Review: Rock N Roll Mango Tequila
Rock N Roll Mango Tequila was recently released. It comes in a Les Paul Guitar shaped bottle. Some of the best guitar players of all time including Jimmy Page, Eric Clapton, Keith Richards, Slash, Joe Perry and Jerry Garcia have all performed with a Les Paul guitar. Flavored tequilas are still in their infancy in the US. They are much more popular in Mexico. Mango, Lime and Cinnamon are the most popular flavored tequilas sold in the US. Rock N Roll Tequila is made from a double distilled 100% pure Highland grown agave base. Mango flavor, with no sugar is infused. Artificial flavor and certified color are added before bottling at 64 proof. Read more 
Review: Skyy Infusions California Apricot Vodka
Skyy Infusions California Apricot Vodka was released in March. It is finally arriving on store shelves in the Midwest. With 94% of the apricots grown in the USA coming from California, it’s no surprise the apricots used to produce this vodka are grown there. This is Skyy’s 18th flavored vodka in their Infusions product line. Several years ago I was asked to predict the next three new flavors of vodka. The three I selected were Apricot, Cantaloupe, and Banana Cream Pie. This was at the height of the popularity of Pinnacle Whipped Vodka. Since then Grey Goose introduced Le Melon, their Cavaillon melon flavored vodka. In February 2016 Belvedere launched Peach Nectar Vodka, a vodka infused with American Peaches and Polish Apricots. This was followed by Western Son Apricot and Seagrams Apricot Vodka. I’m still waiting on that Banana Cream Pie flavored vodka, and I’m a little surprised no one has released a Celery flavored vodka. Skyy Apricot starts with a vodka base made from Midwestern grown wheat that is quadruple distilled in Pekin Illinois. Upon arriving in San Jose California the vodka is blended with water filtered through reverse osmosis. The vodka is then triple filtered through California limestone. The vodka is infused with California grown apricot and other natural flavors before bottling at 70 proof. Read more
Review: Redds Wicked Strawberry Kiwi
Redds Wicked Strawberry Kiwi was released in March. This limited release ale is available in 16 and 24 ounce individually sold cans, and 12 packs of 10 ounce cans. This division of Miller-Coors produces two lines of flavored ales. Their Redds line is brewed at 5% alcohol, while the Redds Wicked line is produced at 8% alcohol. Each is brewed as a beer with caramel color and natural flavors added. Kiwi is native to China where it was called a Chinese Gooseberry. In the early 20th century they where commercially planted in New Zealand. They became popular with American servicemen in World War 2, and by 1962 New Zealand growers began calling them Kiwi fruit to give it more market appeal. Read more
Review: Ciroc Summer Colada Vodka
Ciroc Summer Colada Vodka is a limited edition vodka available in very limited quantities at liquor stores and top hotspots nationwide. It joins a flavored vodka lineup that includes Amaretto, Apple, Coconut, Mango, Peach, Pineapple, and Red Berry. The vodka base for each of these flavors comes from a blend of Ugni Blanc and Mauzac Blanc grapes. The juice is made into a wine. The wine is distilled four times in stainless column stills by Master Distiller Jean-Sebastien Robicquet at his 500 year old family owned Maison Villevert Distillery. A fifth distillation follows in a traditional custom copper pot still at Distillerie de Chevanceaux in the South of France. Coconut, Pineapple, and other natural flavors are infused before bottling at 70 proof in an all white bottle. The Ciroc brand was first launched in 2003, but it wasn’t until Diageo partnered with Sean Combs in 2007 that the brand blew up. Combs is responsible for managing all Ciroc lifestyle branding and marketing initiatives. Read more
Review: Phoenix Ale Watermelon Ale
Phoenix Ale Watermelon Ale is one of six beers crafted at the Phoenix Ale Brewery. George Hancock and Greg Fretz opened the brewery in an old empty warehouse just north of Sky Harbor Airport in Phoenix Arizona June 2011. Phoenix Ale Watermelon Ale, is an unfiltered wheat ale infused with watermelon flavors added during conditioning in order to give a refreshing watermelon finish. It is sold in 6 packs of cans and bottles, and is also available on draft. Read more
Review: Wyders Prickly Pineapple Hard Cider
Wyders Prickly Pineapple Hard Cider was introduced in a limited number of states August 2016. It joins their Dry Pear, Dry Raspberry, and Reposado hard ciders. Each of these ciders is produced in Middleberry Vermont. Prickly Pineapple is made with hard cider, pineapple juice, prickly pear juice, and natural flavor. For those unfamiliar with prickly pear, the fruit comes from the pads of the Opuntia cactus and is native to the western part of the US and Mexico. The flavor has been described as a combination of raspberry, watermelon, and kiwi. Read more
Review: Angry Orchard Tapped Maple Cider
Angry Orchard Tapped Maple Cider was introduced February 2017. It is available through April and is one of three seasonal ciders created by this division of Boston Beer Company. It is sold in 6 packs of 12 ounce bottle and it is also part of the Angry Orchard Winter Seasonal 12 pack variety pack. Their other two seasonal ciders include Summer Honey and Cinnful Apple. This cider took inspiration from the highly anticipated late winter tapping of maple trees. It is crafted with Braeburn, Fuji, Granny Smith, Gala, and Pink Lady apples, and maple syrup tapped from Vermont maple trees. Read more
Review: Born and Bred Vodka
Born and Bred Vodka was released in 2016 and is now approaching near national distribution. It originated on a quest by Channing Tatum to find the best vodka in the USA. After taste testing vodka from 25 different American distilleries, he selected the family owned and operated Grand Teton Distillery in Driggs Idaho to help craft his vodka. Born and Bred is made from Idaho potatoes grown within 25 miles of the distillery, and pure glacial waters of the Grand Teton Mountains. The vodka is small batch distilled 20 times. The Jackalope pictured on the bottles label is a mythical animal, part rabbit and part antelope. If you see one of these animals, it may be an indication you drank too much of this vodka. Read more
Review: Rock N Roll Platinum Tequila
Rock N Roll Platinum Tequila is one of three tequila expression just released. The others include Mango, and Cristalino Anejo. The brand is supported with a powerhouse team of industry professionals, and also includes Hall of Fame, and former Miami Dolphins Quarterback Dan Marino as a partner. Their Platinum tequila comes bottled in a Gibson Flying V shaped guitar and like all of their tequila it comes topped with a bottle topper which is its own mini bottle of Rock N Roll Platinum Tequila. This patented 50ml bottle top, known as a roadie, provides an extra two shots of platinum tequila. The Flying V guitar has been played by a who’s who list of rock and roll guitarists including members from three of my favorite bands. James Hetfield and Kirk Hammett of Metallica, Michael Schenker of UFO, and KK Downing from Judas Priest. Rock N Roll Platinum Tequila is hand crafted and triple distilled by Master Distiller Jose Aceves, at the same distillery that produces the Hotel California and Comisario lines of tequila. Read more
Review: Best Damn Sweet Tea
Best Damn Sweet Tea will be released March 27th in the Northwest and Midwest markets of the USA. I was lucky enough to get my hands on a bottle a little early. Hard Iced Tea was first introduced in 2001, with the release of the Twisted Tea brand of malt beverages. Others followed including Mikes Hard, Redd’s, Easy Tea, and Not Your Mother’s. Sweet Tea differs from iced tea in that sugar or sugar syrup is added to the iced tea before serving. This is not the first hard sweet tea malt beverage. Twisted Tea at one time made a Sweet Tea flavor. There are several sweet tea flavored vodkas including ones made by Firefly, Sweet Carolina, Jeremiah Weed, Burnetts, and Mothers on the market today. Best Damn Sweet Tea is aged on real black tea leaves during the brewing process for a refreshingly smooth iced tea taste. Read more