If you crave the bite of ginger, you’ll love new Skyy Infusions Ginger. The ginger sits in the vodka for about two weeks, so it is nice and gingery. Not quite as sweet as a liqueur, cocktails made with Skyy Ginger are fresh and crisp.

Sky Infusions Ginger
(infused with ginger), 35% Alcohol, San Francisco, California

Appearance: Clear with slight orange tinge.

Nose: Aroma of candied ginger and fresh ginger with slight aroma of citrus and spice.

Taste: Medium bodied with taste of ginger ale, candied ginger, cinnamon, and slight orange. Short finish with lingering tones of ginger ale and candied ginger. Like drinking a ginger candy. Excellent mixer, just like ginger ale.

Fruit and Gingerly

2 oz. SKYY Infusions Ginger
1/2 oz. Orange Juice
1/2 oz. Fresh Grapefruit Juice
1/2 oz. Lime Juice
1 1/2 Tbsp Fresh Cranberries
3 Chunks Pineapple
Club Soda

Muddle cranberries and pineapple in a cocktail shaker. Add ice and rest of ingredients except soda and shake vigorously. Pour into a Collins glass with fresh ice and top with soda. Garnish with chunk of pineapple and/or three cranberries on a toothpick laid horizontally over rim of the glass.

for more info and recipes SKYY Infusions

I was recently summoned to Bourbon & Branch in San Francisco’s Tenderloin to celebrate the debut of a very special Scotch whisky, Highland Park 1968. This 40 year-old single malt is the first in their Orcadian Limited Edition Series. To be released over the next 5 years, each bottling will consist of just 8 casks each, hand selected by Max MacFarlane, that’s just 1550 bottles world wide.

Retailing at $3,999, Highland Park 1968 comes nicely appointed in a decanter style black bottle with Pictish knot work on the neck and the Highland Park’s “H” logo in Pewter on on the front. The bottle comes in a cabinet quality oak box adorned with a silver “H” on the outside and Viking art illustrates the inside of the lid. Inside the lid a panel slides away to reveal a leather bound book with tasting notes and information about the series.

So how did it was it?

Well, in a word, Amazing.

It’s nose is as smooth as they come, with hints of honey and none of the alcoholic tones. On the tongue, everything is just right. Hints of orange peel, oak and vanilla are complemented by a delicate spiciness.

Of course, we couldn’t just jump in with the 1968. We ran the Highland Park table starting with 18 year, then 25, 30 and 40 year, all Highland Park single malts are aged in sherry casks made of American and Spanish oak and matured in the cool climate of Orkney.

Each whisky was masterfully paired with cheese by Wil Edwars of the Artisan Food School. Cheese ranged from a local Sonoma Tome to a very rare Cheddar from the Isle of Mull, which was paired with the Highland Park 1968.

If you get a chance, get your mouth on the Highland Park 1968.

Ladies this is one hell of a Father’s Day gift.

Highland Park 1968

New from The Glenlivet comes a unique single malt created from a single-source grain Triumph Barley. Distilled non-chilled filtered and then aged 18 years in Speyside, this is The Glenlivet’s first ever single-varietal scotch.

The Glenlivet Nàdurra Triumph 1991 single malt has a light golden hue. It’s nose is extremely smooth with a slight fruitiness and tones of butterscotch.

Aged 18 years, The Glenlivet Nàdurra Triumph 1991 is like velvet on the tongue. It has wonderful initial warmth with bursts of fruit followed by nothing but a mellow oak finish. The non-chilled filtering causes the whisky to retain a bit more of the woody flavors from the cask.

This is special occasion scotch, yet reasonable at ~ $85. I did find it at K&L for $70. I recommend treating yourself.

for more The Glenlivet

We were recently asked to taste two amazing whiskies head to head - Johnnie Walker Blue Label vs. Chivas Regal 18

Chivas Regal 18

Chivas Regal 18 includes over 20 of Scotland’s rarest single malt whiskies

Quite strong on the nose with a slight oakyness.

The color is a rich dark amber.

On the tongue Chivas 18 is smooth, fruity and warm with caramel accents. Every sip is smooth, velvety and wonderful.

Johnnie Walker Blue Label

This is one of the most storied of all blended scotch whiskies, most would be happy for a mere sip. Blue Label is a bland of some of the rarest scotch Johnnie Walker can find all presented handsomely in a numbered bottle and fancy box.

It is a light amber in color, I’d say it looks like autumn. It is lighter when compared to the Chivas.

This rarest of blends is very slight on the nose, with just a hint of smokiness.

The tongue is smooth almost muted, almost the opposite of the Chivas. The Blue Label has notes of honey, rose and chocolate and has an amazingly warm finish. It sneaks up in you. (in a good way)

While some might say the Chivas has more character, which it might, the Blue Label wins hands down. Why? It’s the velvety smoothness that wraps around your tongue and warms from within. Whereas the Chivas has just a touch of boozy harshness. While the are both amazing, the Blue lives up to its reputation as a must have blend. Of course, the Chivas 18 retails for about $60, while the Blue Label is about $200 ( I did find it for $160 ). So maybe a touch of harshness isn’t so bad.

Chivas Regal 18
Johnnie Walker Blue Label

Somehow Three Olives has made a flavored vodka that tastes like bubble gum. This isn’t one of those flavored vodkas that sort of reminds you of the flavor in question or maybe smells a little like it. This vodka straight up tastes like gum.

It smells exactly like bubble gum — think Hubba Bubba or Bubblicious. It tastes like sugar-free bubble gum. Not until it gets to about the Adam’s Apple does the candy flavor stop and the warm vodka feeling kick in.

I found myself wanting to chew. Seriously, there must be a gum-chewing center of the brain and this vodka triggers it.

Would I recommend it? If the idea of drinking alcohol that tastes exactly like bubble gum sounds delicious to you, then I absolutely would recomend it. You won’t be disappointed. It delivers. If the thought makes you cringe, then skip it. (If your childhood dental hygenist used bubble gum flavored polish during your cleanings, this could trigger some dentist memories for you.)

Three Olives Bubble seems destined for the shot glass. As with real gum, it’s hard to imagine pairing this with other flavors. Three Olives suggests mixing with lemon-lime soda or an energy drink or gingerale with cranberry.

If you try this one, let us know what you think!
Three Olives Vodka

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• Loft Lavender Cello Liqueur (drinkoftheweek.com)

Is it surprising to see a bottle of gin with a big warning tag telling you NOT to use it in martinis? Genevieve, the Genever-style gin by Anchor Distilling, does just that.

Anchor is known for using traditional distilling styles that differ from what’s in the mainstream now. In this case making a 17th-century-style of Dutch gin with a grain mash with juniper in a copper still rather than employing the now-popular 19th century redistilling method that produces a more neutral spirit we call London dry gin.

It’s appropriate that I tried Genevieve Gin at Whiskyfest, since it is more like a juniper whiskey than the smooth and bright gins you’ll find in martini glasses around the nation. It has a very strong juniper nose to be sure. However, it has more of a thick whiskey mouthfeel and a hot kick not usually associated with gin.

So this one isn’t for gin and tonics or a martini. But it is great for mixed drinks.

Here’s a particularly good one to try:

The Gin Fix

2 oz Genever gin
1/4 oz. lemon juice
1 tsp. simple syrup
1 tsp. raspberry syrup

Fill a glass with crushed ice and build the drink over the ice, stirring thoroughly. Top off with more ice and garnish with raspberries.

Anchor Distilling Genevieve Gin

New from Kahlua comes Kahlua Coffee Cream. This limited edition foray into the coffee cream category simply combines Kahlua’s classic 100 percent Arabica coffee liqueur with fresh cream. The result is a rich and full of a creamy coffee flavor with just a slight hint of booziness.

At 17 proof it is tame enough to enjoy all night.

Straight up or over ice, Kahlua Coffee Cream makes a mighty fine after dinner drink. It goes great over vanilla ice cream too!

On the more serious side, it is mighty fine when mixed with vodka, I will refer to as the Black & White Russian. New York based Mixologist, Julio De Los Santos created a few cocktails to enjoy with Kahlua Coffee Cream.

Kahlua Cognaccino

1 part Kahlua Coffee Cream
1/2 part Amaretto
1 part Martell V.S. Cognac
Combine all ingredients into cocktail shaker. Shake and strain into
a flute dusted with nutmeg.

Kahlua Mexicano

1 part Kahlua Coffee Cream
1 part Kahlua Coffee Liqueur
1/2 part Sambuca
Combine all ingredients into cocktail shaker. Serve over ice in a
coffee mug.

Kahlua Coffee Cream will be available nationwide October through December for a suggested retail price of $17.99

Kahlua Coffee Cream