My Birthday at The Cellar
It was a great night full of amazing food, out-of-this-world bourbon and surprisingly good cigars (I like Punch cigars but they just seemed significantly better Thursday night. I’m sure it had something to do with the setting.). Here is what I had at The Cellar:
The Bourbon
Evan Williams Single Barrel – The world’s only vintage-dated Single Barrel Bourbon and is one of the world’s most acclaimed whiskeys. The first American Whiskey ever to win The Spirit Journal’s Whiskey of the Year award.
Elijah Craig 18 yr. old – The oldest Single Barrel Bourbon in the world at 18 years, Elijah Craig Single Barrel is a rare marvel of whiskey-making.
Parker’s Heritage 27 yr. old – Simply one of the oldest bourbons on the market. This smooth spirit features silky and sweet nose with hints of caramel and vanilla. The taste is amazingly balanced and smooth…sweet without being too sweet…and dry without being too dry!
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The Cigars – Punch
The original Punch cigar was created in 1840 by a Cuban cigar manufacturer named Manuel Lopez. In an effort to attract the British market, he named the cigar after Mr. Punch, the cantankerous half of the Punch and Judy puppet shows.
Punch Champion Natural – bold, full-bodied taste with a wrapper that is Ecuadoran Sumatra. Filler: Honduran, Nicaraguan, Dominican (Piloto Cubano). Binder: Connecticut Broadleaf. 90 pts cigar insider.
Punch Rare Corojo Magnum – these cigars are made with extra rich, dark Sumatra wrapper leaves that are grown in the mountains of Ecuador. Medium to full bodied. 92 pts cigar insider smooth, earthy, slightly sweet flavors of clay, charcoal, stewed meat, and raisins.
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Dinner – By Executive Chef David Kelser
Seared Ahi Tuna served under a spicy Mango salsa and fresh micro greens
Ratatouille veloute with Pesto croutons and crème fraiche
Slow roasted Short Ribs over herbed Polenta and Shallot-Thyme Jus
Chocolate-Espresso soup with Vanilla Ice cream, Fresh Berries and Pistachio crisp
I was lucky enough to have a man from Heaven Hill’s Distillery at my table – an entertaining fellow who I am extremely jealous of. Wouldn’t it be great to have a job selling such amazing libations as the ones we had? Of course it would!
My favorite cigar was the Punch Champion Natural. It’s a perfecto with a good amount of kick to it. My only regret is that I smoked it first because I am certain it would have mixed much better with the older bourbons. As far as regrets go this is but a pittance. The cigar definitely belongs in the 91-93 point range.
Everyone at the table was great. They were all extremely accomplished men and the stories and jokes they told were a lot of fun. Before I continue with my Saturday I need to thank my professor, John Jackson, for inviting me. That cigar dinner was a great way to cap off my birthday. Thanks JJ!
Where’s the Whiskey?
I was walking through the local grocery store today when I realized something: there is not a huge selection of bourbons, whiskeys, or scotches. There are some of the ones you would expect like Wild Turkey (thankfully), Jim Beam, Jack Daniel’s, and Dewar’s but beyond those big name brands there isn’t much selection. It’s actually a very puny selection.
But wine? The next aisle over has both sides dedicated to wine. My drink of choice gets half of one side of the aisle. That’s pathetic.
I am not writing this because I am a whiskey connoisseur because, quite frankly, due to my geographic location how could I be? Trader Joe’s has an acceptable wine selection. Sam’s Club and Costco have decent wine selections. But if you are looking for something stronger you are just out of luck.
In this environment how can I even become whiskey/bourbon/scotch literate? I just don’t see a reasonably easy way to reach a comfortable level of whiskey literacy. And I don’t think that’s because there are no choices. Just take a quick perusal of Wikipedia’s page that lists whiskey. There are hundreds of distillers on this page and, although I don’t know for sure, I would bet that there are many more less popular choices as well.
So what is the deal? Do Americans not like stiff drinks? That can’t be the case. Hell, this country’s founders were some of the biggest proponents of alcohol and that really hasn’t changed judging by the overflow of college- and post-college-aged revelers at the local bars here in the Orange County area.
So what am I suppose to do? Frankly, I don’t know the answer right now but when I do find out a way to get access to a larger variety of whiskeys I will have some fun.
Until that day comes I will have to sustain myself on Wild Turkey and cigars, which isn’t that bad of a consolation prize after all.
I Drink Wild Turkey and Coca Cola with my Cigars
Yep, that’s right. Wild Turkey and Coke. Is there anything more American than smoking a cigar from Cuba and drinking 101 proof bourbon and a sugary beverage? I don’t think so.
But there is also a practical reason behind this choice. I like both Wild Turkey and Coke, usually Cherry Coke. They taste good and they go well with cigars.
I’m certain that some of you think that it’s not fair for me to be drinking bourbon and rating a cigar. So what? Whenever I do something different, like just having a Cherry Coke, I tell you. As long as I keep the playing field level I don’t think it affects the score of cigars that much.
When I smoke a cigar I drink Wild Turkey (101 proof) and a Cherry Coke.
In fact, whenever I am smoking a milder cigar I will frequently note that what I am drinking is overpowering the flavors. And you might be right if you think that is why I don’t particularly like milder cigars for the most part. Even though I do like Auroras most milder cigars just don’t float my boat.
But what am I to do?
I like having a stiff drink with my cigars. I will not change my ways to make my ratings more “pure.” Actually, I think I would be doing a greater disservice to you, the reader, if I changed the way I smoked cigars in order to create some kind of “impartial” atmosphere.
Cigar smoking isn’t something that is done in a vacuum. Cigars are meant to be smoked amongst friends or as a way to relax at the end of a long day.
Alright, fine, the way I rate cigars may not be completely copacetic for some people. However, if I had the slightest inkling that my drinking habits affected my scores I would change. Actually, that gives me an idea.
Maybe I should start having a control cigar every once in a while where I just have water while smoking a familiar cigar. If my rating for this control cigar deviates wildly from my normal rating then I will have to change my ways.
Ah, who am I kidding? I like Wild Turkey and Cherry Coke with my cigars so that’s what I am going to continue doing. I wonder what other people drink with their cigars?
Wine Spectator’s Top Wine List 2008 – The Top Wine
Here it is, the day every wine-lover has been waiting for. Without further ado, Wine Spectator’s Top Wine for 2008:
Casa Lapostolle
Clos Apalta Colchagua Valley 2005
96 points / $75
5,987 cases made
Chile
This is Wine Spectator's Top Wine for 2008 the Casa Lapostolle Clos Apalta Colchagua Valley 2005.
Since its outstanding debut 1997 vintage, Casa Lapostolle’s Clos Apalta bottling has helped to establish Chile as a premier red-wine region. Owner Alexandra Marnier-Lapostolle and her team created a blend of Chile’s distinctive Carmenère variety, Merlot and Cabernet Sauvignon sourced from the estate’s oldest vines in Colchagua’s Apalta sub-valley, then kept refining: fermenting in smaller lots, hand-destemming berries and constructing a gravity-flow winery. All this came to fruition in the long, warm, dry 2005 vintage, easily Chile’s modern best. Marnier and new winemaker Jacques Begarie blended in 4 percent Petit Verdot for the first time, adding aroma and color. Rich and velvety, the 2005 Clos Apalta should reward cellaring. The wine’s price has remained relatively modest through the years.
Wine Spectator’s Top 100 List 2008 – Wines 4, 3 and 2
Yesterday Wine Spectator revealed their fifth and sixth best wines of the year. Today they have revealed wines four, three and two.
Château Guiraud
Sauternes 2005
97 points / $57
9,165 cases made
France
Bordeaux’s sweet wines shared the limelight in the region’s legendary 2005 vintage. Many châteaus, like Guiraud, long under the direction of Xavier Planty, produced their best wine ever. During the harvest, grape pickers passed painstakingly through the estate’s 210 acres of 35-year-old Sémillon and Sauvignon Blanc vineyards, selecting only grapes affected by botrytis. By harvest’s end, each acre yielded only enough grapes for 54 cases of wine, with about 20 percent of that set aside for the estate’s second label.
Quinta do Crasto
Douro Reserva Old Vines 2005
95 points / $40
1,500 cases imported
Portugal
This red from Portugal’s Douro River Valley is at the crest of the new wave of high-quality table wines issuing from the historic heartland of Port. Up to 30 different grape varieties from old-vine vineyards compose this refined blend. Some of the grapes are foot-trodden in lagares during initial fermentation, and the wine is then aged 18 months in French (85 percent) and American oak. It is neither fined nor filtered before bottling. The winemaking team includes Manuel Lobo, Dominic Morris and Tomás Roquette.
Wine #2
Château Rauzan-Ségla
Margaux 2005
97 points / $100
10,000 cases made
France
Estate manager John Kolasa claims that nature did the lion’s share of the work in 2005, leaving him and his team with a relatively simple job. Yet vast investment at the estate since the mid-1990s by the owners, who also control Chanel, enabled Rauzan to reap the benefits of a great growing season. The estate’s grand vin, which reached a quality pinnacle in 2005, is 54.5 percent Cabernet Sauvignon, 39 percent Merlot, 5 percent Petit Verdot and 1.5 percent Cabernet Franc, selected from 74 of the 128.5 acres of vineyards.
Tomorrow is the big day: Wine Spectator’s Wine of the Year! Before then check out the above links to the top wines to see tasting notes for each wine along with video of a tasting of the wine.
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