Monthly Archives: June 2011

Review: I Spirit Italian Vodka

Posted on June 20, 2011 by Christopher Null| 3 Comments

Italy and vodka: Two names that, well, I’ve never heard together before. I Spirit bills itself as “the original Italian vodka,” and I’m hard-pressed to argue with that self-assessment. The distillation base includes both grape and grain components, distilled five times in both copper and column stills, then blended with water from the Dolomites to 80 proof.

Results: Despite a harsh, medicinal nose, I Spirit is quite pleasant on the palate. Those medicine aromas are minimized on the tongue,and what’s behind is a mix of earthy, grain-driven character plus some sweetness, presumably a by-product of the white wine component which is distilled down to make the vodka. Secondary characteristics includes a hint of lemon and citrus peel, but on the whole it settles down with a short and surprisingly neutral finish. Works in a martini, no problems.

B+ / $40 / ispiritvodka.com

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Posted in Rated B+, Reviews, Vodka

Review: Oxley Classic English Dry Gin

Posted on June 19, 2011 by Christopher Null| 3 Comments

England’s Oxley gin is nothing if not unique: From its production technique — a “cold distillation” using a vacuum to lower the boiling point of the liquid, yielding just 240 bottles of product each day — to its avant garde bottle — partially clad in metal and with its neck wrapped in leather — Oxley is an experience you don’t easily forget.

Imbued with 14 botanicals (a complete list isn’t provided), Oxley is a big and complex gin that aficionados of the spirit should love. Juniper is moderate to strong, but if you give it a little air you’ll soon release lots of citrus notes — grapefruit is in there — plus what tastes like cinnamon, a bit of licorice root, and clear vanilla on the finish. Oxley calls this recipe #38. Seems that perseverance paid off.

For something that’s 94 proof, this gin is on the mild side. It has a bite, but nothing substantially more than your typical 80-proof distillate. The finish is clean and both a bit tart and sweet, quite inviting. Altogether a worthy gin that — while very hard to find — is worth “calling” in your Martini should you see a bottle on the back bar.

A- / $50 / oxleygin.com

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Posted in Gin, Rated A-, Reviews

Review: High West Distillery Barreled Manhattan “The 36th Vote”

Posted on June 18, 2011 by Christopher Null| 1 Comment

If a cocktail requires no fresh juices or other highly perishable ingredients, why not just bottle it outright?

That’s the idea behind High West’s Barreled Manhattan: It’s a Manhattan cocktail pre-bottled and ready to go.

Now this isn’t some rotgut nonsense, 10 percent alcohol bullshit in a single-serve bottle. It’s the real deal, and top shelf at that.

The recipe is authentic: 2 parts rye (High West’s 95% rye is used) to 1 part sweet vermouth, plus 2 dashes Angostura bitters. The company notes that this isn’t as easy as it sounds: You can’t just drop “off the shelf” vermouth in and resell it: Once federal excise taxes have been paid on booze, it can’t be repackaged and resole. So the Utah-based High West had to buy wholesale, pre-tax vermouth in bulk.

The mix is then put back into an oak barrel (formerly used for rye) for 120 days — and High West says that the cocktail doesn’t oxidize during this time.

Results: Incredibly impressive. This is for all intents and purposes a high-grade Manhattan like you’d get at any upscale bar. It’s a little sweeter than I might mix up, but that makes it incredibly easy-drinking. Lots of red cherry fruit character here, with that spicy rye especially evident on the nose. Go easy on the ice, or you’ll kill off some of the character here — it’s drinkable even warm, like a good whiskey. Add a cherry if you’re feeling decadent.

Incidentally, High West also sent along the un-aged version of this cocktail for comparative purposes (it’s not for sale), and it’s amazing to see how much more of a hard edge it has in comparison. With that barrel time, the cocktail gels sweeter, too — much like any whiskey — and more character. The un-aged version is a straightforward and very good tipple. The aged version is a modern classic. Bring on the ultra-high-grade pre-mixed Martinis and Sazeracs!

74 proof.

(The story behind “The 36th Vote” is left as an exercise for the reader.)

A / $50 / highwest.com

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Posted in Rated A, Reviews, Rye, Vermouth, Whiskey

A Fungus Among Us

Posted on June 17, 2011 by Christopher Null| 1 Comment

When in Kentucky, most of the distillery warehouses were covered in black mold. I asked one guide why they painted their buildings black (I had assumed to keep them warm) — but she basically said so you couldn’t see the mold. Turns out Bourbon country is not alone. Wired has the scoop on how neighborhoods located near distilleries around the world are infested with the stuff… stuff that no one knew what it was until just a few years ago.

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Posted in Drinking Science, Whiskey

Review: Last Round Hangover Support

Posted on June 16, 2011 by Christopher Null| Leave a comment

Promoted heavily alongside The Hangover Part II, Last Round is another entry into the long line of “shots” meant to make tomorrow, as they say, a better day.

The ingredients are curious: Kudzu, stevia, green tea, ginkgo, and Ural licorice extracts. No crazy chemicals. Not even any B or C vitamins, staples of the hangover cure trade.

The taste is pleasant and mild, a bit like warm, flat cola drink, plus a little cinnamon and clearly a licorice kick. The extra-large size — 2.4 oz. vs. the usual 2 oz. of these things — isn’t exactly welcome. If they could squeeze this stuff into a 1 oz. shot I’m sure we’d all be much happier trying to down them.

As it were, I drank half a bottle after a couple of drinks and before I went to bed. I am not exaggerating when I say that was the best night’s sleep I’ve had in over a year. Woke up refreshed and feeling amazing. And that was after just half a bottle!

Your mileage may vary if you’ve really overdone it — or maybe I was just lucky that one night. One thing’s for sure, though, I’m going to give this one another try. Kudzu! Who knew?

A- / $18 for six 2.4-oz. vials / last-round.com

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Posted in Hangover, Rated A-, Reviews

Tasting Alexander Keith’s Nova Scotia Style Beers

Posted on June 15, 2011 by Christopher Null| 1 Comment

Alexander Keith was a Scotsman who moved to Canada in the early 1800s. He got into the beer business and started making Scottish-style brews. 200 years later, his company is still going and it’s bringing three new beers to America — they’re actually new versions of the company’s Canadian brews, which are slightly different. These are actually brewed in cooperation with Anheuser-Busch in St. Louis. The beers are now available in 22 states.

On video from Halifax, Nova Scotia, I had the pleasure to taste these brews virtually (online) along with Brewmaster Emeritus Graham Kendall.

All beers are 5.4% alcohol.

Alexander Keith’s Nova Scotia Style Lager – A little nutty, caramel character is strong. A little sweet, it’s quite refreshing and easygoing, but it’s stronger and bigger in body than your usual lager. A-

Alexander Keith’s Nova Scotia Style Pale Ale – Very mild for a pale ale, lightly hopped and pretty easygoing. Foamier, but a little lighter in body than the lager. Just about as enjoyable, but less complex. B+

Alexander Keith’s Nova Scotia Style Brown Ale – Bigger, with strong cinnamon and nutmeg character. A fun, fireside-style beer but, again, sweeter than you might be prepared for. B+

Check the beers out on Facebook here.

each $8 per six-pack / keiths.ca

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Posted in Beer, Rated A-, Rated B+, Reviews

Review: 2006 St. Francis Merlot Sonoma County

Posted on June 14, 2011 by Christopher Null| Leave a comment

Merlot Day has come and gone, but considering how poorly Merlot wine has been selling (ever since Sideways, it’s true), there’s plenty of the stuff on the market ripe for the picking. Merlot of course has gotten a terribly bad rap in the last seven years. A lot of juice on the market is incredibly good — and inexpensive, too. It has none of the cachet of Cabernet or Pinot Noir, but next time you can’t decide what wine to drink, do me a favor and give a Merlot a try again. No longer the watery, tasteless varietal you might remember (or misremember) it as, California’s recent Merlot bottlings have gotten sophisticated and impressive.

St. Francis’s 2006 Merlot is a smooth operator, treading the line amiably between tart and lush. The nose offers jammy fruit — cherries and raspberries — but the body segues from that brash fruitiness into an unexpected creaminess. Wood, mint, and black fruit make their entrances before the relatively short finish comes along, a pleasant and easygoing, food-friendly farewell to the glass.

B+ / $16 / stfranciswinery.com

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Posted in Rated B+, Reviews, Wine

Recipe: Drinkhacker’s Sangrita

Posted on June 14, 2011 by Christopher Null| 3 Comments

My secret sangrita recipe on Food Republic. Dig in!

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Posted in Mixers, Recipes

Review: Jose Cuervo Low-Cal Margarita/No-Cal Margarita Mixes

Posted on June 13, 2011 by Christopher Null| 4 Comments

Pre-bottled margarita mix is certainly one of the biggest scams perpetrated on the American public since the Flowbee. Really, people, how hard is squeezing out some lime juice and adding a little sweetener, if you’re so inclined?

And yet the just-add-tequila margarita mix remains and, judging by the vast amount of shelf space these mixes command, it remains a top seller.

Now Cuervo is taking things to an extreme: Ripping the calories out of margarita mix with a no-calorie mix and, if you’re too lazy to dump in your own tequila, by offering a sub-100-calorie pre-mixed “Light Margarita” as well.

It’s not our usual bailiwick, but we took a stab at tasting them both.

Jose Cuervo “Zero Calorie” Margarita Mix isn’t terribly surprising: It’s simply a blend of artificial sweetener and some kind of lime essence (sans calories). The flavor is a bit like a diet Sprite that’s gone flat, which could be worse, and if you’re on an extreme diet, well, you probably shouldn’t be drinking margaritas but, if you can’t stop yourself, then I guess this will do in a pinch. Adding tequila (even 100% agave good stuff) actually doesn’t help things at all: It gives the mix a bitter edge and brings out its artificial character. Bottom line: If you want to save calories, skip the mix altogether and just add lime juice the way you’re supposed to. C- / $7 per 1.75-liter bottle

Jose Cuervo Authentic Light Margarita (pictured) – I’m not sure how Cuervo can put the words “authentic” and “light” right next to each other, considering this product certainly has no actual lime juice and is flavored with the same artificial sweetener as the “zero calorie” mix above. This one works better, probably because there is so little alcohol in it. (Cuervo claims it is composed of Cuervo Gold, triple sec, and “a twist of lime.”) And yet somehow this ends up at just 9.95% alcohol. It’s not awful, with real tequila bite, better and more authentic-tasting citrus character, and only a mildly cloying finish. If you need something for a tailgate party in a plastic bottle and there’s a diabetic in the crowd, well, I suppose it will do.* C+ / $15 per 1.75-liter bottle

cuervo.com

* Drinkhacker does not offer medical advice and has no idea if this stuff is diabetic-friendly.

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Posted in Mixers, Rated C+, Rated C-, Reviews, Tequila

Review: Becherovka Original Liqueur

Posted on June 12, 2011 by Christopher Null| 1 Comment

For 200 years, Becherovka liqueur has been a Czech staple. Now it’s arriving on our shores, courtesy of Pernod Ricard.

This strange, secret recipe spirit is nothing if not unique.

The nose brings big, almost straightforward cinnamon, anise,$26/ and allspice notes. But taking a sip provides a vastly different experience. Initially quite sweet, Becherovka quickly fades toward bitter, growing more and more powerful as the finish comes on like a freight train. That cinnamon soon turns into intensely herbal bitterness — licorice and chicory notes mingling with baking spices.

While it’s a pale yellow in color, it ultimately presents itself more like a dark amaro, bittersweet and biting. The end result is quite intriguing, but it’s hot and alcoholic, characteristic of Eastern European spirits, and lacking the kind of balance that you get from bitter Italian digestifs.

76 proof.

B- / $26 / becherovka.ws