Santera is a new tequila that’s distilled and bottled by Destilladora del Valle de Tequila Casa Maestri. The brand is producing a blanco, reposado and anejo from mature blue agave harvested in the northern highlands of Jalisco. The agave hearts…
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Sukkah Hill Spirits is a small company based in Southern California that’s producing a couple of unique liqueurs. First up is Etrog, which is made from an ancient heirloom citrus fruit (called the Etrog) that only grows in a handful…
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Highspire is a new whiskey, but it traces its roots back to 1823, when Robert Wilson first created Highspire Pure Rye Whiskey in Highspire, PA. This popular 100% rye floundered after Prohibition, but fortunately for us, a California winemaker named…
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Grander Rum is a new, independently owned spirits brand that’s producing an eight year old Panamanian rum. The process begins in the sugar cane fields of Herrara, Panama, where the sugar cane is hand-harvested and turned into Grade-A molasses. After…
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Goral Vodka hails from Slovakia, making this our first brush with Slovakian vodka. To make the stuff, Master Distiller Ján Krak starts with Durum wheat and a seven column still. The vodka is blended with water from the underground springs…
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Putting “No 1” on your bottle is pretty bold, especially when you’re a London gin that’s competing with a horde of other fine London-style gins. And when you’re owned by a Spanish company (Gonzalez Byass) that primarily makes wines and…
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Usquaebach. It’s pronounced “oos-ke-bah,” and it’s a line of blended malt whiskies from the Highlands. With a blend dating back to the 1700s and the name trademarked since 1877, it’s also one of the oldest games in town. We got…
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You know gin. It’s that juniper-forward spirit distilled from grains. Usually. But in this case, it’s a citrus-forward spirit distilled from sugar cane. It comes to us from St. Augustine Distillery in Florida, so suddenly this whole thing makes sense….
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Dave Pickerell has been tinkering. The guy who’s maybe America’s foremost maker of rye whiskey has taken lately to aging his rye in casks more common to scotch whisky production. He started with an extremely limited-release Sauternes finished rye, the…
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Old Forester has something new for us. It’s called Old Forester 1897 Bottled in Bond, and it’s a new bourbon that honors the U.S. Bottled-in-Bond Act of 1897. Crafted by Brown-Forman Master Distiller Chris Morris, this is the second release…
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Jefferson’s Bourbon has just introduced a new expression to its portfolio: Jefferson’s Reserve Groth Cask Finish, a bourbon that was aged in new American white oak barrels in Kentucky prior to being finished for nine months in French oak barrels…
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If you happen to live in the Midwest, you’re probably familiar with Koval Distillery, which in 2008 became Chicago’s first booze producer since Prohibition. But even if you’re from the heart of Big Ten country, you’re probably mostly familiar with…
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Alberta Distillers is the number one rye producer in North America, making whisky for a number of brands on the market today. But now, Alberta Distillers is releasing its own whiskey: Alberta Dark Batch Rye. And in an industry that’s…
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We never turn down a good pisco drink. But there’s something about the start of summer that always has us leaning toward the Pisco Sour. It’s tart, it’s refreshing, and it’s a welcome change from our whiskey-soaked winters and gin-heavy…
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Parce Rum hails from Colombia, where the brand is creating two expressions–an eight year old rum and this, Parce 12 Year. We found a lot to like about Parce 8, so naturally we had to sample its older brother. Parce…
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Hailing from St Louis, Defiance Whiskey (not to be confused with Defiant Whisky) is a new high-rye bourbon that’s aged in Missouri oak barrels. Like many new whiskeys, Defiance is sourcing its juice from MGP Ingredients, the large scale distiller…
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The Orphan Barrel Whiskey Distilling Company locates and bottles forgotten barrels of whiskey from around the world. It’s noble work. And their fifth release is Forged Oak, a 15 year old Kentucky Straight Bourbon. Forged Oak was produced at the…
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Casa Dragones Blanco Tequila is the second release from a brand that made its mark with Casa Dragones Joven, an ultra-premium tequila that runs $275 per bottle. And while the joven is explicitly for sipping, the brand has given its…
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The recipe for Amaro Lucano dates back to 1894. Pasquale Vena was working in this family’s cookie bakery in Pisticci, a small town in Lucania, Italy, when he developed this special blend of 30-plus herbs and essential oils. Over the…
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Swift is a new single malt whiskey being produced in Dripping Springs, TX by husband and wife team, Nick and Amanda Swift. The twice-distilled whiskey is made from 100% Scottish malted barley and modeled after a traditional Speyside Scotch. The…
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