Category: Spirits

When you say Champagne, there are some brands that come to mind immediately. Moet, Tattinger, Veuve… The list goes on. The same thing is true for scotch whisky. In this case, topping the list of brands synonymous with scotch is Macallan and their flagship double oaked 12 year aged version.

Half of the enjoyment of drinking a fine spirit is the spirit itself, and the other half is the experience of preparing and consuming. The interesting bottles, the fine glassware… all of the accouterments that go along with the spirit. One of those accessories that seems to be common (especially in movies and TV shows) is the whiskey decanter. But is it a good idea to use a whiskey decanter to store your spirits?

I was looking through the list of whiskey reviews we’ve done and noticed that there are a lot of states that are missing from the list. Craft distilling is happening all over the United States and I feel like I need to branch out a little more beyond just Texas, New York, Kentucky and Indiana. So when I saw a bottle from the state of Utah I knew that I needed to give it a try.

Two Stars… it’s an unfortunate name for a bourbon. Even on a three star system, it’s like they’re saying that their bourbon is sub-par. Name aside, today we put this bottle to the test and see just how many starts it gets on our five-point scale.

While I’ve seen Old Grand-Dad on the shelves, I’ve always been hesitant to pick it up and give it a try. On the outside, it looks like it’s in the same league as Ancient Age or Seagram’s 7 Crown, but the name and ‘grand-dad’ character on the label always gave me a chuckle. I figured it was about time to find out if this was a hidden gem behind a funny label, or just another bottom-shelf bottle.

One of my favorite things in the world is a good mashup. I love the idea of taking two contrasting things and putting them together to form a new and interesting combination with the best of both worlds. If you think about it, this is pretty much the premise of any cocktail. So when I heard about High West Distillery blending a bourbon, a rye, and a scotch whisky… I knew I needed to give it a test.

I’m home in New York for the holidays, and with very little else to do around the house I found myself working my way through my father’s liquor cabinet. Some of these were very familiar, but there were a couple that I’d never tried. One of the more intriguing of that list is this Auchentoshan Select Single Malt Scotch Whisky.

I don’t think there’s a single thing that Nick Offerman has ever done that is a disappointment. From his years on Parks and Recreation to his 45 minute video of him sitting by a fire and drinking Lagavulin, he’s a national treasure. So when I heard that he was collaborating with Lagavulin to produce his own version of their scotch whisky, I knew there was no way I would be missing out on it. And since it’s Christmas, what better way to treat yo’ self?