How Do Celebrities Blend Wine? St Hugo’s Peter Munro on Virtual Blending with F1’s Daniel Ricciardo
With eight Grand Prix victories to his name, Australian Formula One driver Daniel Ricciardo is no stranger to the champion’s circle. The 33 year-old — who will drive for Red Bull Racing starting in 2023 — is also a lifelong wine fanatic, an interest sparked by his father, who emigrated from Italy. Over the past…
Review: Village Bourbon and Bonfire
Village Garage Distillery (housed in a former garage for the local highway department, hence the name) can be found in Bennington, Vermont, where it was founded in 2018 and began releasing products in 2021. All of the company’s spirits are made in the state — though not necessarily by the company itself. In addition to…
Review: Ardbeg Hypernova
How do you top a whisky like Supernova? Simple, you just keep pushing the formula even further. Ardbeg’s Committee release for 2022 is Hypernova, which eschews curious barrel finishes and trips to space for more of what Ardbeg is known for: pouring on the peat. Peated to a phenolic level of 170ppm, Hypernova is Ardbeg’s…
Review: Fever-Tree Blood Orange Ginger Beer
Take Orange Crush and mix it with Fever-Tree’s winning ginger beer and you’ve got this unique yet versatile mixer, which was created in partnership with Maker’s Mark for its Blood Orange Kentucky Mule (1 part bourbon, 3 parts mixer). It doesn’t particularly evoke the Italian blood oranges with which it is made, but rather a…
Review: Old Forester The 117 Series – Extra Extra Old
Old Forester’s latest in its innovative 117 Series has arrived: Extra Extra Old, a double-barreled whiskey that starts with the 1910 expression and ages it in a second, heavy char barrel for 24 months. If this sounds familiar, you might remember the 1910 Extra Old bottling which arrived in 2022 and which was finished in…
Review: 2018 Etude Benoist Ranch Blanc de Noirs
Etude Winery, based in Napa, built its reputation producing a range of fine Pinot Noirs and Cabernet Sauvignons, but they recently branched out to produce their first sparkling wine. Made with Chardonnay and Pinot Noir grapes drawn exclusively from the Grace Benoist Ranch vineyards in Carneros, this sparkler pours pale straw in color. The nose…
Review: 2XO The Phoenix Blend
Dixon Dedman is no stranger to the art of blending whiskey. In fact, it’s exactly how he first made his name in the industry as a co-founder of the critically acclaimed Kentucky Owl brand. Having since moved on to his latest venture, 2XO, Dedman is hoping to recreate some of that magic now that he…
Review: Old Ezra Straight Rye 7 Years Old
Luxco’s Old Ezra brand gets a line extension with the introduction of a 7 year old rye, joining the previous 7 year old bourbon — plus a collection of other Old Ezras and less old Ezras. This release is made from blending two mashbills, one 51% rye and one 95% rye. Toasty and quite woody…