Review: Ardbeg Traigh Bhan 19 Years Old Batch 3 (2021)
When Ardbeg’s first edition of Traigh Bhan dropped in 2019, we were instant fans of the 19 year old Islay malt that was the latest (and oldest) addition to the distillery’s permanent lineup. Now Traigh Bhan has settled into annual batch status, which Ardbeg is describing as “rare and ever-changing,” with slight changes to cask…
Review: New Riff Red Turkey Wheated Bourbon
When it first hit the whiskey scene, Kentucky’s New Riff Distillery promised a “new riff” on tried-and-true Kentucky whiskey-making tradition. And boy have they started delivering recently. On the heels of their 100% malted rye release earlier this year, the whiskey tinkerers from Newport are adding another innovation to their lineup with Red Turkey Wheated…
Review: 2017 Castello del Terriccio Tassinaia Toscana IGT
Castello del Terriccio can be found in Tuscany’s Maremma region, where it specializes in so-called Super Tuscan wines, including its luxe Lupicaia and the more affordable Tassinaia, a blend of cabernet sauvignon and merlot, reviewed here. A beauty of a wine, Tassinaia is intense with notes of graphite and slate, but balanced with darker fruit notes…
Review: Still Austin Cask Strength Bourbon
Hot on the heels of our coverage of its gin, Still Austin Whiskey Co.’s latest whiskey has arrived, its first ever cask strength bourbon, now available as a limited release. Roughly 2200 cases of the “at least two years old” bourbon were produced. Made from 100% Texas grains, the new expression contains the same mash…
Review: Chalk Hill 2019 Estate Chardonnay and 2017 Estate Red
Two new releases, both bottled from estate fruit, from the always reliable Chalk Hill. Let’s get to work: 2019 Chalk Hill Estate Chardonnay Chalk Hill AVA – We last saw this wine during a visit to Chalk Hill’s winery, where it showed just as beautifully as it does today. Apple and vanilla, with a big…
Review: Happy Hour: A Cocktail Card Game
Drinking games can get a little more sophisticated than Quarters and Beer Pong, though perhaps not much more sophisticated, if Happy Hour: A Cocktail Card Game is any guide. This kit includes a deck of 52 cocktail-themed cards, each one bearing a different recipe for a libation. Themed into 13 cocktail “families” — sours, martinis, tiki drinks,…
The Top 10 Whiskeys of 2021
As near as I can count, Drinkhacker reviewed more than 400 whiskeys in 2021. How do you whittle that down to the 10 very best of the lot? It’s not easy, and our staff’s initial list of favorites ran well over 30 selections. Tough decisions were made. Arguments were had. Babies were thrown out with…
Review: Elijah Craig Barrel Proof Batch C921 (September 2021)
This is the third and final release of Elijah Craig Barrel Proof for 2021, coded C921. Let’s dive in one last time to the lineup before the New Year arrives and see what the folks at Heaven Hill have in store for us. As with most ECBP releases, things start out on the hot side…
