Lagavulin is from the Scottish island of Islay. Malt lovers immediately fall into one of two camps: one does not enjoy the peaty, smoky, seaweed notes that whisky from this island usually offers. The second group loves those characteristics. No prize for guessing where Ken Gargett falls. But what about Ron Swanson?
A blend of rare single malts – the youngest of which was filled in December 1967 – The Glenlivet Winchester Collection Vintage 1967 is non-chill filtered at cask strength. It offers drinkers a rich and fruity nose with notes of apricot jam, sweet ripe peaches, and a touch of toasted almonds. And it costs $25,000 per bottle. Y-Jean Mun-Delsalle explains why.
A question often asked is whether a wine three or four times the price of another can be three or four times as good. In reality, people pay high prices for special wines for all manner of reason, so that is very rarely the case. And for Ken Gargett, in the case of the Henschke Hill of Grace 2014 & Henschke Mount Edelstone 2015 definitely not.
For the last 250 years, Hine has been headquartered at Hine House on the banks on the Charente River in Jarnac. Hine holds a special honor given to no other cognac producer: in 1962, it was granted a royal warrant from Queen Elizabeth II to act as supplier to the royal household. And how does the brand’s Antique XO measure up?
Most of us, when traveling, might sneak a guilty pleasure into the luggage for the trip. A good cigar or two, a fine wine, or a bottle of malt perhaps. If you have a lazy £100,000 (or in Australia, an estimated $230,000), the highly regarded whisky producer Glenfarclas has done your packing for you by releasing the Glenfarclas Family Cask Trunk.
The fabulous Philipponnat Clos des Goisses is considered to be the first vineyard-specific champagne ever made, dating back to 1935 when the vineyard was purchased by Pierre Philipponnat. The house has recently started releasing a prestige wine from its prestige wine in suitable vintages – such as the 2008. Here’s what Ken Gargett thinks.
The 2016 is one of the most declared port vintages of all time. And deservedly so: Ken Gargett thinks that 2016 is a vintage that should warm the hearts of all fans of port wine and bring in many more new fans.
As Ken Gargett explains, to adequately describe a Cohiba Siglo VI Gran Reserva cigar is almost like trying to catch the velvety smoke it produces in your hand. And it is dense, velvety smoke. The texture is as soft as cotton bud clouds. Plush and cushiony. Many describe it as the greatest cigar they have ever tasted, but, ouch, the price!
In all the years she had been going to Paris, staying in swanky hotels and eating cuisine prepared by the famous chefs who populate Paris, it never once crossed Elizabeth Doerr’s mind that she could actually just make a reservation and go to Maxim’s. Recently she did just that and shares her experience with us here.
Wine lovers all enjoy the chance to drink a unicorn wine, and bottles from Australia’s Cloudburst are nothing if not that. Ken Gargett tells the story of an unusual winery with an unusual attitude and certainly unusual, though excellent and rare, wines.