We recently enjoyed a “grand tasting showcasing the Wine and Spirits of over 300 producers from around the world”, at The Beverly Hills Hotel and hosted by The Henry Wine Group, a “Fine Wine and Spirits distributor serving California since 1985.”
In this event, just as we’ve done in the past, I covered the spirits’ portfolio while my business partner, Michael Perlis, did his best to cover probably four or five times as much in the wine section.
The Distilled Beverages
Of note for me in the whiskey category was Kinahan’s blended and 10 year-old single malt Irish whiskies, Edradour 10 year old single malt whiskey, Signatory single malt bottlings of Clynelish 17 year old (my personal new favorite), Highland Park aged 16 years and Bruichladdich 22 year old.
I discovered Northern California’s Charbay’s Ruby Red Grapefruit, true-to-taste Meyer Lemon and Green Tea flavored vodkas, a Tahitian vanilla rum, the “Nostalgie” Black Walnut liqueur as well as two interesting hop-flavored whiskies.
Bainbridge stole the show with their organic wheat vodka, organic wheat whiskey and organic wheat gin. And the real surprise in the flavor category for me was taking that already-killer vodka and infusing it with real vanilla bean. Would be perfect over ice alone in my opinion.
Under “other” I liked the Blackwoods Small Batch Gin; three Amaros: Meletti, Montenegro and Monte san Costanzo; the subtle differences between Meletti’s Anisette and Sambuca; getting a broad education on tequila, rustico, anejo and reposado from the Haas Brothers over some really smooth Don Amado; rums from Panama-Pacific; revisiting Clear Creek Distillery goodies and finding my fave Douglas Fir Brandy dialed down a notch – in a good way.
Genever stole my heart from Diep 9, both the “young” and “old” versions. Like gin kicked up a notch, if that can be done, this spirit is distilled from grain with herbs, the older version with the addition of French oak barrel aging. The Smooth Ambler Greenbriar gin was great as well.
Most of what I enjoyed can be seen in this short YouTube slide show.
SPIRIT LIST AT PRESS TIME
Alvear / Avuá Cachaça / Bodegas Baron / Caribbean Spirits Inc. / Charbay Distillery & Winery / Clear Creek Distillery / Craft + Estate / Domaine Select Wine & Spirits / Elixir / Flemish Lion / Haas Brothers / Imbue / Indigenous Selections / Meletti (Opici) / Montanero Mezcal / Siebra Spirits / Smooth Ambler Spirits / Total Beverage Solution / Vias Imports Ltd.
WINE LIST AT PRESS TIME (Look to Michael Perlis’ coverage on the wine portion of this event.)
Acre Wines / Adelshem Vineyard / Amavi Cellars / Ancient Peaks Winery / Andis Wines / Andrew Murray Vineyards / Banville Wine Merchants / Bespoke Collection / Blue Rock Vineyard / Bodegas Arzuaga / Bodegas Borsao / Bonded Winery No. 9 / Cain Vineyard & Winery / Calera / Claiborne & Churchill / Clos Bellane / Clos LaChance / Coravin / Craft + Estate / Curious Cork Imports / Dark Star Imports / Dashe Cellars / District 3 / Domaine Select Wine & Spirits / Dutton Estate / Elizabeth Spencer Wines / Eighty Four Wines / Fabio Viviani Wines / Fine Estates from Spain / Hand Picked Selections / Head High Wines / Henriot, Inc. / Heron Wines / Highway 12 Vineyards & Winery / Indigenous Selections / Joullian Vineyards / Laely Wine / Lafond Winery / Left Coast Cellars / Lola Kay / Long Meadow Ranch Winery / Lumen Wines / Luna Vineyards / Lynmar Estate / MacRostie Winery and Vineyards / Madness and Cures / Martian Ranch & Vineyards / Medlock Ames / Mettler Family Vineyards / Michael Pozzan Winery / Milbrandt Vineyards / Mindego Ridge / Negociants USA / Nuclear Wine Company / Pali Wine Company / Paolo Scavino / Pepper Bridge / Quinta Vale d. Maria / Red Car Wine Company / Riverbench Vineyard and Winery / Round Pond Estate / Rubissow / San Francisco Wine Exchange / San Lorenzo Winery / Santa Barbara Winery / Saucelito Canyon / Selby Winery / Shafer Vineyards / Sinor-LaVallee / Small Vines / Staete Landt Wine Co. / Stemmler Winery / Stewart Cellars / Taft Street Winery / Thomas Fogarty Wines / Three Sticks Winery / Tierra Divina Vineyards / Titus Vineyards / Vias Imports Ltd. / Vintage Wine Estates / Volker Eisele Family Estate / Warner Henry Offerings / White Hart / Winesellers, Ltd. / ZD Wines
Eve Bushman has a Level Two Intermediate Certification from the Wine and Spirits Education Trust, a “certification in first globally-recognized course” as an American Wine Specialist ® from the North American Sommelier Association (NASA), was the subject of a 60-minute Wine Immersion video, authored “Wine Etiquette for Everyone” and has served as a judge for the Long Beach Grand Cru. You can email Eve@EveWine101.com to ask a question about wine or spirits. You can also seek her marketing advice via Eve@EveBushmanConsulting.com
