The gin is made from a base of organic grapes and includes 13 botanicals all grown in the Rhone Valley: juniper, coriander, angelica root, cinnamon, orange peel,…
Review: Elysian Juice Dust
Never before has a brewery hung so much of its identity on the concept of “dust.” Space Dust, Dank Dust, now Juice Dust, all beers from Elysian, and all riffs on the IPA theme. Juice Dust falls in the Imperial Juicy IPA category, of course, and the orange-themed cartoonery on the label should cue you…
Review: Crown Royal Single Malt
Crown Royal, the Canadian whisky powerhouse, extends its line into something entirely new for the brand — and not all that common in Canada, to be honest. So here it is: Crown Royal’s first single malt. Made from 100% malted barley, the whisky is “crafted in the Canadian cold,” which is perhaps the brand’s way…
Review: 2021 Tapestry Red Blend Paso Robles
Let’s clear up some things to start. Not to be confused with Beaulieu Vineyard’s other wine named Tapestry (a longtime favorite from the brand), the new Tapestry is also made by a winery owned by BV… though it doesn’t carry their name anywhere on the label. Perhaps that’s because this new Tapestry is made in…
Review: Hennessy Master Blender’s Selection No. 5
Hennessy’s Master Blender’s Selection releases have been arriving at haphazard intervals since their 2016 launch. We reviewed Nos. 2 and 3, but missed out on No. 4. Now Master Blender’s Selection No. 5 is here — the first release in three years — so we’ll have to make up for lost time. This time out,…
Review: Ex Libris Penderyn Welsh Whisky Collection – 2004, 2009, 2010, and 2012
La Maison & Velier got started with its Ex Libris independently bottled whisky collection last year with a 40 year old Canadian whisky — starting out with a bang, to be sure. Now Ex Libris continues its lineup with a quartet of Welsh Whiskies sourced from Penderyn. Each is a single cask of malted barley…
Review: George Dickel Tennessee Whiskey Bottled in Bond 12 Years Old (2024)
Dickel’s bonded expressions continue to arrive at a healthy clip of about one per year since the 2019 launch of the series. This new 2024 version was distilled in Spring 2011 and bottled after 12 years in the barrel. There’s no particular twist with this release (two prior releases were drawn from the same casks…
Review: Goodnight Loving Vodka
Goodnight Loving Vodka is a product that I’m awfully close to, and I mean that literally: The distillery’s CFO lives a few doors down from me, and the distillery is based on a ranch near Fredericksburg, about an hour away. Here in Texas, you can find Goodnight Loving in a large number of bars and…
