Review: Green River Full Proof Bourbon
Last fall, right around the Kentucky Bourbon Festival, Ownesboro’s own Green River Distillery launched their first cask strength expression, a single barrel of their rye bourbon mashbill (70% corn, 21% rye, 9% malted barley) available only at the distillery and by the barrel to select retailers. Now high-octane Green River bourbon is coming to the…
Review: 2020 Famiglia Cotarella Sodale Merlot Lazio IGP
Did you know you can get a merlot wine — 100% merlot — from Italy? Sodale is made from grapes grown in the Lazio region (the administrative region where Rome is located). It’s considerably spicier on the nose than your typical glass of merlot, with an equally atypical punch of juicy currants and plums. The…
Review: Cedar Ridge Amontillado Sherry Finished Bourbon
Iowa’s Cedar Ridge has been churning out regionally beloved spirits for years, including both acclaimed bourbon and American Single Malt. In fact, Cedar Ridge boasts the top selling bourbon across Iowa, an impressive feat for the local upstart in the face of Kentucky giants. Like operations big and small, Cedar Ridge has recently begun releasing…
Review: Chicken Cock Garden & Gun Double Oak Barrel Select
Billed as a Kentucky Whiskey, this expression of Chicken Cock is a unique offering of 12 barrels, made in partnership with the magazine Garden & Gun. What are you getting in the bottle? It’s a bourbon mash… but double aged, first in used bourbon barrels for 7 years, then in new oak for another 2 years.…
Review: Copperworks Single Malts – Maltsmith, Farmsmith, and Peatsmith (2024)
Copperworks Distilling in Seattle has been at the forefront of American single malt as a charter member of the American Single Malt Whiskey Commission (ASMWC). While most American distilleries offer a flagship whiskey, Copperworks has historically taken the approach of each release being unique, limited editions. In July 2024, Copperworks changed all that with its…
Review: Vale do Bomfim 2022 White and 2020 Red
Bomfim is part of Portugal’s Dow group — known for its Port wines — which in turn is part of the sprawling Symington family. Unlike its better-known brands, Vale do Bomfim focuses exclusively on table wines — and affordable ones at that. Here’s a look at the latest blends from the operation, one white and…
Review: Bunnahabhain Feis Ile Triple Sherry Wood Finish 23 Years Old
To mark Feis Ile — Islay’s annual whisky festival — many of the island’s top Scotch producers release commemorative expressions. It’s a time when local distilleries often pull out the stops for (or at least have quite a bit of fun with) super-premium bottlings. In 2024, Bunnahabhain — Islay’s northernmost distillery — bottled two new…
Review: Free AF Canned Non-Alcoholic Cocktails and Wine
“Free AF?” We don’t have to tell you what AF stands for in today’s hip lingo: Why, it’s alcohol-free, of course. Free AF, based in New Zealand and expanding now in the U.S., is built around non-alcoholic canned wines and cocktails, all made with its propriety alcohol substitute called Afterglow, “a 100% natural botanical extract…
