Review: Planteray Cut & Dry Coconut Rum
Planteray Cut & Dry Coconut Rum is the first rum to be released under the new Planteray Rum name. The former Plantation brand name had negative connotations associated with the term “plantation”. Planteray Coconut Rum is distilled and infused with coconut flesh at West Indies Rum Distillery on the west coast of Barbados. After four years of experimentation where they tried coconut juice, jelly, fresh coconut, and dried shells they found coconuts picked fully ripe from local coconut farms then cut into small chunks and left to dry before infusing in the barrel aged rum base worked best. One whole coconut is required to produce each bottle of Planteray Cut & Dry Coconut Rum. In case you wondered, a coconut tree yields about 45 coconuts per year. Read more 
Review: UNI Organic Blanco Tequila
Uni Tequila was founded in 2020 by Metta Risdal who grew up in Lindesnes, on the Southern most coast of Norway. Metta left Norway and moved to London and then New York where she worked as a bartender at both locations. After several visits to Mexico she fell in love with the people, food, and tequila and later moved to Puerto Vallarta Mexico where she visited dozens of distilleries researching tequila harvesting and distilling. She partnered with Tequila Las Americas to produce her tequila. Tequila Las Americas currently produces tequila for 39 brands including Solento, Don Abraham, Casa Azul, 123 Organic, and Tequila Cabal. They currently make UNI Blanco and UNI Anejo. UNI Blanco is crafted from 100% estate grown organic blue agave and once the spirit is distilled it rests for nearly 2 months in oak barrels before botting. Read more
Review: Voudoux Vodka
Voudoux Vodka is crafted at BKO Distillery in Medina Ohio. BKO was established in 2018 and gets its name from Founders Brad Kochmit and Ken Obloy’s initials. They opened to the public February 22, 2020. In August 2021 they added 7000 square feet to their original 1000 square foot distillery. The founders despised vodka thinking they all tasted like nail polish, paint thinner, and gasoline. They spent years researching, and developing a vodka they could drink straight at room temperature. Voudoux Vodka is distilled from 100% pure NON GMO cane sugar. The sugar is slow fermented at low temperatures for a longer period of time. It is batch distilled over 20 times, slow filtered in multiple stages using a proprietary process, and bottled with zero additives. Read more
Review: Lunazul Primero Tequila Anejo Cristalino
Lunazul Primero Tequila Anejo Cristalino was launched May 2014 joining Lunazul Blanco, Reposado, and Anejo. Lunazul was founded in 2002 by former Jose Cuervo Co-Owner Francisco Beckman a seventh generation descendent of the Beckman Family. He sold his share in the family business keeping his share of the agave fields. He established Tierra de Agaves in 1992. Lunazul is made from 100% 7-9 year old hand harvested estate agave grown in the rich red clay of Jalisco. The pinas are slow cooked in autoclave ovens. The extracted juice is fermented with a proprietary yeast, a family strain used for generations that comes directly from the agave plants and soil on their estate. The spirit is distilled twice in stainless pot stills with copper coils. Lunazul Anejo is rested in charred white oak barrels from 12-18 months. The final step includes reverse filtering the tequila eight times prior to bottling. Read more
Review: Heirloom Rye Vodka
Heirloom Rye Vodka is crafted at Six & Twenty Distillery in Greenville South Carolina. David Raad founded Six & Twenty in 2011, and in 2019 the moved into the former Poe West Hardware and Supply Company building. They currently also produce Old Money Wheat Whiskey, 5-Grain Bourbon, Carolina Cream, Double Made Gin, and several Limited Release spirits. Heirloom Rye Vodka is 12 times distilled from South Carolina grown Black Seashore Rye. Read more
Review: Rey Supremo Tequila Blanco
Francisco Gonzalez was born and raised in Mexico. His ancestors were skilled cultivators of agave plants for years. His grandfather was a skilled tequila maker. In 2019 he decided to launch his own tequila and he partnered with Proveedora Y Procesadora de Agave Tres Hermanos. Rey Supremo Tequila Blanco is made from 100% Azul Tequilana Weber agave grown in Los Valles of Jalisco and the reddish lands of Nayarit. The hand trimmed agave is cooked in stainless steel auto claves for 16 hours. The extracted juice is fermented with special yeasts and the natural environment from Amate trees in the area. The spirit is double distilled in stainless steel pot stills and bottled additive free. Read more
Review: Aspen Vodka
Aspen Vodka is crafted at Aspen Distillers on a high bank adjacent to the Roaring Fork River in Aspen Colorado. Matthew Patel a doctor from Ohio founded and built the 18,000 square foot facility on 8 acres once used as a lumberyard. Aspen Distillers operates as the largest carbon negative distillery. Aspen Vodka is made from Non-Hybrid, Non-GMO heirloom red winter wheat exclusively grown on a 2200 single estate centennial farm in Colorado. The wheat is milled onsite prior to distilling. The water is sourced from snow melt that travels down the mountain and into the natural aquifer below the property. January 30, 2024 Aspen announced a partnership with WES Brands which will make it a lot easier to purchase a bottle of Aspen Vodka as WES will increase their distribution. Read more
Review: Corazon Blanco Single Estate Tequila
Corazon Blanco Single Estate Tequila is crafted at Tequila Casa San Matias de Jalisco, a family owned distillery that has been distilling tequila since 1886. Owner Carmen Villarreal oversees the team and the creation of all Corazon Tequilas. Corazon is Spanish for “heart”. They start with 100% Blue Weber agave grown on a single estate in Los Altos de Jalisco. Once hand selected the trimmed agave is baked in clay ovens for 48 hours at 194 degrees. The extracted juice is fermented for 72 hours with a proprietary yeast, double distilled, and oxygenated prior to bottling. Read more
Review: Felene Vodka
Felene Vodka was launched 2016 by Founder and Master Distiller Tim Kelly. After a career in finance and media Tim was inspired while on a road trip through America’s heartland. After visiting dozens of distilleries and speaking with hundreds of people Tim was convinced there was a better way to make vodka. Felene is four times distilled in a stainless reflux column still from Non-GMO Sugar Cane. Once distilled the spirit is proofed with Rocky Mountain snow melt water with a high PH level. The vodka is filtered four times through block carbon and two stages of ultra fine screen filtration prior to bottling additive free. Read more
Review: O’RTE Tequila Blanco
O’RTE Tequila Blanco was released June 2023. Julious Grant founded House Group Brand in 2019. Julious is a 30 year wine and spirits veteran who spent time with Beam Suntory, Moet Hennessy, and Bacardi. O’RTE joins their other brands which include Awayuki Gin, Shunka Shuto, a Japanese Whiskey, and Omage, a California brandy. O’RTE Tequila Blanco is made from 100% agave grown on a single individual family estate. Each year they plan on harvesting from a new estate. I am reviewing their 2021 which was harvested on the Santa Cruz estate in El Potrero Jalisco. O”RTE is distilled at Destilador del Valle de Tequila. Read more