Review: Stumbras Vodka
Stumbras hails from a large conglomerate in the Baltic region, one of its concerns being distilling. This Lithuanian vodka comes from a distillery that produces a whopping 13 million liters of 350 different beverages each year. The company is the largest producer of spirits in the region. Stumbras produces a variety of vodkas, including many…
Review: 2011 Palmeri Syrah and “Dark and Brooding” Wines
Palmeri is a small producer in Northern California producing wines from both Sonoma and Napa county. We sampled two of the company’s recent releases. 2011 Palmeri Syrah Alexander Valley Van Ness Vineyard High-Elevation – Made from grapes grown at 1000 feet-plus. It’s an intense wine, the nose thick with anise, leather, and tobacco leaf, the…
Review: NV La Marca Prosecco
A standby of big box stores and mega liquor retailers, La Marca is unmistakable with its Tiffany-blue label and its frequently sub-$10 price tag. Fresh nose, with a touch of green bean edge. The body is toasty and a bit bready, backed with apple cinnamon character and a touch of grapefruit. It’s nothing special, but…
Review: Sandeman 2011 Vintage Port and 40 Year Old Tawny Port
We’ve covered the Port-makers at Sandeman fairly regularly through the years. Today we get the honor to look at two of its most treasured bottlings: the latest vintage port release (2011), and the 40 year old tawny expression. Thoughts follow. 2011 Sandeman Vintage Port – Classic currant and some coffee notes on the nose. The body is…
Review: Breaker Bourbon
The town of Buellton, California is better known as part of the Sideways-famed Southern California wine road. But it turns out they’re making whiskey there, too. Breaker Bourbon is sourced whiskey from our good friends in Indiana, crafted from barrels at least 5 years old. Each batch is a blend of just 8 barrels of whiskey,…
Review: Magic Hat G-Thing and Heart of Darkness
Two new/seasonal brews from Magic Hat, both with winter on the mind… Magic Hat G-Thing – A ginger spice ale that’s light on the ginger, balanced with a solid ale backbone and touched with just a bit of spice (ginger and cinnamon). Mind you, it’s more ginger than gingerbread — the spicy addition offers ginger’s…
Review: Pasita and Rompope Liqueurs of Puebla, Mexico
A friend of mine is an American expatriate living in Puebla, Mexico, and on a recent trip to the U.S. she brought me a few minis of Puebla’s unofficial liqueurs — Pasita and Rompope — the likes of which we don’t much see in these parts. I told her I’d review them, more for kicks…
Review: Infuse Vodkas – Lemon, Mango, Cinnamon Apple, and Chili Pepper
Oh man, I’m a sucker for a bottle of hooch with something floating around in it. Long shafts of herbs, whole pears… what doesn’t look amazing bobbing around inside a bottle of alcohol? Infuse’s flavored vodkas all adhere to this conceit, each with something or other inside, proving, ostensibly, that natural elements are responsible for…
