Review: Casamigos Tequila Anejo
You may have heard over the summer that George Clooney sold his start-up tequila company, Casamigos, to spirits industry titan Diageo for an amount approaching a billion dollars. That’s right. A cool billion. While that price seems high, it’s reportedly the fastest growing super-premium tequila brand in America. We’ve already reviewed Casamigos Blanco and Reposado,…
Review: Wines of Villa Gemma, 2017 Releases
Villa Gemma is a label produced by Masciarelli Tenute Agricole, a leader in the Abruzzo region, just southeast of Tuscany. As the press notes say, “With over 60 parcels of vineyards in the 4 provinces of Abruzzo (Chieti, Teramo, Pescara, L’Aquila), the winery can uniquely express the astonishing diversity and variety of terroirs of the region.”…
Tasting Report: Pinot Days 2017
It’s been a few years since we visited Pinot Days, to see what American — primarily Californian — wineries are doing with this most beloved of grapes. The answer: Well, they’re still making pinot noir, and, based on this crop of primarily 2014 and 2015 vintage wines, they’re doing an awfully good job of it.…
Review: Vermont Cider Ingrained
Vermont Cider Co. is the producer of, well, most of the cider you’re likely to find: Woodchuck, Gumption, Magner’s, Blackthorn… they’re all out of Vermont. Vermont Cider also produces occasional bottlings under its own label, including this special edition: Ingrained. The name is a play on words, because the cider is aged in WhistlePig rye…
Cocktail Recipes for Fall 2017
With the changing weather and all the busy things going on in our lives during the fall, we wanted to share with you a few cocktails to settle down with when your day is finally done. We’ve also included a punch recipe for when you have friends over, and to finish it up, check out…
Review: 2016 Iron Side Reserve Napa Valley and Pinot Noir Reserve Monterey
Iron Side Cellars is actually a brand of Latitude Beverage Company, which is based not in Napa but in Boston. The company’s been producing wine under this label since 2012, and its new 2016 Reserve bottlings are now hitting the market. We tried both wines — a red blend and a pinot noir — to…
Review: Old Elk Blended Straight Bourbon Whiskey (2017)
Crafted in Fort Collins, Colorado, by former MGP master distiller Greg Metze, Old Elk is a different kind of bourbon right out of the gate. “Blended” is a curious term to see on a whiskey label these days, and I’ll let Metze and crew explain what that means here: We use traditional ingredients – malted…
Review: Hornitos Cristalino Tequila Anejo
The latest expression from Hornitos — it’s been on a tear lately — is Cristalino, an anejo tequila that is filtered back to clear. Let’s dig into this 100% agave offering. Whole most tequilas of this style are predominantly anejo-esque in style, Cristalino drinks less like an anejo and more like a “best of both worlds” tequila.…
