Booze that tastes good, looks good, and comes at a reasonable price? Now, there’s a holiday gift! The Kraken Rum is a black spice Caribbean rum with a solid kick and a strong molasses, cinnamon, and vanilla flavor. It’s 94 proof, so it packs quite a punch served straight.

A kraken is a giant squid, so the fun concept is that it’s a strong liquor as dark as squid ink. The packaging is beautiful, making … Read more

Somehow Three Olives has made a flavored vodka that tastes like bubblegum. 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 bubblegum — think Hubba Bubba or Bubblicious. It tastes like sugar-free bubblegum. Not until it gets to about the Adam’s Apple does the candy flavor stop and the … Read more

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 … Read more

Old Potrero is a recreation of an 18th century American whiskey. It’s made with 100% rye mash. Most rye makers mix corn and/or barley in the mash, which would make the spirit sweeter.

It’s copper-pot distilled and aged for two years plus in toasted oak barrels. The reason they don’t call it a “rye whiskey” on the label despite the fact that it has a much higher rye content than other American whiskeys is that … Read more

Black Maple Hill is a damn fine, 95-proof bourbon at a damn fine price. My friends and I call it “the one that smells like bananas,” but there’s more to it than its tropical nose.

It starts out mellow on the tongue with a bit of a sweet, fruity taste and quickly brings on a little heat to let you know that, yes, this is Kentucky bourbon you’re drinking. The result is a solid, complex … Read more

The first thing that grabs your attention about Corzo tequila is the bottle: square, smooth, and modern—not unlike a really nice cologne bottle.

But when you get past the attractive packaging, there’s a friendly tequila inside waiting to play.

It has a thin mouthfeel and an approachable taste. Though it is 100% agave, it lacks the grassy flavor often found in such tequilas.

This is a clean-tasting tequila for sipping or mixing. I found that … Read more

Looking for a Father’s Day gift that is both thoughtful and quick?

These picks are unique liquors that stand out among other spirits of the same type. What better way to show Dad that you think he’s one of a kind.

I’ve included multiple price ranges, but these were chosen for their taste and not their price tag.

Here are a few liquor picks for the discerning Dad on your gift-shopping list:… Read more

Single-Malt Scotch:
Aberlour

Red Stag is a black cherry bourbon by Jim Beam that just hit the market this month.

I’ll admit that I was hesitant about the idea of a flavored bourbon, as I am quite protective of the spirit and didn’t want it to get the cough-syrup treatment.

However, this bourbon was a pleasant surprise.

It smells like real cherries with a backdrop of oak. It does have a sweet flavor, but that is balanced by … Read more

Beefeater 24 is the London gin company’s fresh take on premium gin—and I like it.

It’s a smooth gin that is slightly sweeter and richer than its dry gin counterpart.

Beefeater 24 gets its name from the 24 hours it steeps in botanicals including Spanish grapefruit and Seville orange peel, bitter almond, orris root, green tea and Japanese Sencha tea.

The tea and citrus influence is very subtle but pleasing.

It’s not a flavored gin, … Read more

Some friends went to Puerto Rico and brought back some Ron del Barrilito rum.

I wouldn’t normally consider rum a sipping drink and instead normally use it in cocktails. However, this rum has a unique sweet flavor (from the molasses) and smooth taste that makes it a pleasure to drink on its own.

The brown sugar nose and layered taste mean that instead of a flat, sweet flavor you get a complex liquor that slowly … Read more