Review: Spirit Works Gin, Barrel Gin, and Sloe Gin
Sebastapol, California is in the heart of Northern California’s winemaking operations, and it’s here where Spirit Works can be found, cranking out a variety of gin, vodka, and white whiskey products. They even make an authentic sloe gin here — and we were lucky enough to try it, along with the company’s standard gin and…
Review: Starr Hill Shakedown Imperial Chocolate Cherry Stout
Starr Hill flies a bit too close to cute with this Imperial Stout that has cherries and dark chocolate mixed in during the fermentation. The chocolate is far more noteworthy — there’s just a hint of sourness driven by the cherry component, and mostly that comes through on the finish. In the meantime, it’s a…
Review: 2012 Markham Cellar 1879 Blend Napa Valley
God bless the lunatic who dreamed up this insane blend of six grapes that shouldn’t go together. Markham’s Cellar 1879 blend is composed of Napa grapes in this proportion: 36% Merlot, 21% Petite Sirah, 14% Cabernet Sauvignon, 12% Syrah, 9% Zinfandel, and 8% Petit Verdot. Named in honor of Markham’s founding, it’s an insanely drinkable bottling that won’t break the bank. There’s…
Recipe: Super Bowl Cocktail Recipes 2015
Super Bowl XLIX is a mere one day away. With #deflategate, anti-media players, and all the commercials to watch, it seems as if folks are forgetting the most important thing about the game: drinking. Here’s a sampling of a few recipes to kick your viewing parties up a notch or two. No underflated drinks here! Dulce…
Book Review: Fire Water
If you liked Alt Whiskeys, you’ll love Fire Water, Darek Bell’s follow-up tome on the intricacies of craft distilling. While Alt Whiskeys focused mainly on the impact of using different grains in your whiskey mash, here the Corsair Distillery founder takes a look at how smoke can impact craft whiskeymaking. This isn’t just a lark. For this book,…
Review: Kai Lemongrass Ginger Shochu, Lychee Vodka, and Coconut Pandan Vodka
Vietnam’s only vodka comes from Kai, which distills rice into both vodka and shochu (aka soju — it puts both names on the bottles), in a variety of flavors. Kai (slogan: “Taste the pleasure”) sent us three expressions of its Asian-inspired spirits for our investigation. Thoughts follow. Kai Lemongrass Ginger Shochu/Soju – Very light and…
Review: Crown Royal Hand Selected Barrel
And now for something completely different from Crown Royal — no, not another flavored whiskey — it’s Crown Royal’s first ever single barrel expression, straight from the cask! The catch: It will only be on sale in Texas (and only through retailers who sign up to buy a full barrel of the stuff). Off-the-rack Crown Royal…
Review: 2012 Charles Krug Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley
This well-pedigreed Cabernet offers a ripe, blackberry-laden nose with touches of black pepper and dried herbs. The body is rich and lush with chocolate notes, some coffee bean, and vanilla. The finish is big and fruity, its tannins mellowing with ample time in the glass, leaving behind some notes of tea leaf, charcoal, and cocoa…
