Review: 2010 Vinas del Vero Secastilla Garnacha
Vinas del Vero is part of the Gonzalez Byass portfolio, and Secastilla is the label’s top-level offering. This is a 100% garnacha hailing from the Somontano region, in far northeast Spain. At 8 years old (and yes, still reasonably available) it’s decidedly showing some age, with a Port-like raisin character and notes of oxidation. A dense…
Review: Lakes Distillery Steel Bonnets Blended Malt Whisky
Lakes Distillery is England’s largest whisky distillery, located a few miles south of the Scottish border. Steel Bonnets is the world’s first blend of single malt Scottish whisky and single malt English whisky, naturally using the Lakes Distillery’s own single malt. The region has always been a fairly lawless part of the UK, with marauding…
Review: 2017 Kim Crawford Sauvignon Blanc Signature Reserve Marlborough
Overwhelming with mango and grapefruit notes, this wine spins toward the tropics on one hand, then back toward intense acid with the other. Stylistically random, it’s got a heavy note of rosemary and thyme that dominates on the back end, giving the wine an almost pungent savoriness on the finish. I find the whole affair…
Review: Oban 21 Years Old Limited Edition 2018
I’ve had a minor rediscovery of Oban of late, so what a treat it was to see the Highland malt at a full 21 years of age in Diageo’s Special Releases for 2018. This expression, distilled in 1996, was matured in refill European oak butts, an even bigger rarity for the brand than the extended…
Fall and Winter Cocktails for 2018
Plummeting temperatures during one of our busiest times of year really call for something to warm the body and soul at the end of the day. Here are a few cocktails designed to do just that. We’ve also included a punch and sangria recipe for when you have friends or family over (another common occurrence…
Review: James E. Pepper Old Henry Clay Straight Rye Whiskey
Lexington’s James E. Pepper Distilling Company is clearly sitting on a healthy stock of Indiana rye. The distillery bottles five different rye expressions, including a barrel proof and a single barrel. Almost all of those are released under the 1776 label with the outlier being Old Henry Clay Straight Rye Whiskey. Where does that name…
Review: Elysian Pumpkin Beers and Space Dust IPA
We’ve still got another few weeks before pumpkin beer season ends, so please indulge our slightly belated look at a whopping four pumpkin brews from Seattle’s Elysian… plus one regular old bottling that doesn’t have any pumpkin in it at all (just because). Elysian The Great Pumpkin Imperial Pumpkin Ale – Brewed with pumpkin seeds and additional…
Review: Proper No. Twelve Irish Whiskey
Proper No. Twelve, aka Proper Twelve, is UFC fighter Conor McGregor’s whisky. By that I mean it is a new brand launched under his supervision, named in honor of the Crumlin, Dublin 12 neighborhood where McGregor was born and raised. Now, McGregor has not gone out and built a distillery in The Liberties or anything. His team is…