Review: Hillrock Solera Aged Bourbon (2013)
It’s surprising that more aged spirits aren’t made in the solera style. For the uninitiated, solera aging involves moving spirits from younger barrels to older barrels, bit by bit, until the liquor in the oldest barrel is bottled — the oldest of the old blended with a bit of spirit from a wide variety of…
Review: Skyy Infusions Natural Wild Strawberry Vodka
Wild strawberries, really? Flavor #11 from Skyy is indeed made with real, wild strawberries, according to the company, a flavored vodka inspired by one of the most popular cocktail flavorings around. (Skyy says the strawberry is “more complex” than you’d think.) That may indeed be the case. Skyy Strawberry has a solid fruity nose, and…
Review: Middle West Spirits OYO Vodka and OYO Whiskey
Columbus, Ohio-based Middle West Spirits produces a variety of vodkas and whiskeys, but these two, pronounced Oh-Why-Oh, are the base products from which everything else is drawn. Thoughts follow. OYO Vodka – Made from local red winter wheat, this (purported) 34-times column distilled vodka has lots of character. On the nose, there are lots of…
Recipe: Mother’s Day Cocktail Ideas, 2013
Sunday brings us the time-honored tradition of celebrating everyone’s favorite person: Mom. Whether it was helping with algebra, forcing you to eat vegetables, or picking you up from school because you wore a Dead Kennedys “In God We Trust Inc.” t-shirt to class, Mom’s always been there to help out along the way. Here’s a…
Review: Queen Jennie Sorghum Whiskey
Old Sugar Distillery in Wisconsin is home to a number of spirits (including this rum), but none is more unusual than Queen Jennie, a whiskey made of 100% Wisconsin sorghum. Sorghum isn’t made into whiskey the same way corn or rye might be. Rather, the grassy sorghum (most typically used as animal feed) is squeezed…
Review: Jim Beam Bourbon Signature Craft 12 Years Old & Signature Craft Rare Spanish Brandy Bourbon 2013
Rob Theakston recently had the opportunity to be front and center for the opening of Jim Beam’s Global Innovation Center this sprint, which culminated in the launch of Jim Beam’s first Signature Craft Bourbon. Rob previewed Signature Craft 12 Year Old, and now its formal arrival on the market is nigh. Launching for sale in…
Review: Chardonnays of Francis Ford Coppola, 2011 Vintage
Francis Ford Coppola has become an icon in Northern California’s wine country, but why does a man this important — whose Oscars and Palme d’Or can be seen firsthand at the pool-equipped day resort/tasting room he runs in Sonoma County — need no fewer than five Chardonnays? (In truth there are at least seven.) While…
Recipes: The Great Gatsby’s Great Cocktails
“It’s a great advantage not to drink among hard drinking people.” — F. Scott Fitzgerald, The Great Gatsby Ironic words from a writer who battled the demons of alcohol his entire life. Indeed, Fitzgerald would often take to introducing himself at parties as “one of the most notorious drinkers of the younger generation” or even…
