Review: Humboldt Distillery Spiced Rum
Humboldt Distillery is best known (to me, anyway) for its hemp flavored vodka. But Humboldt also makes a rum, organic and well spiced. The rum is double distilled; once in a column still, once in a pot still. There’s no information on aging or the spices used in the flavoring process. The golden/amber rum is…
Tasting the Wines of Onward, 2017 Releases
Onward is a wine brand run by winemaker Faith Armstrong, who creates these wines sustainably, organically, and biodynamically. During a recent live tasting, Armstrong talked through a collection of five new releases, with a special focus on her most beloved baby, Pét-Nat. Thoughts follow. 2016 Onward Pét-Nat of Malvasia Bianca Suisun Valley – If wine writers…
Review: Warship Rum
Warship Rum is a sourced spirit that originally hails from Paraguay, where it is made from fair-trade, organic blackstrap molasses. That rum is shipped at 189.5 proof in drums to Portland, Oregon, where proprietor (and Canadian native) Olivier Beaulieu-Grise brings it down to 80 proof and filters it, then hand-bottles the finished product. The rum…
Review: Winc Wine Club
Winc is a monthly wine club from Northern California that, like most, works via an online subscription service. We had the opportunity to give them a try and were fairly impressed with the offering. First, a bit about Winc. When you first sign up, you are asked several questions to determine your “Palate Profile.” They ask…
Review: Blood Oath Bourbon Whiskey Pact No. 3 2017
The third installment of Luxco’s annual Blood Oath series, Pact No. 3, was released in March of this year, and as with previous releases it’s a product of significant creativity. Like Pact No. 1 and Pact No. 2 before it, this release is a blend of three different rye-heavy bourbons ranging in age from seven to…
Review: 2015 Robert Mondavi Private Selection Chardonnay Aged in Bourbon Barrels
Now that red wine aged in ex bourbon barrels is a real thing, it’s natural that it would extend to something new: white wine. Robert Mondavi Private Selection Chardonnay is sourced from Monterey County, then aged in standard oak barrels for nine months. A portion of this is then further aged in Kentucky bourbon barrels,…
Review: Ledaig 19 Years Old 1996
Ledaig, produced at Tobermory on the Isle of Mull, makes an 18 year old expression as a standard bottling. This is a vintage expression distilled in 1996, bottled at 19 years old. So, one louder. This expression is aged in Oloroso sherry casks (though it’s unclear if that is full maturation or just a finishing).…
Review: Guinness Irish Wheat
Guinness’s latest addition to its ever-expanding lineup of novelty brews is, per the company, a first for any brewer: A beer made with 100% Irish wheat malt. No big surprises then with Guinness Irish Wheat. It’s a Hefeweizen fermented with Guinness’s custom yeast. That makes for a curious combination — malty, fruity with orange peel, and…
