Four Roses Yellow Label Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey- Review

*Sincere thanks to LB and the Baddish Group for the sample. It would probably not be considered going too far out on a limb to say that Four Roses' history is one of the murkiest and most confusing in the world of whisk(e)y. Interestingly, it should also be noted that, today, the distillery and brand is … Continue reading Four Roses Yellow Label Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey- Review

Four Roses Small Batch Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey – Review

*Sincere Thanks to LB and the Baddish Group for the sample. When the Earth was young, full of torrents of fire and inclement weather, behemoth liquor companies sought out their marketing teams, troglodyte and dour, and entreated them with a quest that was at once high-minded and nefarious. The marketing teams' eyes shone with fearful … Continue reading Four Roses Small Batch Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey – Review

The Arran Malt, Icons of Arran #1, Peacock 12 Year Old – Review

A huge thank you to Jason at Guid Scotch Drink for the sample. If you haven't given him a read...do so. Interesting facts about Peacocks (Pavo Cristatus): Part of the Pheasant family, Peacock's are actually Peafowl. The word "Peacock" refers, damn appropriately I might add, only to the male of the species. The female is … Continue reading The Arran Malt, Icons of Arran #1, Peacock 12 Year Old – Review

The Yamazaki Single Malt Whisky, Aged 12 Years – Review

With the embarrassment of culinary riches right at our fingertips, us San Franciscans can get pretty damn smug about our food scene. Sure NY chefs get more Food Network shows, but we get all the best produce and animal parts. The plethora of local farms makes it incredibly easy to eat organic, non-processed, sustainably grown … Continue reading The Yamazaki Single Malt Whisky, Aged 12 Years – Review

Maker’s Mark Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whisky – Review

The Maker's Mark story goes that while experimenting with recipes for their whisky, the Samuels family made a lot of bread. The bread kind of bread, not the money kind of bread. They've made a lot of the money kind of bread as well, but that came later, first they made a lot of the … Continue reading Maker’s Mark Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whisky – Review

Isle of Skye 8 Year Old Blended Scotch Whisky – Review

*Thanks to the good folks at Impex Beverages for the sample. Woeful is the path of the poor Scotch whisky blend! Blends get all the sales...but single malts get all the attention. Blends account for 90% of total whisky production...but single malts get all the attention. Blends are labored over for hours, days, weeks even, … Continue reading Isle of Skye 8 Year Old Blended Scotch Whisky – Review

Tullamore Dew Irish Whiskey – Review

The Town of Tullamore was damn near burned to the ground in 1785 when a hot air balloon crashed (slowly, I'm guessing) and set aflame more than 100 houses. There's no record as to who was piloting the pride of the Montgolfier brothers, but we can assume it was a terrible accident and not one caused … Continue reading Tullamore Dew Irish Whiskey – Review

The BenRiach Curiositas 10 Year Old Peated Malt – Review

"Rident stolidi verba Latina" - Ovid* Let us cast our minds back to the heady days of the Punic Wars.  Love was in the air, The Romans were just figuring out how to make a truly spectacular pork sugo, and the Carthaginians, long dominant in sea battle and handball were getting their butts kicked for … Continue reading The BenRiach Curiositas 10 Year Old Peated Malt – Review

Chieftain’s Tasting Review Notes, Round III

Round III of quick notes from the recent Chieftain's tasting hosted by K&L Wines at Martin's West in Redwood city... Chieftain's 1991 Linkwood 16 Year Old Yet another rarely-seen-in-distillery-bottlings...bottling, Linkwood has been around since the early 1800's, going through the usual myriad ownership changes before ultimately landing in Diageo's prodigious lap. Like Allt'A Bhainne and Glencadam, Linkwood spends … Continue reading Chieftain’s Tasting Review Notes, Round III

Chieftain’s Tasting Review Notes, Round II

Round II of quick notes from the recent Chieftain's tasting hosted by K&L Wines at Martin's West in Redwood city... Chieftain's 1985 Glencadam 22 Year Old Glencadam is another distillery that's more well-known for not being that well-known. Having been around since the 1825, many ownership changes over the years have finally led this Highland malt to the … Continue reading Chieftain’s Tasting Review Notes, Round II