Review: Euphrosine Gin #9
New Orleans’ Atelier Vie is the company behind this gin (there’s also a barrel-aged version), a classic juniper-heavy style that won’t offend any gin lover. The gin is crafted from grain neutral spirits, and aside from juniper, bay leaf is the only other listed botanical here — the rest are not disclosed. What Euphrosine —…
Book Review: Bourbon Curious
Fred Minnick is the bon vivantiest of the bourbon-focused bon vivants, an ascot-wearing gentleman who knows his whiskey and dutifully reports all the news that’s fit to print from Kentucky and beyond. Bourbon Curious: A Simple Tasting Guide for the Savvy Drinker is exactly that, a guide to everything a novice drinker would want to know…
Review: Glasgow Distillery Co. Prometheus 26 Years Old
Glasgow Distillery Co. is the producer of Makar Gin, but it also put together this one-off single malt, essentially an independent bottling of a 26 year old whisky sourced from a mystery distillery in Speyside. Oddly, it’s a peated Speyside (and one source on GDC’s website says it’s 27 years old, not 26), so it’s…
Review: 2012 Galerie pleinair and latro Cabernet Sauvignon
Laura Diaz Munoz creates these two California cabernets — wildly different, yet next door neighbors — at Galerie, where the wines are constructed to evoke France’s Loire Valley. (Three white wines, not reviewed here, are also produced.) Today we take a dive into the 2012 reds. Thoughts follow. 2012 Galerie “pleinair” Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley –…
Review: Grey Goose VX Vodka
High-end vodka has been making a move to the even higher end of late, and one of the forerunners is this intriguing option from perennial top shelfer Grey Groose. The idea with Grey Goose VX is to take Grey Goose and spike it with “a hint of precious Cognac.” (Remember, after all, this is a French…
Book Review: Craft Beer for the Homebrewer
Homebrew beer cookbooks are legion, but this title from Michael Agnew is special — it’s stuffed with recipes for (real) craft beers, many of which from brand names you’ve probably actually tried. Lagunitas, Allagash, Rogue, Shmaltz — all of them are well represented among the roughly three dozen recipes in the paperback. Each recipe spends…
Review: Elijah Craig Single Barrel Bourbon 18 Years Old
Elijah Craig 18 Years Old was originally released in 1994 — but you probably haven’t noticed it on the shelves for the last three years, as the expression has been on “hiatus” due to a lack of available 18 year old bourbon barrels. Now EC18 is finally back, and for my money, this is Elijah…
Review: 2014 Carne Humana Napa Valley White Wine
Carne Humana, literally “human flesh,” is the name of a Napa Valley ranch turned vineyard, which now specializes in field blend bottlings. This white wine is a hodgepodge of stuff, but it’s predominantly sauvignon blanc, chardonnay, and semillon. The nose is marshmallow-like, with citrus and baked apple overtones. On the palate, gentle sweetness is complemented…
