Review: 2008 Georges Duboeuf Beaujolais Nouveau
On Thursday, November 20, the new 2008 vintage of Beaujolais Nouveau goes on sale, and every wine lover should make a point to try at least one bottle before ’08 is history. I got an early peek at Georges Duboeuf’s Nouveau and found it one of the most charming Nouveaus in recent memory. The Gamay’s…
Review: Ron Zacapa 23 (2008)
What a gorgeous, lush rum this is. From the land of Guatemala comes Ron Zacapa’s old rum, aged at 8,000 feet above sea level (where the temperature averages 62 degrees) and blended from rums in the solera style. The rums in the blend range from a youthful 6 years to a hoary 23 years old…
Review: Russell’s Reserve Bourbon (2008)
Bourbon, by law, has to be at least 51 percent distilled from corn. In the case of Russell’s Reserve Bourbon, it seems like the other 49 percent is rye. This is a striking doppelganger to Russell’s appealing Reserve Rye, and the similarities are uncanny. And yet I found myself wishing this was a more straightforward…
Review: Stevens Point St. Benedict’s Winter Ale
It’s 78 degrees outside, and that can only me one thing: Winter is coming! Stevens Point is one of the first brewers to release its holiday brew, and this Winter Ale is a pleasing diversion from a summer of wheat bear and other lighter stuff. The initial taste is crisp and lightly sweet — not…
Classic Recipe: The Widow’s Kiss
This weekend Eric Felten wrote about the Widow’s Kiss in the Wall Street Journal, a classic cocktail that dates back to the 1890s at least. Tried one today — using his recipe, which is cribbed from Ted Haigh’s Vintage Spirits & Forgotten Cocktails — and found it as I remembered, still too sweet and overwhelming…
Review: 2006 Viu Manent Single Vineyard Malbec San Carlos Estate
Malbec is a huge grape in South America, and this bottling from Chile’s Viu Manent is 93% Malbec with 7% Cabernet Sauvignon. It’s a good example of Malbec’s character, with a mouth full of dusty earth that falls back to notes of grape juice (a surprise — wine never really ever tastes like grape juice),…
Review: 2006 Potel-Aviron Moulin à Vent Vielles Vignes
Probably my favorite of the latest batch of Beaujolais is this Moulin à Vent from Potel-Aviron. It has strong Gamay character, to be sure, with that kind of funky, vegetal, anti-rust undercoating but with a tightly would core of stone fruit that elevates the experience considerably. Interesting flower notes come dangerous close to smelling a…
Tequila Tips from Herradura
Nothing saddens me more than watching someone order a top-shelf tequila, then suck it down in one gulp with salt and lime. Herradura offers some tips on how to drink tequila the right way, whether you’re having a light silver or a deep anejo: – Before tasting, hold the glass up to a light. Swirl…
