From Chile’s Apalta Valley comes Ventisquero’s Vertice, a very rich and extracted blend of Camenere (51%) and Syrah (49%). Amazing depth of wine here, with smoky notes at play with deep plum fruit, black pepper, and a touch of eastern spices. It’s just too bad the wine lacks structure, its creaminess washing away the acidity it needs to make Vertice a more food-friendly blend.
A- / $25 / ventisquero.com
Whiskyfest has come and gone, and I’d consider it one of the best installments of the celebration of whiskey to date. It was packed, to be sure, but the crowd rolled with the frequent bumped elbows, stepped-on toes, and spilled spirits, and everyone had a good time.
Yes, there were some misses — like companies refusing to pour some spirits because they were “saving them for their seminar” and low available stock levels of others, like the Tomatin 40 Years Old, which Tomatin said was poured out a mere 8 minutes after the doors opened — but all in all the experience was spectacular. Many thanks to Malt Advocate for putting on a solid experience like this and extending the invitation my way.
As always, thoughts on everything I managed to taste can be found below.
Scotch
Ardbeg Rollercoaster / A / composed of 10 years worth of Ardbeg vintages; massively peaty but I love the balance and the leafy, herbal finish
The Famous Grouse Malt 18 Years Old / A- / malty and bread-like, a lovely blend
Highland Park 30 Years Old / A / classic as always
A.D. Rattray Balblair 19 Years Old / A- / very hot, but in balance
A.D. Rattray Bowmore 18 Years Old / B-
The Glenrothes Vintage 1985 / A-
Bowmore 18 Years Old / B / heavy, peaty and rough
Bowmore 25 Years Old / A- / much better, finally balanced
Aberfeldy 21 Years Old / B+ / easygoing
Glenfarclas 40 Years Old / A / a highlight of the show, a perfectly balanced malt
Mackillop’s Choice Highland Park 1980 / B
Tomintoul 31 Years Old Reserve / A / always a favorite, decadent and full of flavor, but so light and easy
Deanston 30 Years Old / A-
Gordon & MacPhail Strahisla 1963 / A / heady with incense, citrus, and vanilla; lovely
The Dalmore King Alexander III / A- / intensely woody finish
Old Pulteney 30 Years Old / A- / essence of coal
Tomatin 25 Years Old / B+ / fruity, big apple notes
GlenDronach 1995 Cask #2045 Sherry Cask / B+ / classic malt character
Kilkerran Work in Progress 2 / B / at six years young, it’s getting there
Longrow CV / B- / peat levels are out of balance
Duncan Taylor Lonach Strathisla 42 Years Old / A / a perennial favorite at Whiskyfest, with cocoa and coconut notes
Everyone Else
Jameson Rarest Vintage Reserve / A / very malty, banana notes
St. George Barbary Coast Baby Bourbon / C- / looks nicely aged, tastes straight from the still
Van Winkle 12 Years Old / A / so smooth, really amazing value whiskey
Pappy Van Winkle 15 Years Old / A- / hot but a good and representative bourbon
Pappy Van Winkle 20 Years Old / B+ / big smokiness
Pappy Van Winkle 23 Years Old / A+ / the standby, a perfect bourbon
High West Silver High Country Single Malt / B+ / probably the best white whiskey I’ve ever had, this one from malted barley instead of corn
Charbay Pilsner Whiskey 12 Years Old / B- / amazing yet bizarre, really big beer notes
Charbay Folle Blanche 1983 Alambic Pot Still Brandy / B / lots of heat, needs more sweetness
In the Scotch whisky world, The Glenrothes (correct pronunciation: glen-ROTH-ess) is unusual to the point of being unique. It doesn’t offer age statements on its products, but rather vintage dates them from the point of distillation. You can figure out the age by reading the fine print — the typical Glenrothes vintage-dated whisky is 10 to 12 years old — but even that can be misleading. Why? Because Glenrothes is moved from the primary cask to a “neutral” holding cask before it is bottled, and it can sit in this holding cask for up to four additional years before going into glass.
Then there’s the glass, too. Glenrothes bottles are wholly unique, like little hand grenades. The squat bottles are actually inspired by whiskymakers’ sample vials.
Opened in 1879 and based in Speyside, the distillery has honed its house style to focus on four elements: Vanilla, citrus, spice, and fruit. It’s the fruit where Glenrothes has a lot of leeway: It can be dried and raisin-like, or tropical and banana-infused. This ensures, as I saw during a recent sampling of three Glenrothes whiskys, courtesy of brand ambassador Ross Hendry, that the “house style” has a lot of wiggle room. Comments follow.
The Glenrothes 1994 – Going out of circulation before the end of the year, this 86-proof whisky is light and citrusy, with warm sugar notes that mix well with a lemon/grapefruit character. Great balance here. Not too sweet. A- / $75
The Glenrothes 1998 – Remarkably different than the 1994. Wood notes are huge on the nose, but quieter on the palate. Vanilla is bigger, but that citrus character stands by as well. A lot hotter than the 1994, this “Carmen Miranda” whisky (Glenrothes’ term) features tropical fruit — that banana character is especially notable — and a racy, spicy finish. Really night and day vs. the 1994. 86 proof. B+ / $55
The Glenrothes “John Ramsay” Legacy Edition – Glenrothes malt master John Ramsay retired in 2009 after 43 years at the distillery, and this is his swan song. A blend of whiskys distilled between 1973 and 1987, it’s got more vanilla than any other Glenrothes I’ve tried, along with chocolate galore. Citrus and more banana are hinted at, especially in the finish, and you’ll even find some herbal character in there, too. Complex and enlightening. 93.4 proof. Just 1,400 bottles made. A / $1,000
Check out Glenrothes and dozens of other whiskeys at WhiskyFest San Francisco tonight! Hope to see you there. Say hello if you see me!
You’re not crazy. Someone really did put “best friends forever” in the name of their tequila.
That someone is Amigo, and the best friends in question are this bottle of tequila and you.
But let’s put the name aside and see where we get. 100% agave, with no chemical additives, Amigo bf4e comes only in a reposado expression, aged two months in oak and bottled at 80 proof.
On first rush, it’s a hot tequila, but give it a little time in the glass. Soon you’ll find it opens up pretty nicely, exhibiting buttery and sweet vanilla notes along with a nicely balanced agave character on the palate. The finish doesn’t go for bite, but instead goes back to the sweet, with caramelized sugar, flan, and a little burnt orange. A tiny touch of bitterness in the denouement, but that doesn’t ruin a quite impressive experience.
For this price, this is an amazing tequila. I’d love to see what Amigo could do with an anejo. In limited distribution on the west coast.
A- / $30 / drinkamigo.com
San Diego’s Karl Strauss Brewing Company offers this brew for the traditional October celebration of all things beer.
But Karl Strauss’s Oktoberfest isa bit of an oddity. The nose screams cocoa powder, with a malty, lightly hoppy character. That cocoa continues on the palate, but the body isn’t a good match. Watery and thin, it doesn’t have the body that a meaty, autumn brew commands. The finish is even stranger, veering into sour notes after flirting with bitterness. Just out of balance over all, and not very refreshing, ultimately.
C+ / $7.50 per six-pack / karlstrauss.com
Hope Family Winery, under its Westside Red label, is releasing this oddity, a Paso Robles-based blend of 53% Syrah, 37% Mourvedre, and 10% Grenache… from three different vintages: 2007, 2008, and 2009.
The result is a wine so intensely earthy that I had first suspected it had a Pinot Noir influence. But its spicy Syrah qualities come through after 15 or so minutes of exposure to the air. Once it opens up, it’s black cherry all the way, but there’s lots of wood here too, along with some dark chocolate and cinnamon character. Interesting, but tough, and more suited to mealtime than drinking solo.
B- / $20 / westsidered.com
Organics are on the rise in the wine and beer business, and now there are enough of them to merit their own event. California Certified Organic Farmers have gathered 26 wine- and beermakers together to taste their wares to the public. The event benefits the nonprofit trade group, and $30 gets you all the beer and wine you’d care to drink.
Check it out on October 29 in San Francisco’s Ferry Building, from 4 to 8 pm.
More info from the trade group…
CCOF’s 5th Annual Organic Beer and Wine Tasting
Friday, October 29, 2010
4:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m.
San Francisco, CA
Join CCOF for the 5th Annual Organic Beer and Wine Tasting at the Ferry Building in San Francisco to sample a wide variety of fine beverages – all by producers certified organic by CCOF – and talk directly to the vintners, and brewers. The event begins at 4:00 p.m. and runs until 8:00 p.m.
Every year more organic winemakers and brewers are winning praise and awards for the beverages they produce and CCOF, one of the nation’s largest and oldest organic certifying agencies, is pleased to certify some of the best. Since 2006, the Organic Beer & Wine Tasting at the Ferry Building has gathered these celebrated wines and brews from across the state.
In addition to the wide selection of beverages to sample, attendees will have the chance to bid in a Silent Auction on items donated by the vendors. Last year’s auction items included bottles of the vintners’ best wines, gift boxes of beer, and brewery and winery tours.
Posted in Beer, Upcoming Events, Wine
There are peaty Scotches, and there is Ardbeg Supernova.
Ardbeg’s standard malt is, to this writer’s knowledge, the peatiest Scotch in regular production. Supernova takes that and ramps it up even further.
Listen, they don’t exactly call it Supernova because it’s subtle. The original Supernova was released last year to massive acclaim, with a ridiculous phenol content of over 100 ppm. This year, Ardbeg has upped the ante further, with an even more phenolic — and higher proof — whisky.
Pale straw in color, Supernova 2010 (aka SN2010) certainly looks unassuming. How could something so light and airy be of consequence. But oh, this second release of Supernova makes itself known by the simple act of removing the cap from the bottle. It does not have an aroma of peat and phenol. It has the overwhelming essence of it to share with you.
Take a whiff. It is overpowering. And you haven’t even taken step two yet: Take a sip.
The attack is actually pleasant and a little sweet. You have hopefully cut SN2010 with water, though: At 120.2 proof it will scar your gums if you don’t. That sweetness lasts for a couple of seconds, then the peat floods your senses. The phenolic, seaweed, intensely wooyd notes envelop your nostrils, and the massive heat warms the mouth and body. It’s like drinking a coal fire that is being doused with honey to put it out — in vain.
Supernova is not a whisky that everyone is going to be able to handle. In fact, it’s downright complicated, difficult, and overwhelming. This actually makes it quite the mysterious visitor, someone you might be interested in spending the evening with… but whom you know you’re best off seeing only on occasion.
Good luck finding a bottle, by the way.
A- / $130 / ardbeg.com
Fruit + beer often = trouble.
Stevens Point’s latest entry into its Whole Hog line is a raspberry-flavored saison — a rustic, seasonal ale designed to be refreshing and reinvigorating after a long day of work. The spectre of a jammy, over-sweetened beer is worrisome, but Stevens has done right in this recipe.
On first sip, you may not taste the raspberry at all. The ale has a creamy, rich body, a moderate amount of malt, and a little bitter hoppiness atop all that. The raspberries come on for the second act, but they’re understated and easy. For a beer designed to be served during harvest time, the balance between bitter hops and sweet berries is just about perfect. The finish is on the herbal side, with juniper and lavender notes in there if you go hunting.
Fun stuff. At 7.2% alcohol by volume, probably not for drinking by the six-pack (or, in this case, the four-pack), but perfect for toting on that last picnic of the season.
A- / about $8 per four-pack / pointbeer.com
They say three of anything is a trend. Well, by my count, we’re at five.
I’m talking about whiskeys with extra oak aging, particularly with the word “Black” added to the name.
Crown Royal Black is, as you may expect, an added-oak version of the venerable Crown Royal Canadian whisky. In this case, “black” is no joke. It may very well be the darkest color whiskey I’ve ever encountered, a deep hazelnut color in the glass. The spirit in a full bottle is nearly opaque.
This concerned me. Over-oaking is a serious risk in whiskey, and the worry of a ruined whisky was on the top of my mind. The good news is that Crown Royal Black isn’t too far gone. Yes, it is oaked to within an inch of its life, but Crown has taken it just to the edge — and brought it back again.
The body is sweet like standard Crown Royal, but laced with intense oily wood notes, cinnamon, black pepper, and dried figs. Surprisingly mild for 90 proof, that wood character even overpowers the alcohol out of the spirit.
Long and smoldering finish, like a campfire turning to ash. That, of course, has good and bad connotations. I expect CR Black may be too much whisky for many. Others will find it’s got a rustic, frontier character that also finds a bit of balance in its own odd way.
B+ / $32 / crownroyal.com
Posted in Canadian Whisky, Rated B+, Reviews, Whiskey
