Review: Schlafly IPA, Hazy Grapefruit IPA, Low Cal IPA, and West Coast IPA
St. Louis’s Schlafly Beer recently dropped a new variety pack called Hoptic Visions, featuring four different IPAs — one a standby, three new, experimental releases. Let’s review each of them! Schlafly IPA – This is the year-round OG, and I have to say I really like it. The approachable brew balances east and west coast…
Review: Jack Daniel’s Tennessee Tasters’ Selection – “Twin” Blend
This 7th entry in JD’s Tennessee Tasters’ Selection is one of its simplest concepts: Tennessee Whiskey (a type of bourbon) blended with Tennessee rye. 50 barrels total were used for this release — 30 rye, 20 Tennessee whiskey. All of them were distilled on May 19, 2014 (14E19, per the code on the label), then…
Review: Straightaway Cocktails, Complete Lineup (2021)
Straightaway Cocktails, from Portland, Oregon, is a newcomer to the ready-to-drink space. While they have been around only since the end of 2018, Straightaway has rapidly expanded with three product lines currently offered. While Accompani amaro and Spritz flavored wine spritzers deserve their own write-ups, today we’ll focus on the core collection of six bottled…
Review: 2019 Eisacktaler Kellerei Cantina Valle Isarco Kerner Alto Adige
Eisacktaler Kellerei’s 2019 bottling of kerner features a crisp lemon backbone and some bright salinity, backed up by a fresh bouquet of flowers and a gentle layering of fresh herbs — rosemary, thyme, maybe some oregano — all of which works delightfully well together. This is on one hand a delicious throw-it-back porch pounder wine,…
Review: Catoctin Creek “Life’s a Peach” Barrel Select Rye Whisky
Catoctin Creek‘s latest special edition rye is “Life’s a Peach,” a highly limited expression (547 bottles produced) of its 100% Virginia rye whiskey that is finished for one year in Short Hill Mountain Peach Brandy barrels. It’s the first time Catoctin — which is known for unusual special editions and weird finishes like this one…
Review: Lejana Y Sola Mezcal Joven
Lejana Y Sola (“afar and alone”) is a sister brand of PaQui Tequila, which we reviewed when it was first released a whopping 11 years ago. This joven mezcal is an “ensemble” made from espadin and cuishe and is made in Lachila, Oaxaca via traditional methods that include the use of a horse-drawn tahona to…
Review: Tanqueray Gin & Tonic (Canned)
With all of the ready-to-drink cocktails that have been coming out lately, it is surprising that it took so long for the classic gin and tonic to appear (though perhaps that’s because this is literally the easiest cocktail in the world to make). Now they are starting to arrive, and today we will finally try…
Review: Elijah Craig Barrel Proof Batch A121 (January 2021)
The first Elijah Craig Barrel Proof release of the year, coded A121, is upon us — and hold on to your hats, folks, as it is one of the best releases in the series to date. For those unfamiliar, these limited edition releases of Elijah Craig (made with a modest amount of rye in the…
