Review: Teeling Single Pot Still Virgin Swedish Oak Irish Whiskey
Teeling’s third installment in its Wonders of Wood series — following Chinkapin Oak and Portuguese Oak — is here, and the Irish distillery is turning to its most northern wood source yet: Sweden. WOW #3 is a single pot still whiskey (as usual) that is aged in virgin Swedish white oak. (All three whiskeys in…
Review: Wines of Hard Working Wines, 2024 Releases
McPrice Myers recently launched a new label of (very) affordable wines called Hard Working Wines — all made not with generic Central Valley fruit but rather (for the most part) more prized Paso Robles grapes. And yet prices on all of these wines are kept to just $20 a bottle. Let’s dig in. 2021 High…
Review: 2009 Cantine Florio Marsala Vergine Reserva
Marsala is rarely sipped by itself in the U.S., most often appearing as the cooking wine used to make veal or chicken marsala. But like Port and sherry, Marsala is a fortified wine that can be crafted and aged to be distinctive and enjoyable on its own. Today we sample the highest classification of Marsala,…
Review: Firestone Walker XPA
So you want an IPA but you don’t want a big, boozy experience? Firestone Walker’s 5% abv Extra Pale Ale (XPA) offers a potential (albeit seasonal) solution inspired by our friends down under. To wit: “XPA is the number one craft beer style in Australia and it’s something we’re excited to champion it here in…
Review: Appleton Estate Rum Hearts Collection 1998
With its Hearts Collection, Appleton has really come into its own as one of the premiere producers of rum globally. This collection is a series of very limited releases, offering ultra-aged, single-vintage rums from the years 1994, 1995, 1999, 1984, 2003, 1993, 2002, and now 1998. We’ve reviewed only the last two of these, and now…
Review: El Buho Mezcal – Jabali, Mexicano, and Tepeztate
We recently re-reviewed El Buho Mezcal Espadin to see how it had changed since we first tried it 12 years ago. Now we’re back with the rest of the line of mezcals El Buho, including one made with Jabali, which is a variety that rarely makes it to the U.S. These are more adventurous varieties…
Inside Bord Bia, Ireland’s Big Global Spirits Push
Irish spirits — whiskey in particular — is one of the fastest growing liquor categories in America. U.S.-based sales of Irish whiskey are up over 90 percent in the last decade. Much of that growth comes from major brands like Jameson and Bushmills, but dozens of new labels are gaining market share as well as…
Review: Wines of Truth and Valor, 2021 Vintage
Truth and Valor produces a range of wines — all reds — in the Paso Robles area. Recently we received the full lineup of wines from the winery, all from the 2021 vintage. Let’s taste. 2021 Truth and Valor Cabernet Sauvignon Paso Robles – A gooey expression of blueberry jam, filtered through anise and tannin.…
