Rated B
Reviews of spirits, wine, and beer (and various errata like mixers and garnishes) comprise more than 80% of the content at Drinkhacker, and the B rating is used for products that are good but which we don’t exactly love — and which we can provide with a qualified recommendation. On a five-star scale, these products would score 3 stars. On the traditional 100-point scale popular with many wine and spirits graders, these products would merit scores of 83 to 86 points.
We’ve covered countless aerator products over the years here, but with Bocavin, the company is attempting something new: Drop a AAA battery into your bottle-topping aerator, and the whole thing vibrates, really amping up the amount of air that can get into your vino. The product design is interesting. The device has two parts, a…
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The 22nd edition of Old Forester’s classic Birthday Bourbon is upon us. This year marked a shift in the way Birthday Bourbon is sold. Rather than being sold at the distillery, it was offered via a lottery that was held during the last week of August. I also had to hunt high and low to…
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Here’s a more budget-friendly whiskey offering from the folks behind Michigan’s Fox & Oden. At a stated minimum of just three years old, this is a considerably younger bourbon than that brand, but it relies on the same high rye, MGP-distilled mashbills. The name is said to be inspired by “generations of American aviators” while…
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Pearce, Arizona-based LDV presents two wines for us — both 100% petite sirah bottlings from the 2015 vintage. (Yes, these are current releases.) What does a hot climate do with a difficult grape like petite sirah? Let’s find out. 2015 LDV Winery Petite Sirah – Quite extracted from the start, you could be forgiven for…
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We’ve been keeping tabs on North Carolina’s Southern Distilling Company for a few years now. The distillery remains one of the largest, if not the largest, in the state and continues to expand their portfolio. Initial offerings, some of which we covered in 2019, relied mostly on whiskey distilled by MGP, but the distillery is…
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Sonoma’s Anaba Wines recently opened a new brunch option in its Carneros tasting room, and while we’re now too far away to easily get there to experience it in person, we did sample two new releases from the 2019 vintage, both from the Sonoma Coast AVA. Thoughts follow. 2019 Anaba Chardonnay Sonoma Coast – Oak…
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Feudi di San Gregorio’s Campania red wines are well known, but its white wines are a delight as well, each made with native varietals that are rarely seen in the U.S. Today we look at three options appropriate for late summer sipping — or, perhaps, any time. 2020 Feudi di San Gregorio Greco di Tufo…
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Alsace is best known for its crisp, aromatic, and usually very affordable white wines, but if you dig a bit deeper, you’ll find that this region produces wines in a surprisingly varied range of styles. Let’s take a dip into 5 current releases representing the range of wines coming out of Alsace. NV Willm Cremant…
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Chile has produced solid Sauvignon Blanc wines for many years, but they often seem to be overshadowed by expressions from New Zealand, France, and California. Today we are reviewing 8 Chilean sauvignon blancs, all from the country’s Pacific coast, each with a distinctive character that deserves serious attention. 2020 Matetic Vineyards EQ Coastal Sauvignon Blanc…
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The Mill Keeper is a second label from Napa’s Gamble Family Vineyards, and it’s described as “a portfolio specializing in multi vintage, environmentally conscious wines at a sustainable price point.” We received the two wines in the collection, which represent Napa’s bread and butter varietals. NV The Mill Keeper Chardonnay Napa Valley – Bold notes of…
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