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Take an Irish whiskey and age it in legendary Japanese Mizanura casks, and you get the latest release from Glendalough.
Every month, a huge amount of booze comes across our desks — beer, wine and a whole lot of whiskey. We taste it all, and we only share the best of the best. This month: an IPA for dessert, a mimosa-style hard kombucha and more.
Everything you need to know about this whiskey is in its name. It's an Irish whiskey. It's seven years old. It gets finished in a Mizunara cask. Despite all of that information, little can prepare you for just how great this whiskey tastes. The 92-proof whiskey has just the right amount of body to feel substantial in the mouth, with hints of dark chocolate, baking spices and lots of wood. Mizunara has developed a notoriety in the whiskey world for being a difficult wood to source, but Glendalough nailed it with this new release. — Tyler Chin, Associate Editor
The ever-rotating Voodoo Ranger series from New Belgium continually kicks out some of the juiciest beers known to man. This 9.5-percent ABV Imperial Hazy IPA hits under what you'd think, giving a constant array of tropical hop tastes. Mosaic, Chinook, Phato, Galaxy, Strata, Lotus and Sabro hops combine to give a juice overload that is a perfect dessert beer for an evening. — Ryan Brower, Senior Commerce Editor
The vaunted Allagash has done the unthinkable and brewed an IPA for national distribution. No, the world is not ending just because America's biggest advocate for Belgian-style beer has canned the most popular beer style in the States. In fact, Swiftly has been a a pilot-brewed beer at the taproom in Portland, Maine, since 2007. It's amber in color and treads a bit more towards the West Coast style — seeing Allagash brew a Hazy IPA would be cause for the world ending. Cascade, Chinook, Mosaic and Simcoe hops pair extremely well with Allagash's house yeast in this 6.5 percent ABV brew. Be on the lookout for it because while it says IPA on the can, it's most certainly an Allagash twist on our favorite hoppy ale style. — Ryan Brower, Senior Commerce Editor
The first American brewery to employ the dry-hopping technique (all the way back in 1975), the San Fransisco stalwart Anchor Brewing conjured up a new West Coast IPA recently. It's part of that newer trend of revisiting West Coast IPAs to upgrade them with some of the newer hop strains that impart hints of resin/pine flavors while delicately balancing them with tropical notes. Utilizing Nugget, Citra, Sultana and Cascade hops, this new West Coast IPA gives off notes of grapefruit and bold citrus for a nice 7 percent ABV finish. — Ryan Brower, Senior Commerce Editor
I'm a sucker for all amaro. But this is different. This is a slightly sweet, slightly nutty wine-based aperitif with hints of cardoon and Roman thistle then aged for six months in new oak. What you get is a citrusy spicy nectar that I love on the rocks but also enjoy mixed in with a nice rye whiskey. — Matthew Pastorius, Business Development Manager
With its high CBD to THC ratio, this weed spirit is a lot like infused vodka but with a chiller vibe, less bitterness and no hangover. It's also concentrated, so it can be used in cocktails (we mixed it with Liquid Death's Berry It Alive flavored sparking water), but it doesn't hit so hard that you're trapped in your couch cushions once it kicks in (when measured properly, of course). It was seasonal, however, so Cann is likely limited on how many bottles they have leftover for those interested. — Sean Tirman, Commerce Writer
Multi-city retailer Standard & Strange has a strong relationship with Rob from Golden Gate Whisky, who pours his stuff at most of the store's events. They've collaborated on a lot of bottled tipples, which are available in NYC, NM, AZ, and soon CA under labels like Golden Gate Whisky Co, Workhorse Rye and Modern Ancient. The pair emphasizes tasty, expensive grains over overpowering wood notes — for example, there is $4 worth of grain inside each bottle instead of the 8 or 12 cents worth of grain typically housed in the stuff you buy at bigger liquor stores. The richness of the regeneratively grown grain produces a powerful flavor that Standard & Strange owner Jeremy Smith says makes for an "experience more like a wine than a spirit." It's cask-strength — aka 120 proof — and was aged in a rare Japanese oak cask. Sip it neat first, I'd say, then dilute to your desired heat. If you live in NYC or LA, some bottles will appear on bar shelves within a month. For everyone else, your best bet is online via Epicurean Trader. — Evan Malachosky, Assistant Editor
I had the chance to taste a dram of some 27-year-old Irish whiskey from Redbreast, and it did not disappoint — and it was the night before St. Patrick's Day no less. Bottled at cask strength, this whiskey (which just so happens to be older than I am) spends years in American ex-bourbon oak, European oak casks and Ruby Port Casks for a supremely delicious drink whether or not it's enjoyed in the name of the luck of the Irish. — Tyler Chin, Associate Editor
This is not the mimosa you think it is. In fact, it's not really a mimosa at all. Flying Embers makes some excellent hard kombucha, and its take on a mimosa combines boozy kombucha with orange, passionfruit and guava juices for a zero-sugar take on the brunch-favorite cocktail. — Tyler Chin, Associate Editor
Bowmore's latest scotch release incorporates the Golden Ratio, which it describes as the "mathematical ratio found in nature that creates aesthetically pleasing compositions." That same ratio is what Aston Martin applies to the creation of its luxury cars. Bowmore's master whisky blender Ron Welsh and Aston Martin's executive vice president Marek Reichman worked together on the new Masters' Selection, a 21-year-old whiskey matured in Pedro Ximenez and Oloroso sherry casks. According to the brand, "This whiskey incorporates the divine proportion of 61.8% formed from a base of 21 year old Bowmore matured in first fill Pedro Ximenez and Oloroso sherry casks. The remaining parts are made up of exact ratios of each other, in line with the Golden Ratio theory, and include exceptionally aged Bowmore matured for over 35 years." If math isn't your thing, we'll just get to the whiskey. It's sweet and spicy, and it combines a nice amount of peat with black pepper, vanilla and coffee. — Tyler Chin, Associate Editor