Review: Westland Coldfoot Edition 1
Seattle-based Westland Distillery, where the new releases seem to drop every other week, is back with its latest craft whiskey, Coldfoot. Coldfoot is a curious, limited-edition collaboration with outdoor goods company C.C. Filson Co. and is meant to evoke “the spirit of the Pacific Northwest.” If you’re curious about what the name refers to, let’s…
Review: 3 Texas Whiskeys from Flaviar
My latest foray into Flaviar’s new quarterly subscription club is this trio of whiskeys from three different Texas distilleries. (Forgot what this club is all about? $95 gets you a single shipment or $300 buys you four shipments over the course of a year. Each shipment includes a tasting kit of three themed 50ml samples…
Review: Weller Special Reserve (2020)
In recent years, William Larue Weller has become the most coveted bottle in the annual Buffalo Trace Antique Collection, easily seeing markups of five times its MSRP and even more than that on the secondary market. That breathless hysteria has now trickled all the way down to the most readily available bottle in the Weller…
Review: Volatus 2016 “Bloody Well Right” Tannat and 2018 CAVU
Here’s a pair of wines from Paso Robles’ Volatus. If some of the names sound familiar, it’s because co-owner Victoria Schmitt’s father was Supertramp’s drummer. On to the wines. 2016 Volatus “Bloody Well Right” Tannat Paso Robles – 100% tannat — unusual, to say the least. The wine is a hefty beast, pushy with earth, eucalyptus,…
Review: Jefferson’s Reserve Pritchard Hill Cabernet Cask-Finished Bourbon
Not long ago, we revisited Jefferson’s Reserve. Well, today we’re reviewing a wine-finished version of that very same bourbon. Jefferson’s Reserve Pritchard Hill Cabernet Cask Finish is the same blend of three different well-aged rye bourbons finished for an extra year in French oak casks that previously held the acclaimed Pritchard Hill Cabernet Sauvignon from…
Review: Moscow Muled Copper Mugs
The copper Moscow mule mug is arguably the most iconic piece of barware there is, but are all copper mugs equal? According to Moscow Muled, an artisan mug-maker, copper can be problematic: “Copper is a heavy metal that reacts with acidic fluids such as cocktail ingredients. If you use a copper mug that is not…
Review: Tullibardine The Murray 2007
Tullibardine first released The Murray in 2017 as part of its new Marquess Collection, the distillery’s high-end, limited edition lineup. Now there’s a new Murray on the block, distilled in 2007 and bottled at 12 years old, just like the inaugural release. It’s also aged completely in first-fill bourbon casks, making it a nearly identical…
Review: Sparkling Wines of Domaine Carneros, 2020 Releases
Domaine Carneros’ latest sparkling wines have hit the market. We received a three-pack of the winery’s most noteworthy new bottlings. Thoughts on each of these expressions follow. 2016 Domaine Carneros Ultra Brut – The minimal dosage on this rare expression hits just 0.5 grams of sugar/liter, making it an absolutely bone dry experience. Notes of…
