Like beer, spirits have a wide range of tastes and aromas. Lots of things contribute to the flavor profile of a liquor: its ingredients, how it’s aged and what it’s aged in, how many rounds of distillation it’s gone through, where it’s made, plus certain x factors we can’t quite put our finger on. Even considering all this, spirit categories generally share traits in common.| VinePair
This episode of the “VinePair Podcast” is sponsored by Tequila El Mexicano. Founded by one of Tequila’s most storied families, this traditionally made, additive-free tequila is an expression not just of the Bañuelos family’s collective knowledge, but of the Jaliscan highlands themselves. Try the Blanco, Blanco 90, or Reposado to discover their life’s work. You can visit ElMexicanoUS.com to find Tequila El Mexicano near you or order online to experience three generations of tequila ...| VinePair
While not everyone loves playing — or even watching — golf, most everyone can agree it’s always nice to spend a day out on the course with a few friends and a few drinks. But what does a typical round entail out on the fairway? Some might reach for classics like the Moscow Mule or a Bloody Mary, but the sport has developed a very specific drinking culture with a set of niche cocktails that are well suited for a long day on the links.| VinePair
The Scotch whisky market boomed in 2021 and 2022. But following a period of substantial growth, 2024 proved to be a difficult year for the industry. According to The Spirits Business, Scotch exports dropped by 18 percent in the first half of 2024 when compared to the same period the year before. Bumps in domestic taxes and tightening regulations, pressure on consumer spending, and instabilities in the global trade market have put constraints on producers and customers alike. The lattermost is...| VinePair
When you walk into Gilly’s House of Cocktails in San Diego’s North Park neighborhood, you’ll catch folks circling around one of the two billiards tables playing pool for free, likely with a beer in hand. You’ll see an $11 Adios Motherfucker on the menu painted on the wall next to its room-length bar, touting ingredients like overproof rum and navy-strength gin. You’ll likely notice its brightness and cleanliness. Belly up to the bar, and you may spot a black wooden message board tru...| VinePair
The following is an excerpt from Arielle Johnson’s new book, “Flavorama: A Guide to Unlocking the Art and Science of Flavor.” Within its pages, Johnson, a flavor scientist, explores how and why things taste so good, how to make them taste even better, and what that really means on a molecular level. For anyone who loves food and drink and nerding out about either, Johnson’s guide is a fun and fascinating read.| VinePair
Another partnership with Republic National Distributing Co. (RNDC) has come to an end. This week, news broke that Anheuser-Busch InBev has terminated its partnership with RNDC in California and “several other markets,” effective immediately. Rumored for weeks to be the case, the news was officially confirmed in an email sent to the RNDC California team from RNDC West Region president Bryan Boeck, which was later posted to the r/RNDC subreddit.| VinePair
Editor’s note: On Monday, June 2nd, RNDC confirmed that it is withdrawing from California. Read the full story here. On Thursday, Brown-Forman — the spirits giant behind brands like Jack Daniel’s and Woodford Reserve — announced major changes in its U.S. distribution, following the completion of a Request for Proposal (RFP) in 13 markets. Republic National Distributing Co. (RNDC), Brown-Forman’s longtime and current largest distribution partner, will see the biggest losses, dropping...| VinePair
Stop me if you’ve heard this one before. In America’s most lucrative drinks market, a multi-billion-dollar beverage-alcohol heavyweight coordinated behind the scenes to get its hands on one of the country’s most lucrative brands. The story may sound familiar to brewing-industry insiders, and it should. After all, it wasn’t even a decade ago that Reyes Beverage Group (RBG), subsidiary of the sixth-largest privately held company in the United States and by far its largest beer distribut...| VinePair
17 years after co-founding Scottish multinational brewery and pub chain BrewDog, CEO James Watt will step down from his position and assume a new role of ‘captain and co-founder.’ According to The Guardian, Watt informed the company board of his plans to step down last year, and COO James Arrow will take the reins as CEO. Watt will still own a 21-percent stake in BrewDog, and will remain active in company affairs and brand direction as a non-executive member.| VinePair
BrewDog is a brewery, bar chain, and brand with a capital B. It launched in Aberdeenshire, Scotland in 2007, and was founded by friends James Watt and Martin Dickie. Since then, BrewDog has expanded into a multinational company with nearly 100 locations, and more than 1,000 employees around the world. Begging to know more? Here are 11 things you should know about BrewDog. BrewDog is an oxymoron.| VinePair
Vodka has long been the spirit of choice in the U.S. More recently, though, trending categories like tequila and bourbon have been on its tail, drawing attention from the neutral spirit. But despite challenges in the U.S., many brands have retained global success. The Spirits Business recently published its annual Brand Champions Report, revealing a ranking of the best-selling vodka brands in the world. The data revealed that vodka’s overall volume sales from 2023 to 2024 were relatively fl...| VinePair
For the past decade, tequila has been on an absolute tear in the United States. In 2017, there were just six brands selling over 1 million cases per year in the U.S. Last year, there were over a dozen. But according to new data from The Spirits Business (TSB), agave spirits sales could be slowing down. While tequila is still growing in the U.S. — it was one of only two spirits categories to improve in the U.S. in 2024 — its margin of growth last year was much smaller than in years past.| VinePair
On Monday, Scottish craft brewery BrewDog shuttered its Cincinnati outpost just a few months shy of the taproom’s six-year anniversary. The company broke the news in a Facebook post. “We’ve made the difficult decision to permanently close BrewDog Cincinnati,” the post reads. “Thank you to our amazing team members, loyal guests, and local partners who brought energy, passion, and good vibes into our taproom every single day.” The company also reassured fans that BrewDog beers will ...| VinePair
In the mainstream perception of blended Scotch, there’s Johnnie Walker, and then there’s everything else. The Diageo-owned giant can feel omnipresent in both liquor stores and bars, with visibility boosted by recent special editions and entertainment crossovers. (The “White Walker” “Game of Thrones” collab seemed too fitting to not exist.) And while the whisky world has grown both wider and deeper in recent decades, Johnnie Walker remains the best-selling Scotch, with roughly 22.1...| VinePair
A gathering place for travelers and locals alike, a good hotel bar offers a quiet reprieve in what is typically a rather luxurious environment for patrons to relax after a long day. And while some hotel bars might simply offer just that, others, like those on properties that have been around for a while, might offer a bit of history, too. Some of these hotel bars have continuously pushed the envelope of cocktail creation, whether by creating now world-famous cocktails or perfecting jaw-droppi...| VinePair
The collapse of Republic National Distributing Company’s California division at the beginning of this month is the biggest story in the booze business, for reasons I’ve reported at length here and elsewhere. But amid the epic, multibillion-dollar disintegration of the country’s second-largest distributor, another story about a different beverage-alcohol firm that was mismanaged into insolvency in the Golden State hit a dubious milestone. It’s been a year since a consumer-packaged-good...| VinePair
This episode of “Wine 101” is sponsored by Rioja. Rioja is celebrating its 100th anniversary. And with this celebration comes the recognition of history: taking lessons from the past and embracing innovation. Variety: utilizing grapes that have been in the soils of the Ebro Valley for centuries. And quality: attention to detail and developing wines that have made Rioja one of the top wine producing regions in the world. This is a celebration that honors all that came before and all that...| VinePair
The day after Christmas is typically a super-slow time for breaking news, especially in beer. Man drinks nine spiced Christmas ales! Tune in at 11 to hear about his hangover cure — leftover ham! But on Dec. 26, a tantalizing post appeared on the BeerAdvocate forum. During a recent shopping trip, a North Carolina beer drinker found a 6-pack of Newcastle Brown Ale, an easygoing British classic bearing an iconic blue star on its label. Lagunitas Brewing, the U.S. subsidiary of Newcastle’s pa...| VinePair
We all know the name, the look, the bubbly bliss of Veuve Clicquot Champagne. It’s the kind of luxury that’s hard to miss: a deep green bottle belted in solaire yellow, regal and poised and full of effervescent joy. Once you pop it, a glass full of sparkle. But we all know Veuve Clicquot for another reason (and not just because life’s precious moments often demand an exquisite glass of bubbly).| VinePair
The general thesis of the craft-brewing “movement” — such as it was/is — at its founding midway through last century was that beer wasn’t a commodity until macrobrewers made it into one. This was a compelling thesis, and I think it’s borne out by the facts. But craft brewing is just one small segment of the overall beer industry, which is governed by theses of its own, such as the importance of market access, the superiority of scale, and the basic reality that if you can’t beat...| VinePair
Buffalo Trace’s coveted Eagle Rare brand might soon include a new expression, according to a recent filing with the Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau (TTB). The Kentucky-based brand submitted an application for label approval for a new straight bourbon whiskey aged 12 years and bottled at 95 proof under the Eagle Rare name. Though the filing suggests the label was approved on Jan. 31, there has still been no word from the brand on whether or not the new product will hit the shelves.| VinePair
Created in the 1970s when the U.S. bourbon industry was questionable at best, Eagle Rare 10 Year helped change the spirit’s reputation and forged a path for the spirit to become the darling it is today. The Eagle Rare brand has expanded to include several different labels, each adored by bourbon lovers around the world. Produced and distilled by Buffalo Trace, Eagle Rare bourbons are some of the most sought-after bottles on the market.| VinePair
Anyone who spends time navigating the sometimes treacherous online bourbon community knows that collectors like to show off. What good is acquiring a rare and expensive bottle if it can’t be the object of both pride and envy? Among the most coveted bottles are George T. Stagg, William Larue Weller, Eagle Rare 17 Year Old, Sazerac 18 Year Old, and Thomas H. Handy Sazerac — better known as the Buffalo Trace Antique Collection. The Antique Collection (often shortened to BTAC in social media ...| VinePair
No doubt about it, Buffalo Trace Distillery is one of the best known in the whiskey world. As a leader in the category, it produces some of the rarest and most beloved products available and has cultivated a fanbase devoted to unique styles and distinct flavor profiles. The core taste of every bourbon and whiskey lies in its mash bill, and while some bourbon brands fully disclose their recipes, the exact blends of Buffalo Trace’s range have remained a very well-kept secret.| VinePair
When you hear the name “Buffalo Trace” you probably think of a bottle of bourbon whiskey with a proud- and/or slightly pissed-looking buffalo on the label (wouldn’t you be?). But in the world of bourbon, Buffalo Trace isn’t just a bottle. Buffalo Trace’s legacy (originally Old Fire Copper Distillery) basically encapsulates the history of American bourbon itself.| VinePair
We tasted through countless bourbons this year at the VinePair HQ, but one particular bottle stood out in the mix, and left a lasting impression on our minds and palates. That whiskey was this year’s expression of Eagle Rare 17 from the Buffalo Trace Antique Collection. Let’s just say 2023 has been a big year for Eagle Rare. On top of stunning the bourbon community with the release of the ultra-aged Eagle Rare 25 — which fetched a jaw-dropping MSRP of $10,000 — the brand also unleashe...| VinePair
In February, rumors started circling about a potential new Eagle Rare expression. On Monday, Kentucky’s Buffalo Trace Distillery confirmed the news, announcing the highly-anticipated launch of Eagle Rare 12. According to a press release, the new bourbon will become a permanent fixture in the Eagle Rare portfolio. As its name suggests, the expression is aged for a minimum of 12 years in new, charred American oak barrels. It’s produced using the distillery’s famous Mash Bill #1, also know...| VinePair
Get all of our Bourbon Reviews, Brand Profiles, Cocktail Recipes & Articles in one place. Learn about Bourbon whiskey now!| VinePair
Bourbon has one of the most famous recipes in the world: It must be made with at least 51 percent corn in its mash. Beyond this, bourbon distillers often use rye and malted barley to finish the grist. William Larue Weller did things a little differently. Where many other bourbons use rye, W.L. Weller uses wheat. Weller himself developed this recipe, believing wheat produced a softer, sweeter flavor profile than rye’s typically spicy one.| VinePair
Old Fitzgerald is a bourbon favored by novelty-seeking collectors and whiskey historians alike. Its original story is laced with American historical lore, including surviving Prohibition — being one of the few alcohols distilled during Prohibition — and having been produced at the Stitzel-Weller Distillery for more than 50 years. Old Fitzgerald also predates and has historical ties to the Pappy Van Winkle. Famously known as “Old Fitz,” it was first produced in 1870 at Old Judge Distil...| VinePair
Pappy Van Winkle is the unicorn of bourbons, known for both its quality and its rarity. The whiskey is one of the hardest-to-find bottles out there, and it’s cherished worldwide as the ultimate example of quality. One New York bar even sold shots of Pappy for $315 each.| VinePair
On Monday, Stitzel-Weller Distillery announced the launch of Stitzel Reserve, a new collection of rare, one-of-a-kind, distillery-exclusive whiskeys. The inaugural release? A 24-Year-Old Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey bottled at 61.7 percent ABV. Built by Julian “Pappy” Van Winkle Sr., Alex T. Farnsley, and Arthur Phillip Stitzel and opened on Derby Day in 1935, the Stitzel-Weller Distillery is well regarded as a heritage bourbon production site. Before the Louisville distillery was so...| VinePair
Earlier this week, I broke the news here at VinePair that Republic National Distributing Company (RNDC) plans to “withdraw” from California — like, the entire state — at the beginning of September. The second-largest wine and spirits distributor in the country has been collapsing in the Golden State for years, but its death spiral had tightened considerably since the top of 2025, when major brands began heading for the warehouse door more or less monthly. Now, it’s throwing in the t...| VinePair
Not even halfway into 2025, Republic National Distributing Company (RNDC) has hemorrhaged key supplier accounts in markets across the country, and especially in California. Now, VinePair has learned, the country’s second-largest wine-and-spirits distributor will be departing the Golden State entirely at the beginning of September. Over the weekend, social media was abuzz with versions of this rumor.| VinePair
Memorial Day Weekend is almost upon us, and many will celebrate the official start of summer with a lively outdoor barbecue. But as temperatures rise (particularly in the warmer areas of the United States), taking charge of the grill during an al fresco summer party is no small feat, and the grill maestro must be rewarded with refreshing beverages. At the same time, grilled and smoked dishes should be paired with drinks that highlight their savory, charred, and juicy characteristics, so cooko...| VinePair
Where You Might Have Seen Us…| VinePair
It’s a certainty that many wine consumers, professionals, and civilians alike share the same dirty little secret: an unfashionable love for big, rich white wines. There’s a time and place for everything. At least that’s how the saying goes. But the reality is this inclusive declaration is all too easily discarded for the sake of surfing trends and fitting in. Navigating the industry as a closeted fan of luscious whites in the ongoing age of light-and-fresh, low-alcohol, everything-acid ...| VinePair
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Brewers often find new ways to repackage old ideas, especially in regard to lagers. But none are as successful as Coors Banquet — here's why.| VinePair
A Belgian-based company has developed a Keurig-style machine that pours five styles of beer along with custom brews created by the user.| VinePair
American thirst for craft beer has plateaued in recent years, and the way forward may be a tough pill to swallow for craft brewers.| VinePair
Update: At 4:44am ET on 7/12/2023, roughly 12 hours after this story was published, Anchor Brewing Company issued a press release announcing it will cease operations and liquidate its business. VinePair will be updating reporting throughout the day. Clarification (7/20/23): A previous version of this article stated that multiple current and former workers had told VinePair that Russian River Brewing Co. was a potential suitor to acquire Anchor from Sapporo USA.| VinePair
