Tasting the Wines of Amalaya and Colome, 2016 Releases
Amalaya and Colome are both based in Salta, Argentina — and both are owned by California’s Hess Family Wines. Today we look at two wines from each, a torrontes and a malbec, all delightfully different despite being neighbors, both geographically and business-wise. 2015 Amalaya Torrontes/Riesling Salta – 85% torrontes and 15% riesling. The riesling is…
Review: Plantation O.F.T.D. Rum
For the record, that’s Old Fashioned Traditional Dark. The rum itself may be old-fashioned, but its creation is decidedly newfangled. Constructed by a crew of seven self-described “rum geeks,” the team behind Plantation’s OFTD includes Plantation’s rum master Alexandre Gabriel, plus David Wondrich, and five rum-centric bar owners, including Jeff “Beachbum” Berry (New Orleans’ Latitude 29),…
Review: Jameson The Cooper’s Croze Irish Whiskey
Wood is important in whiskey, and that’s why with this new expression, Jameson is highlighting the power of wood by turning its Head Cooper, Ger Buckley, loose in the warehouse. The goal, “to showcase the diversity of barrels at our Midleton distillery and the profound influence that wood yields. With knowledge passed down through 5 generations…
Review: Dogfish Head Flesh & Blood IPA
I guess the flesh is the hops. The blood is in the juice: This is an IPA flavored with orange peel, lemon flesh, and blood orange juice. A shandy it’s not, mind you, though what it actually is is difficult to describe. Tart citrus juice tones down the piney bitterness of the IPA, without adding…
Review: Brodsky Herbal Flavored Whiskey
Here’s a crazy concept. A Stamford, Connecticut medical doctor with Eastern European heritage decided to distill, age, and bottle his own herbal-flavored whiskey as a spin on the digestif/amaro formula. Brodsky, aka “The Original Brodsky,” is a wild idea that is frankly unlike any other whiskey you’ve had — or even any amaro, really —…
Review: Smirnoff Ice Electric Mandarin and Berry
Leave it to Smirnoff to invent a whole new category of booze. As it did with Smirnoff Ice, now the company as it it again with Smirnoff Ice Electric. Available at first in two flavors, Ice Electric is a non-carbonated beverage that comes in a resealable, 16-ounce plastic bottle. It looks like a Gatorade because…
Review: Gosling’s Gold Seal Bermuda Gold Rum
Gosling’s is well-known for its flagship Gosling’s Black Seal Rum, but it actually has quite a family of products on offer, including our highly-rated Gosling’s Old Rum and this, Gosling’s Gold Seal. Launched in January in its native Bermuda, Gosling’s Gold Seal is an amber rum that replaces its old Gosling’s Gold Rum and builds on…
Review: Antelope Island White Rum
Dented Brick Distillery in Salt Lake City, Utah is the home of Antelope Island Rum. Antelope Island is the largest island in the Great Salt Lake, but Dented Brick has a more exotic connotation, referring to a shootout in the area that occurred only in 2008. At present, it’s the only spirit they make, a…
