Rated A-
Reviews of spirits, wine, and beer (and various errata like mixers and garnishes) comprise more than 80% of the content at Drinkhacker, and the A- rating is used for very good to exceptional products. On a five-star scale, these products would score 4 stars. On the traditional 100-point scale popular with many wine and spirits graders, these products would merit scores of 90 to 93 points.
If there’s one thing you can count on in this world, it’s that a by the glass wine list will have something from La Crema available. The California giant is known for producing good wine at a good price, but in this tasting of three new bottlings, you might be surprised to discover some of…
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Firestone Walker’s beloved Parabola, the crown jewel in their Proprietor’s Vintage Series, is back for 2023, and it boasts an impressive origin story sure to excite bourbon fans and beer drinkers alike. Continuing a trend of using older bourbon barrels to age its iconic stout, Firestone turned to Buffalo Trace to craft this year’s release…
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We’ve sampled a few of the rarer offerings from Virginia’s Filibuster Distillery in recent years, and today we’re looking at a pair of extremely limited-release whiskeys from their Triple Cask line. The more readily available core expressions include a Dual Cask rye and bourbon finished exclusively in French oak, but for the Triple Cask offerings,…
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The latest company to enter the ready-to-drink space is Stone Brewing, which recently dropped this quartet of canned RTD margaritas: all sparkling, and made with real tequila. We got the full lineup to try, so let’s serve the salsa and get started. Each is 12.5% abv. Stone Buenafiesta Margarita Classic Lime – Things kick off…
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Stop me if this sounds familiar: For its latest entry into its Wood Finishing Series, Maker’s Mark is analyzing the impact of barrel entry proof — aka BEP. Maker’s is famous for entering the barrel at a low 110 proof instead of the more typical 125, which was legalized in 1962. (It’s the only major…
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Opolo is a long-time friend of Drinkhacker, turning out a tight range of zinfandel and cabernet sauvignon-focused wines from the Paso Robles area. Today we dig into three new releases from the winery, two zins and a cab. 2021 Opolo Zinfandel Summit Creek – The classic zinfandel recipe has been followed to a T here,…
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It’s been over a decade since we last reviewed Knob Creek’s flagship rye whiskey, and there’s ample reason to revisit it now. As of March 2023, the previously non-age stated rye now carries a seven year age statement, the first since its national launch in 2012. That’s a noticeable change for a widely available and…
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Indie bottler Lost Lantern continues its focus on unique American craft whiskeys with its latest single cask collection. The four bottlings comprising the Spring 2023 cohort feature some of their oldest offerings yet from the likes of Westland, Watershed, and Corbin Cash, all bottled without filtration and at cask strength. A bit about this bunch…
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Another fruit-heavy IPA from Deschutes is upon us, and while this one is not made with actual fruit, it does feature Mosaic, Simcoe, Strata, and Experimental 586 hops, the lattermost of which I have to assume are responsible for the burst of pineapple that flows forth from this brew, backed up by a squeeze of…
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The first thing you notice when pulling Üllo’s (“oo-low”) Special Edition decanter from its sleek, glyph-heavy packaging containing the entire purifying system? The beautiful design. No doubt inspired by mid-20th-century Scandinavian designers, it is worth taking a few moments to watch how the curved lines overlap and perform optical illusions on its neck and base.…
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