Review: Crafthouse Cocktails – Spicy Margarita and Moscow Mule
It’s a sign that pre-prepared cocktails have truly arrived that every one of Crafthouse Cocktails’ eight ready-mixed cocktails won Double Gold, Gold or Silver at the 2020 San Francisco World Spirits Competition. The company is the brainchild of Chicago bar owner and restauranteur Matt Lindner and Global Bartending Champion Charles Joly. Joly had become used…
Review: Cascade Moon Whisky Edition No. 1 and No. 2
Cascade Hollow Distilling Co. is probably better known to most readers as the home of the George Dickel Tennessee Whisky line, but recently the company launched a new line of whiskies called Cascade Moon — “highly limited,” per the company — which “pay homage to the distillery’s history while setting the tone for the future…
Review: 2017 J Vineyards Pinot Noir Annapolis Ridge Vineyard
This single vineyard pinot from J stands at the top of its impressive lineup, but the wine is surprisingly astringent at first blush, taking quite a bit of time to open up and reveal itself. Until then, it’s all graphite, charred wood, and spice box. Eventually notes of fresh cherries, blueberries, and some pomegranate evolve,…
Review: E11even Vodka
Never mind the oddity of the name — is it supposed to look like Elleven? — what we’ve got here is not an exploration of numeral-heavy typography but rather “a true Miami spirit,” a vodka born in “Magic City” that bears the name of a 24-hour nightclub that clearly I’ve never been to. Turns out…
Recipe: Revolver
Who doesn’t love an easy cocktail? Well, it doesn’t get much simpler than the Revolver. It’s a riff on a Manhattan, and its quality, like a lot of uncomplicated cocktails, relies on the ingredients. The drink was created almost 20 years ago by Jon Santer, a well-known San Francisco bartender who popularized the drink at…
Review: NV Nicolas Feuillatte Brut and Rose Champagne (2020)
We’ve written about the Champagnes of Nicolas Feuillatte several times, but here’s a fresh look at two of the operation’s most available bottlings from the “Reserve Exclusive” series — a nonvintage brut and a rose, both seen here in their 2020 incarnations. Both are available in standard bottles and in 187ml “splits” that can be…
Review: Copper Fox Inauguration Rye
A handful of craft distillers across the country commemorated the recent presidential inauguration with a special spirits release. Virginia’s Copper Fox Distillery used the moment as an excuse to release its first ever cask strength whisky, dubbed Inauguration Rye. While this is the distillery’s first inauguration release, going forward there are plans to set aside…
Review: 2016 Renato Ratti Barolo Marcenasco DOCG
One look at the light color of this wine and it immediately shows itself as an atypical Barolo. The nose however shows itself as fairly iconic: dense and earthy, with a layer of roasted mushrooms and balsamic notes that segue from there into intense notes of black fruit, tar, rhubarb, and tobacco. From there everything…
