Review: Broken Barrel Los Angeles Distillery Collaboration Collection
Broken Barrel keeps cranking out expressions, but this latest offering marks a particular first: It’s the first time it’s collaborated with another distiller — Los Angeles Distillery, in this case — together producing a cask strength wheated bourbon whiskey finished with Tokaji and single malt staves. For those unfamiliar, the approach is to use finishing…
Review: 2018 Castiglion del Bosco Brunello di Montalcino DOCG
A classically styled Brunello, this decidedly dense wine unleashes lashings of anise, tanned leather, and notes of raspberry en route to a core that is equal parts balsamic and black cherry. Semi-sweet but tempered with notes of rhubarb and thyme, the finish shifts its focus toward semi-sweet chocolate notes, layered with leathery earth. Complex and…
Review: Sweetens Cove 22
Sweetens Cove Spirits, the celebrity-backed whiskey brand named for an unassuming golf course in Tennessee, is out with another addition to its lineup, Sweetens Cove 22. Your first question might be the same as mine. What’s with the 22? Per the brand, 22 denotes the year this whiskey was released, 2022 (we’re a bit late…
Review: Wines of Domaine Bousquet Gaia, Summer 2023 Releases
Carrying on with the release overview of Domaine Bousquet’s output for this year, this time taking a closer examination of its Gaia portfolio. So, what differentiates the Gaia line from its siblings? First and foremost, they are 100% organic. The grapes are grown at a cooler altitude (1,200 meters) by the foothills of the Andes…
Review: Jefferson’s Marian McLain Bourbon
Jefferson’s is out with a new super premium bourbon release – its first in quite a while – and it comes with some interesting history and a charitable initiative, to boot. Jefferson’s Marian McLain honors the 8th generation grandmother of Jefferson’s founder, Trey Zoeller, who seems like she was quite the character in her day.…
Review: NV Laurent-Perrier Blanc de Blancs Brut Nature Champagne
We have enjoyed other offerings from popular Champagne producer Laurent-Perrier in the past, and today we try their Blanc de Blancs Brut Nature, which is 100% Chardonnay, spends six years on the lees, and has no dosage. The Champagne surprised me: trying it blind, I would not have guessed it was zero dosage. The wine…
Review: Wines of Gil Family Estates, 2023 Releases
Over the course of a century, the family of Juan Gil Giménez has very quietly established themselves as a family dynasty in Spanish wine lore, spanning over four generations and expanding to nearly a dozen brand names and more vineyards than one cares to count. With no signs of slowing down any time soon, it…
Review: Storywood Tequila Reposado and Anejo Speyside Scotch Barrel Aged
It isn’t always clear what barrels are used to age tequila. Most often it’s ex-bourbon and sometimes new oak. But Storywood is the first brand I know of to age all of its tequila in ex-Scotch casks. Begun in 2018, Storywood was founded by Michael Ballantyne, who was born in Scotland and raised in Houston,…
