Review: Mezcal El Silencio
El Silencio is a new brand of premium mezcal, produced in small batches in Oaxaca from, per the distillery notes, a “blend of 100% wild agave using 10- to 12-year-old plants.” It’s then double distilled and bottled, sans aging. The name is indeed a reference to David Lynch’s Mulholland Drive. The nose is bright and big:…
Review: Cutty Sark Tam O’ Shanter 25 Years Old
Venerable Cutty Sark has been making big moves of late (more on these in a few weeks), but the biggest is easily the launch of Tam O’ Shanter, the Scottish company’s ultra-premium blend of 25 year old malt and grain whiskys. Decidedly limited, it’s far from your grandpa’s old green bottle of Cutty’s classic blended…
Review: The Spirits of Sweden’s Spirit of Hven
The Spirit of Hven Backafallsbyn Distillery, or simply “Hven,” can be found on a small island wedged between Sweden and Denmark (it’s part of Sweden). Hven, pronounced “venn,” was established in 2008 as part of the new guard of Scandinavian distilleries, where it produces a variety of white and brown spirits, including some seasonal schnapps (for…
Review: A. Smith Bowman Abraham Bowman Gingerbread Beer Finished and Port Finished Bourbons
Two new expressions recently arrived from our friends at Virginia-based, Sazerac-owned A. Smith Bowman, both specially-finished Bourbons bottled under the Abraham Bowman line. Thoughts follow. Abraham Bowman Gingerbread Beer Finished Bourbon – This whiskey starts with 6-year old Bowman Brothers Bourbon. It is then transferred into old Bowman barrels which have, in the intervening years,…
Review: NV Blandy’s Madeira Malmsey 10 Years Old
A few months ago we took a deep dive into the world of Madeira, with a survey of four different grape varietals, all made by Blandy’s and all five years old. Today we look at an older version of one — Malmsey — at 10 years old. Malmsey was my favorite Madeira then and I…
Review: 2011 Sartori Ferdi Bianco Veronese IGT
A unique white wine made entirely from garganega grapes from the Soave region of Italy. (As with the red wine Amarone, these grapes are dried before they are vinified, spending 40 days in the sun boosting their sugar levels.) The wine is partially fermented in stainless steel and partially in oak. The wine initially offers…
Review: 2012 Martin Codax Albarino Rias Baixas
Widely available and incredibly affordable, Martin Codax’s 2012 Albarino from Spain’s Rias Baixas region is easy to like. Offering fresh lemon and pineapple notes, it has a modestly creamy body and a brisk acidity to the finish. A bit of vanilla adds a touch of the exotic. A- / $12 / martincodax.com Related posts: A Tour…
Review: Jack Daniel’s White Rabbit Saloon Whiskey
A seasonally-available, limited edition version of JD, White Rabbit Saloon is bottled and named in honor of the 120th anniversary of the White Rabbit Saloon, a Lynchburg bar owned by Jack Daniel himself. There’s no specific information on how this blend differs from Old No. 7, but it is bottled at 86 proof instead of…
