With the overwhelming number of other spirits available on the market, I’m not usually interested in any produced by grocery stores. But while browsing for some new cocktail mixers, I found Trader Joe’s Small Batch Vodka hard to pass up because of the surprising low price. I’m also always a sucker for a simple bottle design. So, let’s see if I would come to regret my first experience with a grocery store branded spirit. Trader Joe’s Small Batch is a corn-based neutral spirit that, as the name suggests, is distilled in small batches. In fact, it’s distilled 10 times before being charcoal filtered and bottled at 44% ABV. I couldn’t find […]
When I think about the states in America that produce bourbon, Colorado definitely isn’t top of mind. But, Mile High Spirits have been producing bourbon, alongside with a whole bunch of other spirits, in their Denver-based distillery since 2011. And they were generous enough to send us a bottle of their flagship Fireside Bourbon Whiskey along with their Fireside Old Fashioned. Mile High Spirits primarily uses local ingredients, including locally grown corn, barley, and rye, when producing Fireside Bourbon. After the spirit is distilled in copper stills and aged for a minimum of 2 years, the whiskey is diluted to 40% ABV with filtered […]
After recently reviewing Espolon’s Tequila Blanco, I was interested in exploring more of their tequila products. Fortunately, I ended up with this bottle of Espolon Tequila Añejo from a recent work gift exchange party. This was one of my first experiences with Añejo tequila, and I was excited to see how it would differ from blanco and reposado. If you want general information about Espolon, you can read my recent review of Espolon Tequila Blanco. Espolon Tequila Anejo is produced in the same facility and using the same base ingredients. The main difference is the Añejo is aged for a minimum of 11 months in American Oak barrels, followed […]
Now that the weather is staring to get warmer, I’ve been in the mood for some refreshing tequila cocktails. And one bottle that I keep seeing everywhere, possibly ’cause of the striking artwork inspired by Jose Guadalupe Posada, is Espolon Tequila Blanco. After decades in the Mexican distilling industry, Cirilo Oropeza, who sadly passed away in 2020 at age 80, was approached by a entrepreneur to build a new tequila brand that would soon be known as Espolon Tequila. Oropeza continued to be the master distiller even after the brand was purchased by the Italian spirit firm Campari Group in 2009. Espolon Tequila is distilled using a […]
I’ve been really excited to revisit Jameson Irish Whiskey, because it was the first whiskey I ever tasted back when I turned 21. And now that I’ve had more experience with different whiskies, I wondered if my opinion on this affordable Irish whiskey had changed at all. Jameson Irish Whiskey was established in 1780 by it’s namesake, John Jameson. Despite the ups and downs of the Irish whiskey industry, it remains one of the biggest Irish whiskey brands today. In the 1960’s, it merged with other Irish distilleries to create Irish Distillers. They consolidated whiskey production at a single facility in Midleton, Where Jameson is currently […]