Review: Buffalo Trace Distillery Single Oak Project Bourbon Round Fifteen
The penultimate release of Buffalo Trace’s Single Oak Project is here, which means only a dozen bottles of the series of 192 bourbons remain to be released. For those keeping score, this makes 180 bourbons sampled to date over nearly four years of staggered releases. Need a primer on the Project? Here’s our past coverage to…
Review: Chateau du Tariquet Armagnac VS Classique (2015)
Armagnac, in the Gascony region of France near Bordeaux, has long played second fiddle to the better-known and more prestigious Cognac. Subtle production differences exist between the two. Cognac uses up to three grape varieties. Armangac can include four (Folle Blanche, Ugni Blanc, Colombard, and Baco). Cognac is distilled twice, Armangac only once. Bas-Armangac is the…
Review: Wines of Smith-Madrone, 2015 Releases
Three new winter releases from Smith-Madrone, located at the top of Napa Valley’s Spring Mountain. 2012 Smith-Madrone Chardonnay Napa Valley Spring Mountain District – Buttery, with strong notes of vanilla and nuts. Not much in the way of a surprise here, with modest pear and lemon notes duking it out with that big, brown butter…
Review: Wines of Esporao, 2015 Releases
Three new offerings from Portugal’s Esporao, new releases from the company’s Reserva line as well as its Quinta dos Murcas Reserva offering. Some thoughts follow. 2011 Esporao Reserva Red DOC Alentejo – Made from a blend of traditional Portuguese grapes, including aragonez, trincadeira, cabernet sauvignon, and alicante bouchet. Incredibly dense, this wine starts with licorice notes and…
Review: Glendalough Poitin – Complete Lineup
Poitin (po-cheen) pushers are trying their darnedest to bring this ancient Irish spirit back to the masses. A distillation of malt barley and sugar beets, the finished product is aged in virgin oak (but generally filtered back to white). Ireland’s Glendalough sent us a trilogy of poitins for us to sample. Our thoughts follow. Glendalough Poitin…
Review: Bowen’s Whiskey
Here’s a craft spirit out of Bakersfield, California, a Bourbon-like whiskey that’s not quite Bourbon, a spirit that wears its smoky character on its muscular sleeves. The company describes how it is produced thusly: Bowen’s Whiskey, a true artisan whiskey, is made from 100% corn, cut to proof with a proprietary, structured micro-clustered water to…
Review: Oregon Spirit Vodka and Merrylegs Genever
Two more spirits from Oregon Spirits Distillers in Bend, Oregon — these renditions of those two most classic white spirits, vodka and gin. Let’s taste them together! Oregon Spirit Vodka – Distilled from winter wheat. Very innocuous on the nose, it’s got just some modest hospital notes and a dusting of white grape juice to…
Review: 2012 Yangarra Grenache McLaren Vale Old Vine
This grenache hails from McLaren Vale in South Australia. Those expecting the typical, Australian sugar bomb might be pleasantly surprised to find ample restraint here: Touches of strawberry and blueberry up front lead to a silky core that integrates mild notes of spun sugar to the mix. The end result is slightly sweet, but still…
