Review: Knob Creek Rye 10 Years Old
A year after adding a seven year age statement to its flagship small batch rye, Knob Creek is back with another permanent addition to the core lineup. It’s that same Kentucky straight rye whiskey, this time aged 10 years, and at a slightly more premium price point. (A $30 bump up from the seven year…
Review: 2019 Famiglia Cotarella Ferentano Bianco Lazio IGP
Ferentano derives from the archaeological site of Ferento, an ancient Etruscan town near the vineyards that grow a grape varietal called roscetto, a white wine grape that is reportedly now grown only in one small vineyard near the town of Montefiascone, in the Lazio region. Chances are you can go your whole life without encountering…
Review: A. Overholt Straight Rye Whiskey
No one would have guessed sleepy old Old Overholt would move upmarket, but somehow it keeps on happening. The latest Overholt isn’t “Old,” It’s “A.” — after founder Abraham Overholt — with a retro bottle and the original mashbill of 80% rye, 20% malted barley. (Standard Old Overholt’s mashbill is not disclosed.) This mashbill is…
Review: Jermann 2022 Pinot Grigio and 2021 Dreams
Jermann’s wines are Italian, not German, though I can understand the confusion: Even the font the company uses is Germanesque in design. Today we analyze two white wines from this Venezia-based winery, which you’ll find just miles away from Italy’s border with Slovenia. Thoughts follow. 2022 Jermann Pinot Grigio – A lightly sweet expression of…
Review: Ezra Brooks 99 Bourbon Port Wine Cask Finish
A new Cask Finished Series is underway from Lux Row Distillers’ Ezra Brooks brand: Up first is an expression finished in Port casks. Formally known as Ezra Brooks 99 Proof Cask Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey Finished in Port Wine Casks (whew!) this is a take on Ezra 99 Bourbon (made from a mash of 78%…
Review: Copperworks Single Malt Cask 472
Bourbon and corn whiskey have a long history in Kentucky and Tennessee due to early westward expansion and the reality that corn was the grain at their disposal. Similarly, rye whiskey was king in the early northeastern United States because rye grew well in the region. Early styles of American whiskey were largely necessitated by…
Review: Argiano 2018 Brunello di Montalcino and 2021 Non Confunditur
Two wines from Argiano, a historic winery in Tuscany’s Montalcino area that dates back to 1580 (as an olive oil producer) and which is, more recently, the first company in the area to become plastic-free. 2018 Argiano Brunello di Montalcino DOCG – “The soul of the Argiano portfolio” is this unusually lighthanded Brunello, showcasing the…
Review: Mammoth Northern Rye No. 2
Bourbon is the premier whiskey of America. Michigan’s Mammoth Distilling prefers advancing the cause of rye. While the lion’s share of American whiskey is distilled from bulk commodity grains, Mammoth invests in research regarding the distillation of heirloom varieties of rye grain. Each specific variety of rye grain produces different qualities in a whiskey. Pre-Prohibition…
