Ken Gargett has been reliably informed that there are tequilas now considered quality spirits, designated for sipping – he admits that he swallowed this obvious falsehood on an occasion many years ago, but in the interests of research once again he sallied forth. Sharing the results of his investigations here, he dips into two high-end tequilas: Fortaleza and Calle 23. Olé!
Michter’s aim is to make small-batch or single-barrel products so the distillery has restricted itself to a maximum of 20 barrels for any of its small-batch products. And, as Ken Gargett reports, the Kentucky-based company is making superb bourbon.
Ken Gargett reports that while the Sullivans Cove distillery in Hobart, Tasmania could hardly be further from Scotland, in double-quick time it has established a record that most distilleries around the globe would envy, including more medals, awards, trophies, and golds than Michael Phelps and Usain Bolt at their peaks. Does the concept of Australian whisky sound like an oxymoron to you? Read this and you might change your mind.
Ken Gargett believes that the Craggy Range’s Le Sol is one of those wines that will age with grace for many years, but that it is simply so full of joy and so delicious as it is now that a lot of bottles will die young. And here is why.
Clos de Tart and Clos des Lambrays are two very fine Burgundy wines, both from Morey-Saint-Denis in France, but Ken Gargett doubts that their reputations have ever been higher. Back in the 1970s and 1980s, they were not exciting too many wine lovers. That’s not so now. For Ken they are what good Burgundy is all about: ethereal, elegant, balanced, subtle, and full of flavor and finesse.
As far as Ken Gargett is concerned, if you want a well-priced champagne that will age immaculately, Lanson is the house for you. Cheers!
One of the most famous bourbon distilleries of all is Buffalo Trace, whose story started centuries ago with a famous name: Daniel Boone, who rode through Leestown in 1771 “on the buffalo trace” more than 20 years before Kentucky even became a state. Ken Gargett shares here why he thinks the bourbon from this American distillery is so special.
For those looking for the rare, thrilling, exciting one-offs and perhaps wildly expensive cigars, I am afraid that this time we must disappoint. Partagás Serie D No.4, which tends to be known simply as the D4, is a cigar that almost all serious cigar lovers will have enjoyed. And here Ken Gargett provides some history and of course his tasting notes on the cigar.
The Cohiba Maduro 5 consists of three cigars – all using maduro leaf as wrapper, which gives the cigars a much darker, almost chocolaty appearance. These are upper leaves that, as all do, have been through fermentation but have seen five years ageing, more than twice the norm. And that’s only part of why Ken Gargett thinks these Cuban cigars are so special.
A Venezuelan tells an Australian, in Helsinki, to go to Spain to drink local Pinot Noir by a family that has been making it in the Ribera del Duero region for more than 30 years. The region is world famous for its Tempranillo wine, but when Pinot Noir takes hold of a winemaker, it inevitably becomes an obsession. Here’s what Ken Gargett thought of it.