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 represents the cream of the crop — excellent products with only minimal flaws. On a five-star scale, these products would score 4.5 stars. On the traditional 100-point scale popular with many wine and spirits graders, these products would merit scores of 94 to 97 points.
Barrell Bourbon ended 2021 with Batch 31 of its flagship bourbon and kicked the new year off with Batch 32. Each release is a blend of sourced stocks from Kentucky, Indiana, and Tennessee, which has become a consistent theme in recent years (with the exception of Batch 30). Dig a little deeper, however, and you’ll…
Read More
It’s hard to believe that it’s been 9 years since we’ve reviewed Don Melchor, a semi-cult wine from Chile’s Concha y Toro empire, a wine which launched in 1987. This vintage is a blend of 92% Cabernet Sauvignon, 5% Cabernet Franc, 2% Merlot, and 1% Petit Verdot. One can generate few complaints in tasting Don…
Read More
Two new brews from 10 Barrel Brewing, including our first look at the “It” beer of 2022, a Cold IPA. 10 Barrel Brewing Club Tread Mandarin IPA – IPA and orange are natural bedfellows, and here they work together fitfully, imbuing the fairly low-abv beer with a bright orange quality. It’s not particularly identifiable as…
Read More
When photographer Charles Button named this book, he could not have been more literal. The Art of Whisky does not speak to the chemical construction and craft of spirits, nor does it consider bottles or label artwork, as each already enjoys numerous volumes of published commentary. Instead, it presents the patterns of various whiskies as…
Read More
Our second look at Monkey 47’s limited release “Distiller’s Cut” gin reminds us of how it’s made: 47 ingredients go into the standard Monkey 47. The Distiller’s Cut adds a 48th, in this case Scarlet Monarda, an aromatic flower that’s largely grown for decorative purposes. The aroma is said to be similar to a bergamot…
Read More
Now for the moment some of us have been waiting for since first signs of re-awakening appeared at the abandoned Taylor distillery off McCracken Pike. After several years of patience, time, and change, the inaugural batches of Castle & Key’s bourbon have been delivered. The first round of Restoration Rye went live in early 2021,…
Read More
Ron Cooper founded Del Maguey (pro tip: “del ma-gay”) in 1995, created the category of artisanal mezcal in the U.S. singlehandedly. The brand has gone nowhere but up since, thanks certainly due to the way it works. Rather than being a bulk product, Miller works with 12 different families in 10 villages in Oaxaca (and…
Read More
The gimmick with Calirosa is right in the name: Instead of ex-bourbon barrels, this tequila is aged in California red wine barrels — even the blanco, for a short time — which gives the spirit a naturally pink, or rosa, hue. The operation uses a blend of highland and lowland agave and makes three expressions,…
Read More
Talisker quietly dropped a 30 year old release, turned out from refill bourbon casks and bottled in late 2021 at cask strength — a whopping 48.5% abv. Only 3216 bottles were produced, with 498 available in the U.S., so if this sounds enticing, you should probably hop on it. 30 years hasn’t dampened the nose…
Read More
Mocktails (the beverage company) hails from the UK and has recently expanded into the U.S. with its offering of non-alcoholic ready-to-drink, well, mocktails. There are no artificial flavors nor high-fructose corn syrup in the drinks (and, of course, no alcohol), and they are certainly not shy about literally and figuratively going the distance to source…
Read More
