Review: Catoctin Creek Ragnarok Rye
In perhaps the least likely of collaborations ever, Catoctin Creek Distilling has teamed up with the heaviest of heavy metal bands GWAR to make a new “intergalactic sipping whiskey” called Ragnarök Rye. 200 cases of the whiskey are being produced (the first batch sold out immediately at Seelbachs.com; more is on the way), each with…
Review: Cutwater Mezcal
Cutwater is an unusual company. We’ve favorably reviewed some of their whiskey products, and (along with everyone else in the spirits world) they recently brought out some canned cocktails, which were fairly well-received. Despite the fact that they’re based in San Diego, and do distil their own spirits, they’ve also released a tequila and now…
23 Beers From Elysian, Ranked
In celebration of 25 years in business, Seattle’s Elysian Brewing recently put together the mother of all mix packs: 25 “greatest hits” beers (plus a bunch of fun additions) packed in a monstrous box. I figured this was the perfect chance to take a deep dive into Elysian’s extensive offerings, some of which we’ve reviewed…
Review: O.H. Ingram River Aged Rye
Kentucky-based O.H. Ingram doesn’t throw “river aged” into its product name just for the sake of marketing. Its products are aged on a floating rickhouse on the Mississippi River. From the photography, it looks like quite the operation, but the proof, as always, lies in the bottle. Ingram makes a straight rye and an unspecified…
Review: 2019 District 7 Chardonnay Monterey
We’ve seen many of the wines of Monterey’s District 7 in the past. This latest release of its chardonnay offers few major surprises. A big old oak bomb, this wine punches up its core of baked apples and guava notes with a healthy dose of oaky vanilla. The pushy sweetness settles down over time, the…
Review: Tequila Lobos 1707 Reposado
I will ignore the fact that this bottle looks like a canister of kerosene. And why shouldn’t I? This utterly unique tequila (which is backed by LeBron James) is rested for six months in American oak barrels, then blended with “a touch” of Lobos 1707 extra anejo tequila before being finished in Pedro Ximénez wine…
Review: 2018 Vina Esmeralda Sparkling Brut
Cava is the sparkling wine most associated with Spain, but it is not the only one made there. This Spanish sparkler, Viña Esmeralda, is made with Moscatel grapes (also called Muscat and Moscato). This prohibits it from being called Cava, which is typically made from Macabeo, Xarel-lo, and Parelleda grapes (among the 9 grapes permitted…
Review: The Finnish Long Drink – Zero, Strong and Cranberry
We first reviewed the original The Long Drink company’s version of the Finnish long drink (called Long Drink) here at Drinkhacker last year. They have added three new varieties to their line – Zero, which is a lower calorie version of the original; Strong, which has a higher alcohol content than the original; and Cranberry,…
