Review: Truly Poolside Mix Pack
Truly and Grammy award winning pop singer Dua Lipa have partnered in creating Truly Poolside, a Limited Release summer cocktail inspired hard seltzer scheduled to splash down at your favorite beverage store May 15, 2022. While we initially sat on the sidelines when it came to reviewing cocktail inspired hard seltzers, the people have spoken. Truly and A-B have releasing new cocktail inspired hard seltzer variety packs. Several other have already released their hard seltzer cocktails. A-B’s has actually released two mix packs. So we felt the time was right to jump in the hard seltzer cocktail pool. We will jump in again next week to review Bud Light Cocktail Hour. Truly Poolside is made from a sugar alcohol base with the usual cast of ingredients including filtered water, stevia sweetener, and natural flavors. Read more 
Review: Topo Chico Ranch Water Hard Seltzer
Topo Chico Ranch Water Hard Seltzer was released January 2022. It joins a growing list of ranch water hard seltzers now numbering over 20 brands. Some of these ranch waters are made by brewing companies such as Dos Equis and Modelo. Some are made with tequila like Cantina and Painted Donkey. Texas is home to nearly a dozen brands, but ranch water is far from being just a Texas thing. Waterbird Ranch Water is made in Virginia, Cutwater Ranch Water in California, Arizona Ranch Water in Arizona, and Agave Twist Ranch Water is made by Great Lakes Brewing Company in Cleveland Ohio. With so many companies producing a canned Ranch Water hard seltzer it was a little amazing none of the biggest hard seltzer brands had created their own. Until now. Topo Chico is produced by Molson-Coors the maker of Vizzy and Topo Chico Hard Seltzer. Since the original ranch water cocktail is made with three ingredients blanco tequila, lime juice, and Topo Chico mineral water, I wonder why it took so long for them to join the party. Read more
Review: El Mayor Reposado Tequila
El Mayor Reposado is made from 100% blue weber agave estate grown for 8-10 years at 7500 feet above sea level. El Mayor was relaunched in the US in 2007. It is crafted by third generation Master Distiller Rodolfo Gonzalez. The hand picked trimmed agave is chopped and slow cooked for 24 hours in an autoclave oven. Once cooled the pinas are gently crushed by a millstone to release the juice. The agave nectar is fermented with a proprietary yeast in stainless steel vats and double distilled in a copper lined pot still. The tequila then rests for 9 months in American oak barrels for 9 months prior to bottling. Read more
Review: Astral Blanco Tequila
Astral Blanco Tequila was recently released by Diageo. If the name sounds familiar it was previously owned by Davos Brands who sold their portfolio which included Aviation American Gin, Astral Tequila, Sombra Mezcal, and Tyku Sake to Diageo for up to $610 million August 2020. Diageo not only changed bottle designs they have also changed distilleries moving production from La Cofradia to Mieles Campos Azules. Mieles Campos Azules only produces one other brand of tequila. Kendall Jenner’s 818 tequila. The new Astral Tequila Blanco weighs in at 80 proof. The original version was bottled at 92 proof. Astral is made from 100% blue Weber agave. Few production details have been revealed but the cooked pinas are crushed with a traditional stone wheel tahona. The agave fibers normally discarded are used in the fermentation. It is double distilled in copper pot stills. The spent agave fibers, “bagazo”, are used to make adobe bricks that will be used to create new places for people to gather in local communities in Mexico. Read more
Review: Gran Coramino Tequila Reposado Cristalino
Gran Coramino Tequila Reposado Cristalino was founded by entertainer Kevin Hart, and 11th generation tequila maker Juan Domingo Beckman. Kevin Hart has spent 3 years working on this tequila. It is crafted at Casa Cuervo, the number one tequila producing distillery in the world. This distillery is best know as the house of Jose Cuervo, and 1800 tequila, but they produce several other tequila brands including Maestro Dobel, JaJa, and Gran Centenario. The 100% blue weber agave is estate grown and hand planted in the valley. The trimmed pinas are slow cooked in traditional brick ovens and double distilled in copper pot stills. The tequila is aged in Eastern European oak barrels and then finished in California Cabernet wine casks. It is then double filtered to remove the color not the taste. $1 from every bottle sold will be donated to programs focused on empowering aspiring entrepreneurs from communities in Mexico and the US. Read more
Review: Vido Vodka
Vido Vodka was launched June 2020. It is crafted in Benton City Washington from wine grapes, grown on the 2200 acre Goose Ridge Estate Vineyard and Winery. The vodka was named to honor the family patriarch Arvid Vido Monson who ended each day with a vodka cocktail and a dream to craft his own vodka. Once pressed the grapes are ferment until the wine is considered dry, about 12-15% alcohol. It is small batch distilled on a dual column 24 plate still. Before the final filtration the vodka rests for five days. It is then blended with pure water before being freeze filtered 50 times and then hand bottled and labeled. Read more
Review: Black Infusions Dark Cherry Vodka
Black Infusions Dark Cherry Vodka was released February 2022. This follows the launch of Black Infusions Fig and Black Infusions Apricot. It is made from a vodka base made from corn that is distilled 5 times in a copper column still and filtered 5 times through carbon and a final time through lava rock. Pure Cascade Mountain water is blended to reduce to proof. California grown Bing and Rainier dried cherries are infused for 4-6 weeks and the spirit is lightly filtered before hand bottling at 60 proof. It takes about 1 pound of dried cherries, the equivalent of 7 pounds of fresh cherries to produce 1 bottle of Black Infusions Dark Cherry Vodka. Read more
Review: 4 Hands Bomb Pop Hard Seltzer
4 Hands Bomb Pop Hard Seltzer was inspired by a summer favorite, the frozen ice, Bomb Pop made with Cherry, Lime, and Blue Raspberry flavor. It is made by 4 Hands Brewing Company in St. Louis Missouri from a sugar alcohol base and natural flavors. It is currently sold in 4 packs of 16 ounce cans. Kevin Lemp opened the brewery in in 2011 and followed that up with the 1220 Spirits Distillery in 2018. This was followed by a line of canned cocktails and hard seltzers. 4 Hands currently also sells a 12 can Seltzer Mix pack with 4 cans each of Pineapple Mango, Apricot Almond, and Blackberry Pomegranate hard seltzer. They also craft several seasonal individual snow cone influenced hard seltzer flavors including Tigers Blood and Thriller. Both are sold in 4 packs of 16 ounce cans. Read more
Review: Michelob Ultra Organic Seltzer Essential Collection
Michelob Ultra Organic Seltzer Essential Collection is the third variety pack Michelob has released in a little more than two years. They entered the hard seltzer arena January 2020 with the release of a three flavor variety pack made from organic cold fermented cane sugar with natural flavors and organic malted rice. It weighed in with 0 sugar, 0 carbs, 4% alcohol and 80 calories. This is now known as their Signature Collection. They followed that up with their Classic Collection. This collection weighed in with 90 calories and it included organic white grape juice concentrate and flavor specific organic fruit juice concentrates. With their new Essential Collection, they have added organic coconut water from concentrate, and organic stevia leaf extract. Read more
Review: New Amsterdam Passionfruit Vodka
New Amsterdam Passionfruit was just introduced. It is one of twelve flavored vodka’s produced by New Amsterdam Spirits Company in Modesto California. That number should actual read thirteen as they also produce the wildly popular Barstool Sports Branded New Amsterdam Pink Whitney Pink Lemonade Vodka. Each flavor starts with a vodka base made from corn and is distilled five times and filtered three times. New Amsterdam is now the third best selling vodka sold in the US, trailing only Tito’s and Smirnoff in 2021 vodka sales. Read more