Review: Barefoot Spritzers
Barefoot doesn’t just make crazy cheap nonvintage wine. It also makes these “wine-based spritzers,” which are tiny single-serve cans of wine, seltzer, and flavorings, all canned at 5.5% abv. We’re hardly in the spritzer season, but consider bookmarking this for when the weather turns warm and a poolside gathering is in the cards. Barefoot Spritzer Crisp White –…
A Visit to House Spirits in Portland, Oregon
Very few people are doing American single malt whisky with solid success, but one of the outliers has long been House Spirits, an early mover in this space and the brand behind Westward Single Malt, which we reviewed in one of its earliest incarnations in 2013. Today, House Spirits is known as the brand that…
Review: Beronia 2015 Rioja Crianza and 2013 Rioja Reserva
Beronia focuses on affordable Rioja. We last reviewed these wines in 2016. 2015 Beronia Rioja Crianza – For 2015, Beronia’s Rioja Crianza blend is 91% tempranillo, 8% garnacha, and 1% mazuelo, a fairly classic blend for this style. Boldly fruit-forward with notes of strawberry, raspberry, and blueberry, it’s a tutti-frutti wine that folds in hints of…
Review: The Singleton of Glen Ord 14 Years Old Limited Edition 2018
The Singleton series of single malts isn’t particularly known for offering an elevated experience. (Official tagline: “Scotch Whiskies That Are Made For Mixing.”) The family comprises whiskies from a fluid number of distilleries, with Glendullan currently ruling the roost. What then to expect of this 14 year old from Glen Ord, the only distillery…
Review: 2010 Vinas del Vero Secastilla Garnacha
Vinas del Vero is part of the Gonzalez Byass portfolio, and Secastilla is the label’s top-level offering. This is a 100% garnacha hailing from the Somontano region, in far northeast Spain. At 8 years old (and yes, still reasonably available) it’s decidedly showing some age, with a Port-like raisin character and notes of oxidation. A dense…
Review: Lakes Distillery Steel Bonnets Blended Malt Whisky
Lakes Distillery is England’s largest whisky distillery, located a few miles south of the Scottish border. Steel Bonnets is the world’s first blend of single malt Scottish whisky and single malt English whisky, naturally using the Lakes Distillery’s own single malt. The region has always been a fairly lawless part of the UK, with marauding…
Review: 2017 Kim Crawford Sauvignon Blanc Signature Reserve Marlborough
Overwhelming with mango and grapefruit notes, this wine spins toward the tropics on one hand, then back toward intense acid with the other. Stylistically random, it’s got a heavy note of rosemary and thyme that dominates on the back end, giving the wine an almost pungent savoriness on the finish. I find the whole affair…
Review: Oban 21 Years Old Limited Edition 2018
I’ve had a minor rediscovery of Oban of late, so what a treat it was to see the Highland malt at a full 21 years of age in Diageo’s Special Releases for 2018. This expression, distilled in 1996, was matured in refill European oak butts, an even bigger rarity for the brand than the extended…
