Review: Rombauer 2020 Chardonnay and 2019 Zinfandel
The 2020 edition of Rombauer’s famous chardonnay has arrived. We review it here alongside a new zinfandel release. 2020 Rombauer Chardonnay Carneros – One of California’s most iconic chardonnays is renowned for its oakiness, and with this 2020 expression the reputation initially feels earned. Bright apple notes are paired with coconut and some sesame oil…
Review: Craigellachie 13 Years Old Bas-Armagnac Finish
This new release from Craigellachie — the inaugural release in its new Cask Collection series — finishes a 13 year old whisky in brandy barrels, but eschews Cognac for its neighbor — Armagnac. It’s rare to see Armagnac-finished spirits of any type, so it’s fun to tuck into this new release, which is initially aged…
Review: Louis Jadot 2019 Pinot Noir and 2020 Macon-Villages
Louis Jadot makes some reasonably high-end Burgundy wines, but it is best known for extremely approachable bottlings like these — so affordable they often have the grape varietal on the label — chardonnay, pinot noir, etc., a real rarity in France. Today we look at a pair of entry-level Jadots, a white and a red.…
Review: King of Kentucky Straight Bourbon 15 Years Old (2022)
King of Kentucky returns just in time for the beginning of Big Bourbon Season (aka “autumn”) and like its 2019 sibling, arrives aged 15 years. The mashbill remains the same (79% corn, 11% rye and 10% malted barley), but the good news is they’ve increased the output from 2700 bottles in 2021 to 3500 this…
Review: NV Telmont Reserve Rose Champagne
Telmont Réserve Rosé, like the Brut, includes a great deal of information on the bottle. It states that the wine is made with 87% Chardonnay, 13% Meunier, and 0% Pinot Noir, and it also notes that the dosage is 8.4 g/l, putting this champagne in the brut classification. There’s much more to read about, which…
Review: Tequila Don Ramon Anejo Cristalino and Reposado Cristalino
Tequila Don Ramon makes the full line of traditional tequilas — in several different collections — but its Platinum Collection cristalino bottlings are what the media was on hand to taste, alongside brand ambassador Pierce Brosnan, who was Zooming in from his pad in Kauai to talk tequila with the masses. We tasted both —…
Review: 2015 LDV Winery Petite Sirah and Petite Sirah Signature
Pearce, Arizona-based LDV presents two wines for us — both 100% petite sirah bottlings from the 2015 vintage. (Yes, these are current releases.) What does a hot climate do with a difficult grape like petite sirah? Let’s find out. 2015 LDV Winery Petite Sirah – Quite extracted from the start, you could be forgiven for…
Black Owned and Millennial Founded: An Interview with Jon Basil’s Uduimoh Umolu
Over the past six years, a booming American market for agave spirits has produced a rush of both celebrity marketed brands and craft labels backed by multinational conglomerates. That means a number of small producers (including non-distilling producers) have focused on hyper-targeted demographics, often releasing product in just one or two metropolitan areas. Jon Basil…
