Despite being made in the U.S., not all bourbon is widely available stateside. Occasionally, bourbon fans have to travel abroad to find particularly rare and noteworthy expressions of their favorite brands. Now, one beloved whiskey is finally coming home. Due to popular demand, Blanton’s Gold Edition single-barrel bourbon will soon be available in the U.S., according to a Thursday press release. Kris Comstock, Blanton’s senior marketing director, said the brand is “thrilled” to be able to finally offer the 103-proof expression of the award-winning whiskey, in limited, annual editions. Until this point, only the original 93-proof expression has been available stateside. Blanton’s, distilled at Kentucky’s venerable Buffalo Trace distillery, is named after “Colonel” Albert B. Blanton, who ran the distillery after the end of Prohibition. Blanton supposedly handpicked the facility’s best barrels to age a private reserve whiskey, which inspired his eventual successor Harlan T. Lee to do the same in 1984. While American in origin, the major Bourbon market at the time was Japan, leading to most of Blanton’s products being sold exclusively overseas. Blanton’s Gold will be available starting this summer, at the suggested price of $120. The press release notes that this year’s batch, described as having a “full and rich” taste, “marked by apricot, butter, pepper, light honey, and oak,” will be a “very limited” release — meaning you may have to race to your nearest liquor store to get it. Bourbon lovers, take your marks. The article Blanton’s Gold Edition Bourbon Will Finally Be Available in the U.S. appeared first on VinePair. Via https://vinepair.com/booze-news/blantons-gold-bourbon-usa/ Via https://vinology1.weebly.com/blog/blantons-gold-edition-bourbon-will-finally-be-available-in-the-us
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Despite the fact that the COVID-19 coronavirus has nothing whatsoever to do with Corona, the parent company of the Mexican lager has nonetheless suffered a crushing financial loss due to the growing pandemic. Anheuser-Busch InBev (A-B InBev), the international producer and distributor of Corona beer, reported Thursday that a decline in Chinese on- and off-premise beer sales has cost the company upwards of $285 million since the outbreak. (Corona is produced and distributed by Constellation Brands in the U.S.) The sales slump could lead to A-B InBev’s worst quarter in a decade. Sales of Corona, which in China is classified as a “super premium” beer, saw strong growth in 2019, based primarily on its popularity at bars and nightclubs. With the advent of the coronavirus quarantines, however, which coincided with the normally-festive (and profitable) Lunar New Year, that trend quickly reversed. Still, A-B InBev remains optimistic that it can weather the storm, and has begun to reopen its breweries in China. “We’re fully engaged for a strong recovery when the situation improves,” CEO Carlos Brito told reporters. The article Corona Sales Plummet in China Amid Coronavirus Pandemic appeared first on VinePair. Via https://vinepair.com/booze-news/corona-sales-drop-coronavirus/ Via https://vinology1.weebly.com/blog/corona-sales-plummet-in-china-amid-coronavirus-pandemic One day last February, in South Africa’s Franschhoek Valley, Gary Baumgarten, managing director of Anthonij Rupert Wyne, joined a group in his tasting room who were visiting on behalf of Wines of South Africa. It was the height of South Africa’s 2019 harvest, and temperatures were 107 degrees Fahrenheit. The heat had followed three years of drought. “Welcome to climate change, guys,” Baumgarten said. If there’s a wine likely to survive these conditions, it’s this. A David & Nadia Hoë-Steen Chenin Blanc, it came from dry-farmed vineyards planted over half a century ago. Those tough, old Chenin bush vines have longevity on their side. “Old vines do pretty well in adverse conditions, especially drought, particularly due to their well-established root systems,” Andre Morganthal, project manager for South Africa’s Old Vine Project (OVP), and our host for the tasting, said. OVP member wineries use grapes from vines at least 35 years old, a status indicated on bottles with the OVP’s Certified Heritage Vineyards seal. The Project is the brainchild of viticultural consultant Rosa Kruger, who’s been hunting down South Africa’s forgotten vines since 2002. The diversity of her discoveries is impressive. Though they make up just 3 to 4 percent of all South African plantings, OVP-registered vines comprise 48 varieties. Approximately half of these are Chenin Blanc. That’s largely because there’s so much Chenin in South Africa altogether. Once known by its old Dutch name, Steen, it was brought here in the 1650s. Under the Koöperatieve Wijnbouwers Vereniging van Suid-Afrika (KWV), which dominated production in the 20th century until apartheid’s end in the 1990s, Chenin was widely planted for South Africa’s popular brandy. It’s still the nation’s most cultivated variety. The reasons for the vines’ longevity, though, remain the subject of OVP research. Many suffer viruses, but with the help of vine nursery Vititec, the OVP has been cleaning up neglected vines and propagating disease-free materials from them for “new” heritage vineyards at Anthonij Rupert. By doing this, the OVP is creating a living archive — and one that is adapted to South African conditions. “I believe the oldest vineyards in South Africa have mutated to plants that reflect the landscape, the sun and the wind and the rain typical to that site and typical to the South African climate,” says Morganthal, who also believes “old-vine South African Chenin represents some of the best white wine in the world, different from, for example, Loire Chenin, solely because of the abundance of sunshine, unique ancient soils, and clonal materials, weathered over centuries.” Bosman Family Winery’s Optenhorst Chenin Blanc, made from bush vines dating to 1952, with its banana-like notes and abundant minerality; Bellingham The Bernard Series Old Vine Chenin’s big, rich texture and bitter-herb finish evocative of South Africa’s fynbos, or scrublands; Mullineux’s Leliefontein Quartz Chenin’s opulent mouthfeel and snappy, pineapple acidity, indicative of its quartz-laden soils — these wines are not only delicious, they are uniquely South African. Unlike the wetter, cooler, limestone Loire, where a touch of RS (residual sugar) is left in the wines to balance out their acid, South Africa’s Chenins are mainly vinified bone-dry, but they’re characterized by a natural, velvety mouthfeel that’s amplified as the vines age. “Yields come down and the bunches and berries are smaller,” says winemaker Christopher Mullineux of Mullineux and Leeu Family Wines. “You get more natural extract from these small berries, and that is where the natural textures come from.” Indeed, sensory researchers at Stellenbosch University found that old-vine Chenins exhibit complex aromas and concentrated, balanced, lengthy mouthfeel. “Grapes on older vines ripen later, have a lower pH, higher acidity, and lower sugar,” Morganthal says. “It’s an ideal analysis for a wine.” That is, if the vines are treated right. Kruger learned the hard way. “During the first years I tried to cut life back into the old vines with pruning shears. I made a terrible mistake,” she says. Heavy pruning weakens old vines. “Now, with our new pruning techniques, shaping the vine from the best wood on the plant, we have increased quality and volume,” she says. The same goes for fertilizing, which Kruger does sparingly and organically. “We have the best results when we treat these lovely old plants with dignity,” she advises vineyards. “Listen to them as if you are talking to your grandmother.” A light touch in the vineyard allows for more of the same in the winery. Says Mullineux, “If you have healthy old vines, it tends to be easier to make low-intervention wines, as the fruit is in a better natural balance.” In its membership agreement, the Old Vine Project encourages minimalist techniques, eschewing added acid, sulphur, new oak, and commercial yeast. Many old-vine Chenins are the result of spontaneous fermentation with extended lees contact in old wood and, sometimes, concrete or amphora. Luscious wines with exuberant, tropical flavors, they are made to express their terroir. Of course, we can’t separate terroir from history. A 35-year-old vine planted under apartheid has racialist exploitation embedded in its wood. And today, though South African organizations like the Wine and Agriculture Ethical Trade Association promote ethics in labor relations, a 2011 Human Rights Watch report found widespread labor abuses in the South African wine industry. These included substandard and insecure housing on winery lands, harsh working conditions and overly long hours, safety hazards such as pesticide exposure, lack of access to drinking water, opposition to unionizing, and more. Says biodynamic viticulturist Johan Reyneke, who worked in vineyards in the 1990s before launching his own Reyneke Wines: “My colleagues were poor; they were working as kids. It just sucked. One cold day in the vineyard, I put my surfing wetsuit on under my clothes, but my colleagues, they shoved newspaper in their shoes to stay warm. I said, ‘If I stay in this industry, things must change.’” As Human Rights Watch found, however, not all wineries have poor labor practices. Reyneke launched his Cornerstone wine series to dedicate its proceeds to education, housing, and retirement annuities for his workers and their families. Similarly, at Bosman Family Wines, a Fairtrade brand, workers own 26 percent of the business and 430 hectares of Bosman land. “We are very cognizant of our legacy, specifically the current working and living conditions of our workers,” Morganthal says. The Project trains workers, he says, “to elevate their skills to master pruner level,” and has developed a trading platform for old-vine grapes “to benefit grape growers, brand owners, and, ultimately, vineyard workers.” The idea is that old-vine skills, grapes, and wines can garner higher prices, so there’s more cash in the system to raise the living standards for everyone. As Mullineux argues, “If we cannot sell our wine for a fair price, then everybody in the Swartland struggles, and we cannot break the cycles of the past.” 10 Old-Vine Chenin Blanc Wines to TryNot every old-vine winery is a member of the Old Vine Project, but each wine below meets the OVP’s 35-year-old threshold and is available in the States: Beaumont Hope Marguerite Chenin Blanc 2018 Botanica Mary Delany Series Chenin Blanc 2017 David & Nadia Hoë-Steen Chenin Blanc 2017 Hogan Chenin Blanc 2016 Ken Forrester The FMC 2018 Joostenberg Die Agteros Chenin Blanc 2018 Memento 2015 Mullineux Granite Chenin Blanc 2017 Mullineux Straw Wine 2017 Reyneke Chenin Blanc Natural Wine 2016 The article Chenin Blanc Winemakers Are Breathing New Life Into South Africa’s Forgotten Vines appeared first on VinePair. Via https://vinepair.com/articles/old-vine-project-chenin-blanc/ Via https://vinology1.weebly.com/blog/chenin-blanc-winemakers-are-breathing-new-life-into-south-africas-forgotten-vines Beyond its sweet coconut flavor and vague Caribbean (or was it Californian?) vibe, what most drinkers know about Malibu often begins and ends with how easily the stuff goes down. But there’s more to know about this 1980s-era coconut liqueur (not rum, see below) than its eye-catching bottle and sweet-tasting buzz. From its multicultural origins to its kinship to Johnnie Walker, here are eight more things to know about Malibu. Malibu is distilled in Barbados. Probably.There is some rum in Malibu, and that spirit is distilled in the Caribbean at West Indies Rum Distillery Ltd. Though in truth, tracking down exactly where Malibu is distilled isn’t easy. Pernod says it’s distilled at “the famous West Indies rum distillery” in Barbados, a claim also backed up by the legit-seeming Ministry of Rum (which shares a “Royal Navy Toast of the Day”). But the West Indies distillery itself has a dead website, and Malibu representatives did not respond to requests for clarification. Malibu has a little bit of English in it.When you think of Malibu, you probably don’t think of the Royal Crown. (The idea of Colin Firth drinking from a rum-filled coconut is just… wrong.) But it was an Englishman indeed who developed Malibu: Thomas Jago, liquor industry legend who passed away in 2018, was a liquor executive who created both Bailey’s Irish Cream and Malibu, the latter of which was a tremendous effort in rebranding a failing rum called Coco Rico. Jago also went on to develop Johnnie Walker Blue. (Fun fact, history buffs: If you mix Jago’s marquee innovations — Baileys, Malibu, and Johnny Walker Blue — you’ll have a really, really terrible day.) Malibu’s rum is molasses-based.Malibu is distilled from molasses, a sugarcane refinement byproduct. There’s plenty of cool stuff to know about rum production, but key here is knowing that rum can be made from either sugarcane juice or molasses syrup, the latter a byproduct of sugarcane refinement and sugar production. There’s also the harder-to-produce, more agricultural, and delicate “rhum agricole,” comprising an admittedly smaller fraction of the market. As a molasses-based rum, Malibu’s is pretty standard. Malibu is the Fireball of rum.By law, rum as a spirit has to be bottled at “not less than 80 proof.” The coconut-flavored Malibu Original flagship clocks in at just 21 percent ABV, making it a liqueur, not rum (i.e., do not offer some to a pirate at parlay). Pernod calls it a “flavored rum” where it can legally. So we’ll consider it a rum-aspirational liqueur and call it a day. There’s a darker side to Malibu.For those of us looking for slightly higher SPF, er ABV, with our Caribbean sunshine, the good folks at Malibu went ahead and created Malibu Black, a 35-percent-ABV rum-based liqueur (nope, still not straight-up rum). It’s a mix of dark rum and coconut-flavored, rum-based liqueur, proportioned such that the sugar content that caws like a shore bird in Malibu original is hushed here, with most of the flavor coming in as dark, chewy, and hot, like a melted Tootsie Roll that will get you buzzed. The Northern Hemisphere loves Malibu.According to Pernod Ricard, the main markets for Malibu are the U.S., the U.K., Germany, France, and Canada. Malibu sold 3.8 million 9-liter cases worldwide as of the end of 2019, and Malibu itself was one of Pernod’s stronger performers in a fiscal year of modest returns (among brands like Jameson, Beefeater, and Havana Club; mix them all together, add some sparkling water or wine, and you’ve got a nice “Modest Returns Spritz”). It’s a vacation in a bottle — or can.No shock, Malibu comes in cans. This was inevitable — Malibu is already a flavored, lower-ABV alcoholic beverage, so it was destined to be packaged in portable, affordable aluminum. In February 2020, Malibu Splash, a sparkling ready-to-drink flavored malt beverage, slipped into the beer aisle in skinny 12-ounce cans of bubbly Strawberry, Lime, Passion Fruit and Pineapple flavors. They’ll be available in 4-packs and variety 8-packs nationwide. More packaging formats include 750-milliliter and 1.75-liter pouches of Blue Hawaiian and Malibu Rum Punch, which are totally not meant to be consumed like Capri Sun. Unless, of course, you’re attending the Malibu Games. There’s something called the Malibu Games.The 2020 Summer Olympics are coming up (and you know this already because you’re already getting your “Discover Tomorrow” 2020 Olympics-theme neck tattoo). But in athletic news nobody actually asked for, the Malibu Games are returning for a second year. The games, which succeeded in year one despite possibly the most cringeworthy promo video you’ll watch this week, will once more bring together a few dozen plugged-in “creators,” a.k.a. (and we didn’t make this up) “young, fun starters,” and challenge them with silly things like slippery races and pineapple-cup relays. Mostly it’s about challenging young people to exploit their fleeting internet-based celebrity for pay and free rum, which, God bless. The article 8 Things You Should Know About Malibu Coconut Rum appeared first on VinePair. Via https://vinepair.com/articles/malibu-coconut-rum-guide/ Via https://vinology1.weebly.com/blog/8-things-you-should-know-about-malibu-coconut-rum Six people have died after a shooting at Milwaukee’s Molson Coors brewing facility on Wednesday afternoon. All were brewery employees, including the gunman. Milwaukee police responded to reports of an active shooting shortly after 2:00 p.m., according to the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel. The brewing facility’s sprawling campus was put on lockdown shortly thereafter. In total, five victims were killed, and there were no reported injuries. The shooting occurred during what is typically a shift changeover time, according to Molson Coors employee Randy Chenoweth, who told WISN TV that he was “15 to 20 feet away” when the gunman opened fire. While initial reports described the shooter, a 51 year-old Milwaukee man, as a recently-fired employee of the brewing facility, Milwaukee Police Chief Alfonso Morales identified him instead as an active employee, who died of a self-inflicted gunshot wound while still in his work uniform. Molson Coors’s chief executive, Gavin Hattersley, later confirmed that the gunman was an active employee, adding, “there are no words to express the deep sadness many of us are feeling right now.” No motive for the shooting has yet been offered by Milwaukee police, who have also declined to release further details about the victims or the shooter. In a press conference Wednesday evening, Milwaukee mayor Tom Barrett called Wednesday the “saddest day” in the landmark 165 year-old brewing facility’s history. The article Molson Coors Shooting Leaves 6 Dead appeared first on VinePair. Via https://vinepair.com/booze-news/molson-coors-shooting-milwaukee/ Via https://vinology1.weebly.com/blog/molson-coors-shooting-leaves-6-dead While financial analysts can’t agree if a leap year is good or bad for the economy, nobody can deny that free beer is a winning proposition. To celebrate the upcoming calendarial quirk, Miller Lite is offering a free 24-pack of beer to anyone (over 21) in the country, which works out to one free beer for every extra hour. In order to take advantage of the promo, beer lovers just need to scan a QR code on Miller Lite’s Instagram or Facebook pages, which will take them to a website where they can submit a valid receipt for a 24-pack of Miller Lite purchased on this year’s leap day. Miller will then refund the cost of the beer via PayPal deposit. Sure, it’s not quite as easy as walking into a store, picking up a case of Miller Lite, and giving the cashier a high five on your way out (although they sure would appreciate it). But considering there’s a free case of beer in it for anyone willing to jump through a few hoops, this is a low-effort, high-reward scenario. So grab some free beer, celebrate your Saturday leap day, and try to ignore the fact that we’ll all have an extra weekday foisted upon us ten months down the line. The article Celebrate Leap Day with a Free Case of Miller Lite appeared first on VinePair. Via https://vinepair.com/booze-news/celebrate-leap-day-free-miller-lite/ Via https://vinology1.weebly.com/blog/celebrate-leap-day-with-a-free-case-of-miller-lite In what has been described as a “Hollywood-like” heist, dozens of bottles of rare wine worth over 1.5 million Danish kroner (approximately $200,000) were stolen from the cellar of a Copenhagen restaurant over the weekend. Just one week after Formel B officially retained its coveted Michelin star, the restaurant’s owners were greeted with an enormous hole in the wall of their wine cellar, and upwards of 60 bottles missing. As reported in The Local, although the burglars broke into the restaurant’s prized collection through an adjoining wine shop, nothing was stolen from the shop itself. Rather, the oenophile thieves specifically targeted the “rare wines with very high market value” held by Formel B, according to a post on the restaurant’s Facebook page. The haul included Formel B’s supply of Domaine de la Romanée-Conti, considered among the world’s most prized and expensive wines. “This is a close to irreplaceable collection of wines we have spent many years building, that has disappeared in a single night,” owners Rune Jochumsen and Kristian Arpe-Møller wrote in their post. Copenhagen police have opened an official investigation into the heist, but so far, no arrests have been made. The article Thieves Steal Rare Wines Worth $200K From Danish Restaurant appeared first on VinePair. Via https://vinepair.com/booze-news/thieves-steal-rare-wines-danish-restaurant/ Via https://vinology1.weebly.com/blog/thieves-steal-rare-wines-worth-200k-from-danish-restaurant Almost every American of legal drinking age can (vaguely) recount a regrettable vodka experience, yet the clear spirit remains our nation’s most popular distilled beverage. Skeptics may claim that vodka’s popularity is the product of calculated marketing, and that its flavor profile is as neutral as Switzerland, but that’s really not the case. VinePair tasted more than a dozen vodkas priced $20 or less from a range of different brands, countries, and base grains to determine which bottle delivers the best bang for buck. Some were light and crisp, others velvety smooth, and a few brought back painful memories we’d rather forget. Before uttering the words “rail is fine,” check out our nine favorite vodkas under $20 below. 9. SkyyFrom San Francisco, This grain vodka has a peppery nose and tart, slightly citrusy palate. According to Skyy, the brand’s beginning “was motivated by one man’s search for a better Martini.” We’d definitely serve that cocktail ice cold, dry, and with a twist. Average price: $12. 8. SmirnoffSmirnoff consistently ranked as America’s best-selling spirits brand year after year until another vodka on this list finally knocked it off its perch last year. Its forte is versatility: You can drink Smirnoff in highball cocktails, as a shot, or simply add it to your drink when you want to notch up the ABV — all without altering the flavor profile. Average price: $12. 7. SvedkaFive times distilled from neutral grain spirits, Svedka has a light, botanical nose and faintly spicy flavor. The mouthfeel is rich and well-rounded, and the finish is velvet smooth. This is the perfect option for a vodka tonic with a spray of citrus fruit. Average price: $12. 6. Tito’s Handmade VodkaFollowing volume growth of more than 20 percent in 2019, Tito’s is now officially the best-selling distilled spirit in the U.S. Made using a corn base, this vodka has grainy aromas, while the palate mixes sweet, salty, and buttery notes, just like canned corn brine. Serve with a big green olive in an especially dirty Martini. Average price: $19. 5. RåvoThis vodka brings classy vibes from the get-go, starting with its cool, frosted bottle and moving onto the spa-water aroma and flavor profile. Its nose has hints of green grass and cucumber, while the full-bodied palate mixes citrus and salty cucumber peel. B-råvo! Average price: $19. 4. WódkaA light, crisp Polish vodka, Wódka is made from a rye base that’s distilled five times before the spirit is then charcoal filtered, twice. It has a yeasty, bready profile and white-peppery finish. If your ideal vodka is lithe, clean, and flavorless, stick a bottle of Wódka in the freezer. Average price: $12. 3. New AmsterdamThis exceptionally well-priced vodka starts with citrus pith aromas then leads to an edgy, peppery flavor profile. The palate is full-bodied with subtle sweetness on the finish. A versatile all-rounder, New Amsterdam is a great mixing vodka that’s particularly well-suited for highball cocktails. Average price: $10. 2. FinlandiaMade from pure glacial spring water and suomi barley, this Finnish vodka comes in raging hot on the nose, then lands a pillowy soft boozy punch on the palate. Finlandia’s flavor profile is steely and angular, and the finish is long-lasting and minerally. This glacial offering is ideal for vodka sodas (or vodka mineral waters?) and super-dry Martinis. Average price: $13. 1. Prairie Organic VodkaInstead of focusing on traditional marketing topics, like number of distillations and filtrations, Prairie touts the organic origins of its base corn and the numerous ways in which it gives back to Minnesota farmers. What’s inside the bottle tastes as good as the positive vibes. Prairie has a rich character, full of grainy, sweet candy notes. It is proof, if ever it were needed, that good vodka can taste of something. Average price: $17. The article The Best Cheap Vodkas Under $20 Right Now appeared first on VinePair. Via https://vinepair.com/buy-this-booze/best-cheap-vodka-brands-ranked/ Via https://vinology1.weebly.com/blog/the-best-cheap-vodkas-under-20-right-now “The Bros” have a new brother. BeerAdvocate has joined forces with ultra-popular beer rating app Untappd, parent company Next Glass announced on Monday. According to the announcement, “Beer Advocate will join Untappd under the Next Glass corporate umbrella,” with each maintaining its separate platform and user base. BeerAdvocate, launched in 1996, is the longest-running beer review website in existence. In my opinion, it was also the best. (Its only real competitor was Ratebeer.com, which, incidentally, was acquired by Anheuser-Busch investment arm ZX Ventures last year.) In a thread posted on BeerAdvocate.com, Todd Alström, who co-founded BeerAdvocate with brother Jason Alström (they affectionately refer to themselves as “The Bros”), said that BeerAdvocate has been “struggling to keep the lights on for over two years.” It’s true — the company’s print magazine slowed from a monthly to quarterly schedule in January 2018, and ceased completely in April 2019 (it was a sad year for beer publications). Next Glass is a software developer founded in 2013 that acquired Untappd in 2016. (As far as I can tell, Untappd is its only business – at press time, the Next Glass website has nothing on it other than a link to a cloud platform called Heroku.) This was around the same time many, and especially younger beer geeks began opting for a mobile app that prioritized faster, more gamified beer “check-ins” versus the detailed, drinking-at-home lengthy reviews often provided by BeerAdvocate users. While Untappd encourages the ticker culture that is at worst detrimental to beer-drinking, and at minimum very annoying to brewers, it has also been monumental for many beer consumers. By encouraging check-ins and awarding “badges” for beer-drinking quests — app users rate beers tried on a five-“cap” scale in a process that can be achieved with minimal clicks of the thumb, and said ratings/check-ins can be “liked” or commented on by friends — the app effectively “gamifies” beer drinking, which is, it turns out, what 8 million beer-drinking app users crave. What the two platforms will gain as beer siblings is a mind meld of complementary strengths. BeerAdvocate will assumedly benefit from Untappd’s app-building prowess, while Next Glass can tap into BeerAdvocate’s successful event planning, evidenced by recurring events such as Extreme Beer Festival. (Beer Advocate tried to launch an app and failed; while Untappd kicked off a notoriously bad beer festival, which was basically the Fyre Festival of beer events, last year.) A lot of beer geeks are taking to their keyboards to badmouth the Alströms. (Apparently, they are notorious… curmudgeons.) And hey, it’s important to vent. But this deal is not about, or only about, “The Bros” cashing in or trying to save their business — more so, it is representative of a digital and real-life shift from an old-school to new-school beer world. BeerAdvocate is 24 years old, and Untappd is 10. In beer years, this is a huge generation gap. In the digital native world of Untappd users, the earlier platform is a card-carrying senior citizen. (Remember, there are now 7,000-plus breweries in the U.S. In 1996, when BeerAdvocate launched, the U.S. had just hit 1,000.) BeerAdvocate is brewpubs with hair-color beers (blonde ale, red ale, brown ale et. al.); Untappd is taproom-only breweries with weekend hazy IPA releases. In their overlapping years, BeerAdvocate saw the arrival and subsequent rise of New England IPAs. Untappd was born after hazies. It’s post-West Coast IPA. It’s boutique beer bars in every city, craft breweries within a 10-mile radius of most U.S. citizens, and hazy IPAs (who even says “New England” anymore?) comprising a brewery’s entire portfolio. And so, like an older brother hitting up his younger, more successful sib for cash — and maybe a chance to indefinitely crash on his couch — BeerAdvocate is succumbing to the powers of youth. As the beer community expands, the business of beer gets more cut-throat. Budgets get tighter. Margins get smaller. More beer, less time. More hazies, fewer experiments. Faster apps, fewer print mags. Technology changes, and with it, culture. This is as true in beer as in any other industry. It’s all about progression, and sometimes, we have to take a step back to move forward. The article Hop Take: As Untappd and BeerAdvocate Join Forces, Beer Review Culture Steps Firmly Into Its Next Generation appeared first on VinePair. Via https://vinepair.com/articles/hop-take-untappd-parent-acquires-beer-advocate/ Via https://vinology1.weebly.com/blog/hop-take-as-untappd-and-beeradvocate-join-forces-beer-review-culture-steps-firmly-into-its-next-generation As winter drags on, how about a fresh and delightful white wine that will transport you to summer, at least for an evening? That’s the feeling I got as I tasted Zenato’s 2018 Lugana San Benedetto, a real bargain from the Lugana region of Veneto in northern Italy. The suggested price is $20, but Wine-Searcher lists it for as little as $13 at some stores. The grape here is Trebbiano, which has been shown by genetic analysis to be the same variety as Verdicchio. Although it is grown throughout Italy, it often makes undistinguished wines and is overshadowed in prestige and familiarity by the ubiquitous Pinot Grigio. But Trebbiano di Lugana, as it’s known in this part of Veneto, deserves more attention. Zenato’s wine is far more interesting than many Italian whites at this price, with tastes of stone fruits, especially pear and apricot, along with strawberry, citrus, banana, and touches of herb and spice. Aged in stainless steel with no exposure to oak, there is still a nice roundness that, combined with ample acidity, makes it a pleasure to drink and will beckon you to the next sip (and glass). It will pair well with many fish and shellfish dishes and Asian foods, including sushi. The flavors come alive as the wine warms up a bit, a reminder not to drink white wines too cold. The Lugana region of Veneto is known for its white wines and benefits from the cooling influence of Lake Garda, the largest lake in Italy; San Benedetto refers to the specific Zenato vineyard where the grapes are grown. While Soave, made from the Garganega grape, is Veneto’s most important white, Lugana may just be the region’s sleeper wine. Zenato, a family-owned winery that produces 2 million bottles of its white and red wines a year, has made its Lugana San Benedetto since the company was founded in 1960. It’s easy to see why it has withstood the test of time. The article Zenato Lugana San Benedetto 2018, Veneto, Italy appeared first on VinePair. Via https://vinepair.com/good-wine-reviews/zenato-lugana-san-benedetto-2018-veneto-italy/ Via https://vinology1.weebly.com/blog/zenato-lugana-san-benedetto-2018-veneto-italy |
John BoothHi I am John Booth,36 years old from California,CA,USA,working in Whole Seller market,we supply different types of Beverages to the market.Here I am sharing some special tips about it. Archives
August 2021
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