Monthly Archives: February 2009

More Spirits Awards from Food & Wine

Posted on February 10, 2009 by Christopher Null| 1 Comment

Can you tell I’m reading the latest issue of the magazine now?

Some interesting picks here: Smirnoff for best value vodka, Grey Goose and Prairie Organic also awarded. Junipero and Plymouth gin recognized, with Beefeater named the best value. (I’ve never seen Plymouth for the $30 they list it here… I’d call it the best value instead.)

Ron Zacapa as best aged rum, and Bulleitt, at $36, the best value bourbon. Kind of a strange pick there, considering that’s more than the high-end vodka pick. Also interesting: Black Bottle as best blended Scotch.

Get the full list here.

→ 1 Comment

Posted in Gin, Rum, Vodka, Whiskey

Would You Ever Order the Cheapest Bottle on the Wine List?

Posted on February 9, 2009 by Christopher Null| Leave a comment

I know there’s a ton of interest in super-cheap wine. My review of the $1.97 Oak Leaf wines is one of the most popular pages on the site.

Unsurprising then that Food & Wine’s Lettie Teague undertook a unique experiment: Ordering the very cheapest wine on a number of wine lists around the country to see if any were worth drinking. (Conventional wisdom holds that you should never order the cheapest bottle on any wine list… if not out of fear for its quality than for fear of simple embarassment.)

Her verdict: Mixed. In cases where the wine list was more thoughtful and personally crafted, the cheapest wine was good. On lists that treasured names and pedigrees over actual drinkability, they were swill.

And either way, yes, it’s embarassing.

That said, I’m now really curious… even though I may not actually order it, I’m going to start scouring wine lists just to see what the cheapest bottle is.

→ Leave a comment

Posted in Wine

Review: Talisker Distillers Edition 1993 Scotch Whisky

Posted on February 9, 2009 by Christopher Null| Leave a comment

More special edition malts from the Classic Malt Collection, this one Talisker’s Distillers Edition rarity. Talisker — known as the only single malt distiller on the Isle of Skye — ages this whisky in oak then finishes it in Amoroso Sherry casks. It’s unspecified how long the whisky spent in each cask — but the total aging time was 13 years, having been distilled in 1995 and bottled in 2008.

At 91.6 proof, the Distillers Edition is light and spry compared to some of its brethren, but the medium brown color may tip you off that the richness might be better off with a touch of water. I could go either way, but in the end I think some water brings out more flavor in the finish.

The immediately obvious character is peat — not particularly smoky, but earthy — heavy on the nose and the beginning of the body. Sweetness cuts through from there, almost marshmallow-like in character, with strong notes of malt, sherry, and a little citrus. The peat comes back for the finish, playing again with a woody, vanilla sweetness that’s nicely enjoyable.

All in all, it’s not completely in balance, but it offers a number of interesting experiences all in one glass. Definitely worth seeking out if you’re a Talisker fan. Not a bad price, either.

A- / $70 / malts.com

→ Leave a comment

Posted in Rated A-, Reviews, Scotch, Whiskey

Review: Brora 25 Year Old (2008) Single Malt Scotch

Posted on February 8, 2009 by Christopher Null| Leave a comment

A coastal Highlands single malt, this limited release (about 3,000 bottles produced) whisky is initially a little off-putting, but some time with it opens things up and reveals more of its charms.

Cutting through a cloud of smoke is your first challenge, and you’ll find a honey and lemon-orange body underneath. The smoke lingers, especially if you add water, which gives the Scotch a longer but sweeter finish.

At 112.6 proof the water’s a necessity. Brora 25 Year is too hot to handle for long without a splash. Brora calls this malt “waxy,” and that’s an apt description of the way it coats your mouth, never giving up its resinous texture.

This is Brora’s first 25-year Scotch, having come off a run of 30-year bottlings. Personally I’d like to see what the end-product would have tasted like with another five years in wood.

Expect a challenge in tracking this one down, by the way.

B+ / $300 / malts.com

→ Leave a comment

Posted in Rated B+, Reviews, Scotch, Whiskey

Review: ViB “Vacation in a Bottle” Chill-N Flavor

Posted on February 8, 2009 by Christopher Null| 23 Comments

Vacation in a bottle? It’s like the Holy Grail of beverages… but is it too good to be true?

Vacation in a Bottle — or ViB — is a non-alcoholic, lightly carbonated soft drink, sweetened with cane sugar (not corn syrup) and some sucralose, flavored with natural pomegranate and goji berry juices (at least this first rendition, called “Chill-N,” is), and spiked with amino acids, vitamins, and other goodness designed to make it a healthy alternative to a Red Bull or other pick-me-up.

At just 60 calories in a 12-oz. can, it’s not too fattening, either.

While the smell is reminiscent of many any energy drink, the taste is much lighter, with faint berry notes (nothing I’d peg as specifically pomegranate) atop a moderately sweet core. The carbonation is very light, too, and overall it’s a very easy-to-drink (and arguably even relaxing) beverage. The only downside is a strongly chemical aftertaste, almost certainly a side-effect of the sucralose, which gives the whole affair a Tab-like finish. Kind of a bummer way to end your vacation in a bottle… but don’t all vacations end kind of badly anyway?

As a side note, the name begs the question… shouldn’t Vacation in a Bottle come in a bottle, not a can? [Update: The company says ViB will soon be available in bottles... which are pictured at right.]

B+ / $2.50 to $3.00 per 12-oz. can / drinkvib.com

→ 23 Comments

Posted in Mixers, Rated B+, Reviews

Review: Tres Generaciones Plata and Reposado Tequila

Posted on February 7, 2009 by Christopher Null| 2 Comments

Part of the Sauza mini-empire (along with Hornitos), Tres Generaciones is the company’s newest and most premium tequila, 100 percent agave, of course.

We tried the plata (silver) and reposado bottlings (but, alas, the anejo wasn’t available). Both are 80 proof.

Tres Generaciones Plata
This is a very respectable blanco tequila, extremely smooth, lightly sweet with solid, but not overpowering, agave character. The sweetness has a fairly vanilla note to it, which harmonizes well with the fresh taste provided by the agave. The nose is actually stronger than the body. That said, this is a pretty simple tequila in the end, so those looking for a complicated range of flavors in their blanco may be let down. Very nice on its own or, especially, in cocktails, where it won’t overpower the drink. A- / $40

Tres Generaciones Reposado
This reposado spends just about two months in oak, giving it a very light gold color. Flavor is quite similar to the plata — vanilla and pure agave, very smooth and totally without any “burn.” The time in oak comes forward in the finish, with light caramel and just a hint of smokiness coming into play. I’m not normally a reposado fan — preferring the intricate whiskey-like character of good anejos — but the Tres Generaciones won me over. For once I even prefer it to the blanco… though I can’t wait to see what 3G has done with its anejo, which spends a year or more in barrels. A / $44

sauzatequila.com

→ 2 Comments

Posted in Rated A, Rated A-, Reviews, Tequila

Review: Port Ellen Eighth Release 29 Year Old

Posted on February 7, 2009 by Christopher Null| Leave a comment

Look at the humble label on this bottle of Port Ellen Scotch whisky and you’ll probably see the big “8,” immediately assuming this is a simple, eight-year-old spirit. The pale yellow color certainly wouldn’t indicate otherwise… but check the fine print. Distilled in 1979 (some bottles may say 1978), this whisky’s been aging for 29 long years. The “8″ refers to the release sequence: This is the “Eighth Release” of Port Ellen’s single malt.

From the Islay region, this is a huge seaside Scotch, powerful with iodine and salt on first taste and never letting up. The smoke gets in your eyes (and every other cavity) from there, the heavy, heavy peating creating a nostalgic, antiseptic character in the Scotch. Sweetness comes and goes, but it’s fleeting — a little water helps bring out these notes; at 110.6 proof, it’s crazy hot without a drop or two. The iodine returns to close out the whisky, leaving you dreaming fondly of that nurse who cared for you in Key West that time you had typhus.

B+ / $400 / malts.com

port ellen 29 years eighth release Review: Port Ellen Eighth Release 29 Year Old

→ Leave a comment

Posted in Rated B+, Reviews, Scotch, Whiskey

Review: Cholives

Posted on February 7, 2009 by Christopher Null| 1 Comment

Garnishing a dessert drink with chocolate is the natural thing to do… but how exactly do you accomplish that? Drop a chunk of Hershey bar into the drink? Serve with a Twix swizzle stick?

Enter a solution: Cholives.

Much to my disappointment, Cholives are not chocolate-covered olives. They are simply medium-hard shelled dark chocolates (55% cocoa) surrounding a soft ganache center. Shaped like olives, they are concave on the bottom, which allows you to stick a skewer through the shell and into the ganache, so the whole thing sticks onto the end of a pick. The result looks a lot like an olive on a skewer like you’d drop into a martini.

They taste pretty good (the company also makes “Chruffles,” which are pretty much standard truffles), they don’t melt or break down in a cocktail, and they look impressive as a garnish goes. The amount of work required to skewer a Cholive is minimal, too, so you can have one ready in a flash.

Depending on how many you buy, you’ll pay between 50 cents and a dollar per piece, which is on the high side. That said, I expect you won’t use too many, so for special occasions, it might be fun to have a jar or tin sitting around, just in case.

A- / $45 for 90 Cholives / thecholive.com

cholives Review: Cholives

→ 1 Comment

Posted in Garnishes, Rated A-, Reviews

Review: Godiva Caramel Milk Chocolate Liqueur

Posted on February 7, 2009 by Christopher Null| 1 Comment

Butterscotch, toffee, coffee, chocolate… the whole world of candies awaits you in the world of dessert liqueurs, but where o where is caramel?

Here it is: Godiva’s Caramel Milk Chocolate Liqueur, a blend of two flavors that I’m guessing you don’t need me to lay out here for you.

I’m an unabashed fan of Godiva’s Original Liqueur and White Chocolate Liqueur, and I am enjoying the Caramel Milk Chocolate flavor quite a bit, too. Alas, it’s not quite as good as its forebears — there’s an understated chemical-like aftertaste that gives the CMC the tiniest letdown on the finish if you’re drinking it on its own — but on the whole it works well in a wide array of dessert drinks. I’ve paired it with nut-flavored, vanilla, butterscotch, and of course various chocolate liqueurs, and every time the drink comes out even better than before. Give it a spin.

30 proof.

A- / $30 / godiva.com

godiva caramel milk chocolate Review: Godiva Caramel Milk Chocolate Liqueur

→ 1 Comment

Posted in Liqueurs, Rated A-, Reviews

Review: Oban 18 Year and 1993 Distiller’s Edition Scotch Whisky

Posted on February 6, 2009 by Christopher Null| Leave a comment

The Classic Malts Collection, which comprises a wide range of Scotch whiskys, recently announced a number of special edition, limited release Scotches. We got our hands on a few of them. Reviews will be posted over the next few days, but we’ll start with two from Oban.

Oban 18 Year (large photo below)
It’s been years since I’ve had the standard bottling from Oban (a coastal Highland distillery), but if it’s anything like this 18-year edition, I need to stock up immediately. This 18-year malt reminds me a lot of my beloved Highland Park 18 Year, an almost perfectly balanced blend of sweet honey, salty seaweed, and lightly smoky peat. The interplay here is complex, but it works wonderfully, with all the elements harmonizing instead of fighting for superiority. At 86 proof, it’s perfect even without a touch of water. A lovely warmth washes over you in the sweet finish, goading you into reaching for another sip. Expensive, though <sob>. 7,716 bottles produced. A / $140

Update 2/25/09: Tried Oban 14 Year last night and found it very similar in character to this 18 Year, but not quite as rich and with a little less peat smoke to it. Definitely a pair to put side by side.

Oban 1993 Distiller’s Edition (1992 edition pictured; 1993 looks very similar)
Bottled in 2008, by my math that makes this special edition Oban a 15-year Scotch. The color is quite a bit darker than the 18-year Oban, and the body is far different, too. Filled with chewy caramel notes, this has a much sweeter profile than your typical Scotch whisky, though briny notes on the finish assure you it was made near the sea. It’s a little less balanced than the knockout 18-year (a tough act to follow), but a good follow-up thanks to its dessert-like character. Fun to drink and very enjoyable. 86 proof; finished in Montilla Fino sherry casks. A- / $90