Review: 2013 Georges Duboeuf Beaujolais Nouveau
Hey guys, it’s turkey day! But the end of November also means one thing for wine fans: The release of Beaujolais Nouveau, the first wines to come from the just-finished 2013 harvest. As usual, Duboeuf is first out of the gate, and these bottlings should be on store shelves right now if you need a…
Review: Batch 206 Vodka, Mint Vodka, Gin, and Moonshine
Seattle-based Batch 206 is a craft distillery focused on hyperlocal raw materials — just about all of its source materials are from the Pacific Northwest. The company cooks up its goodies in a variety of stills, including a unique hybrid pot/column still, and most are filtered heavily through coconut husk charcoal before bottling. Thoughts on…
Recipes: Last Minute Thanksgiving Cocktails, 2013
Running around the house panicked with no idea what to serve the more discriminating drinkers in your clan? Here are some quick and easy cocktail fixes to serve before or after that giant meal tomorrow. Ellinge Autumn Sky 3 ounces Purity Vodka .5 ounce honey Barspoon roasted pumpkin Handful fresh cranberries Add pumpkin, cranberry, and…
Review: Firefly White Lightning Moonshine and Apple Pie Moonshine
I’m a big fan of Firefly’s tea-flavored vodka, probably the best on the market. Recently the distillery, based in Wadmalaw Island, South Carolina, branched out into moonshine — unaged “raw corn whiskey,” available unflavored or in one of five different flavored versions. We got both the pure stuff and one of the flavors. Thoughts —…
Review: Johnnie Walker Gold Label Reserve (2013)
Earlier this fall I wrote (and spoke on video at length) about the end of Johnnie Walker Gold Label and the rise of its replacement, Platinum Label. What was a bit murky at the time was where Gold Label Reserve might fit in with all of this. Formerly a non-U.S., limited release product, Gold Label…
Review: BarSol Pisco – Quebranta & Italia
Pisco is a spirit on the rise, and Peru’s BarSol makes a huge range of them — seven varieties at present. Below we look at two single-grape varieties, a quebranta and an italia, which are probably the two most common pisco grapes grown. Thoughts on each follow. Both are 80 proof. BarSol Primero Quebranta Pisco…
Review: Collingwood Rye Canadian Whisky 21 Years Old
Who, who, whoooo is putting out 21 year old rye? At a price of 70 bucks (or less)? Collingwood, that’s who. Collingwood is best known for bottling its spirits in what look like oversized perfume bottles, but it should be known for the quality of the spirits inside. Standard Collingwood, a young Canadian blend, offers…
Review: 3 Banfi Chiantis, 2013 Releases
Three new wines from Chianti under the Banfi banner (though only one has the Banfi name on the label), all recent releases. Thoughts follow. 2011 Placido Chianti DOCG – A very pretty, lightly floral Chianti, with bright fruit and hints of leather on the nose. The palate is all cherries, all the way, lightly tart…
