Shiraz, the Australian version of syrah, makes big and rich red wines, often with layers of spicy fruit and velvety textures. The McGuigan The Plan Shiraz 2016 from South Eastern Australia was the top scoring shiraz of 2018’s Ultimate Wine Competition with 92 Points and comes highly recommended by the wine judges.
Sotol is an interesting spirit that has just recently come into the international market. Culturally the same as mezcal, with similar production methods, the major difference is the source plant, dasylirion wheeleri, also called the desert spoon plant. The plant is a close cousin of the agave or maguey, but produces a spirit with distinct flavors, generally more herbal, vegetal, and acidic than many other agave spirits.
Serving spirits in a warming concoction opens the doors to more satisfying beverages during the increasingly extreme seasons, and many top bars have figured this out. While chilled classics like margaritas and manhattans are never truly out of season, offering hot cocktails creates a cozy environment that invites guests to linger and stay out of the cold.
Ice wine is one of the most labor intensive dessert wines to produce. Traditionally the grapes are left on the vine until a deep winter freeze when they are night harvested. By harvesting the grapes when frozen, it’s possible to extract the frozen water from the rest of the grape, leaving behind a highly concentrated juice from which the wine is made. The wines are sweet with heady aromas and enjoyed in modest portions. In 2018 the wine judges had the pleasure of rating 4 ice wines, all earning high scores.