Robert Strohmeyer

Robert Strohmeyer has been writing about spirits, wine, and food since 2001. A frequent denizen of Northern California wineries and distilleries, he is as at home with a glass of small-batch whisky as with a Napa Valley Cab. He loves crafting tiki cocktails, roasting coffee, cooking slow and low barbecue, baking artisan breads, and occasionally brewing beer.

Review: Virginia Distillery Co. Scholar’s Craft American Single Malt

By Robert Strohmeyer | August 18, 2023 |

Touting “Coffee Cask” aging on its label, Virginia Distillery Co.’s Scholar’s Craft American Single Malt Whisky immediately caught my attention. As lover of all things coffee, I was intrigued by the proposition of a 100% barley single malt aged in former bourbon casks and finished in coffee barrels. Virginia Distillery Co. is well known for…

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Review: Nowadays Cannabis Infused Beverage

By Robert Strohmeyer | July 7, 2023 |

As the wave of cannabis legalization washes over the United States, new variations of cocktails are emerging at a rapid clip. Here to help fuel the wave of weed-based innovation is Nowadays Cannabis Infused Beverage, a tart, fruit-forward infusion of low-dose or microdose cannabis that lends a refreshingly unusual flavor profile to the mixologists’ toolkit.…

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Review: Batch & Bottle Margarita

By Robert Strohmeyer | April 30, 2023 |

UK-based William Grant & Sons has produced a growing range of ready-to-drink cocktails since 2022, and we’ve enjoyed their line so far, having sipped their Monkey Shoulder Lazy Old Fashioned, Glenfiddich Scotch Manhattan, Hendrick’s Gin Martini, and Reyka Rhubarb Cosmopolitan. All in all, these are well crafted premixed cocktails aimed at more sophisticated palates. The…

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Review: Jack Daniel’s and Coca-Cola Premium Cocktail

By Robert Strohmeyer | April 29, 2023 |

In a collaboration that has taken entirely too long to bring to fruition, Jack Daniel’s has at last partnered with Coca-Cola to produce a canned, ready-to-drink rendition of one of the most classic American cocktails. As a Southern-born American man of the 1970s, I hold a special place in my heart for the sweet caramel…

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Review: Vaqit Vodka Soda Cocktails, Complete Lineup

By Robert Strohmeyer | April 28, 2023 |

Summer sipping on the beach, the patio, or the tailgate now affords a dizzying array of ready-to-drink cocktail options to meet all tastes. On the lighter side, we’ve got Vaqit, a simple line of vodka-soda drinks with a low alcohol content of only 4%. These drinks are squarely designed for health-conscious people who want to…

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Review: Coppa Cocktails Margarita

By Robert Strohmeyer | April 8, 2023 |

When I’ve got a hankering for a margarita, the Netherlands isn’t the first country that pops into my mind, so forgive me if I was a little skeptical when a bottle of Dutch-produced Coppa Cocktails Margarita arrived at my door. Packaged in a stylish bottle wrapped in botanical imagery, this ready-to-drink margarita is eye-catching, to…

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SouthNorte Cocktails

Review: SouthNorte Cocktails Margarita, Paloma, Matador, and Mexican Mule

By Robert Strohmeyer | April 6, 2023 |

San Diego-based SouthNorte has introduced a line of ready-to-drink cocktails in time for summer, bringing its penchant for Baja-inspired flavors to the craft. We tasted the whole lineup, and found them consistently clean, light, and refreshing, if notably short on tequila flavor. SouthNorte Margarita – A classic blend of blanco tequila, triple sec, and lime,…

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The Best Ready-to-Drink Margarita: 11 Brands Tasted

By Robert Strohmeyer | February 22, 2023 |

National Margarita Day is February 22, and true patriots of libation nation will be honoring their favorite tequila-lime traditions across this great land. For those who’d rather crack open a can than shake up a home-built cocktail, we’ve sampled 11 notable ready-to-drink options to help you with your celebrations. Whether you’re a traditionalist lean toward…

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Review: Tip Top Margarita

By Robert Strohmeyer | February 18, 2023 |

If your idea of a proper cocktail is one positively brimming with booze, Tip Top Proper Cocktails has one for you with its ready-to-drink margarita. Made with tequila, orange liqueur, and I can only assume the tiniest squeeze of lime, this stiff drink comes in at a heavy 26% abv, roughly three times the alcohol…

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Review: 10 Barrel Brewing Classic Margarita

By Robert Strohmeyer | February 17, 2023 |

Made with tequila, triple sec, lemon-lime, honey, and a little salt, Oregon-based 10 Barrel continues its craft of ready-to-drink cocktails with this Classic Margarita. Aimed at the center of the bullseye for what we all think of when we think of a margarita, this RTD classic delivers a clean, though fairly sweet, citrusy sipper that’s sure…

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