Review: Desert Door Back Burn Texas Sotol
Sotol is typically thought of as a Mexican spirit, if it’s thought of at all, but Desert Door makes the only U.S. sotol on the market, distilled from Desert Spoon plants that grow in its native Texas. Launching with a straight blanco version, which was followed by an oak-aged expression, the company has now embarked…
Review: 2019 Chalk Hill Estate Sauvignon Blanc
Ammonia notes are a bit heavy on the attack of this 2019 estate sauvignon blanc from the iconic Chalk Hill, though the wine is tempered in due course by notes of orange flowers, peaches, and lemon oil — all classic elements from the Chalk Hill repertoire. The finish is lightly grassy with more notes of…
Review: Talisker 18 Years Old
Talisker single malt can be enjoyed in a variety of expressions, from a smattering of no-age-stated offerings, including the annual Distiller’s Edition, to the occasional Diageo, end-of-year limited edition offerings we see from time to time. The core age-stated range is small, but beefy, with the much-loved 10 year, a 25 year, and this bottle…
Review: Barrell Armida
Barrell Bourbon may be 25 batches into the straight bourbon blending game, but in recent years, the company has also been looking for even more interesting ways to build a unique product, from infinity bottles to exotic finishes. They really kicked things off on the finishing front in 2019 with Dovetail, but now comes Armida,…
Review: 2018 August Kesseler “The Daily August” Pinot Noir Rheingau
German red wines are scarcely known for their subtlety, but this bottling of pinot noir from the Rheingau-based August Kesseler is surprisingly light on its feet, offering notes of fresh cherry and blackberry to counter some lingering (and otherwise fully expected) notes of roast beef, mushroom, and turned earth. It’s all done very gently, however,…
Review: The Glenlivet Double Oak 12 Years Old (2020) and the Malbon x The Glenlivet Golf Collection
Surprisingly, it has been quite a bit — 12 years — since we last evaluated the 12-year single malt from The Glenlivet. So with the arrival a freshly minted partnership with luxury golfing line Malbon, we took a minute to evaluate a select few pieces of the clothing collection, as well as refresh the glencairn…
Review: Ciroc White Grape and Pineapple Vodka
France’s Ciroc, which distills its vodka from grapes, recently launched two new flavors. Pineapple is part of the permanent lineup, while White Grape is a “limited edition” flavor — although it doesn’t seem to be going anywhere anytime soon. We tried them both, and our thoughts follow as always. Both are 70 proof. Ciroc White…
Review: 2018 Kara-Tara Pinot Noir Western Cape
This South African pinot noir, from the Western Cape region, is quite light in color, a character which is immediately at odds with the intense, earthy nose, redolent with barnyard notes — even more so than is typical of South African reds. Black pepper emerges ahead of a lightly balsamic finish, which comes across as…
