Brand evangelist, digital marketer, cigar and spirits expert specializing in consumer tasting and educational events. Matthias made the long trek from his hometown of Portland, Oregon to New York City in 2007, and in nine years has hosted more than 120 events and helped promote and launch dozens of cigar and whiskey brands in the U.S. In 2016, he joined the Cigar Journal Tasting Panel, blind-reviewing pre and new release cigars.
Cigar Journal, an international cigar industry magazine, recently featured Fine Tobacco NYC in their summer 2016 magazine edition. The feature article comes after over five years and more than 80 cigar events all over New York City hosted by Fine Tobacco NYC.
When David, Kelvin and I started holding cigar events at local cigar shops in New York City in 2010, we had one goal: create a space where we could feature the best brands, educate new cigar smokers, and introduce like-minded people to each other to create lasting friendships. Six years and over 2,000 attendees later, we’ve become the largest in-person cigar group in America. We’re proud to be recognized, because it shows just how far the New York City cigar community has come, even in the face of oppressive city, state, and (recently) federal regulations.
We thank Cigar Journal for their coverage of the New York City cigar community! You can read the articles for yourself by purchasing the Summer edition of Cigar Journal, or clicking on the thumbnails below. You can also download a pdf of the article here.
And a special thank you to the New York City and Tri-State cigar community who make their way to our monthly meetups.
Like many whiskey enthusiasts, I am always in search for the perfect value bourbon. My standby, for years now, has been Evan Williams 1783 — and it still is. But last week I dropped by Astor Wines on 4th st and happened upon McAfee’s Old No. 8. For $9, it’s about $11 below what I’m used to paying for 1783, so I figured I’d give it a try.
Specifics
Type: Bourbon Whiskey
Distillery: Buffalo Trace
ABV: 40% (80 proof)
Nose
Can’t say it’s the most interesting nose: fairly typical bourbon notes of caramel, vanilla, and some ethanol.
Flavor
This is where this $9 whiskey is really special. Here’s why: a decent medium bodied texture, remarkably low ethanol burn, and some decent, if mild flavors. Caramel, breadiness, some rye spiciness, and mild fruitiness. The most notable quality about this whiskey is what it lacks: harshness and unenjoyable flavors.
Palate
Fairly short finish here. Some vanilla and light spices. Not much to report.
Conclusion
This is easily one of the best $9 whiskies I’ve ever had. What I love about how this whiskey is put together is how it doesn’t make the mistake that so many others make of getting ambitious and trying to introduce too many flavors without the maturation to back it up. This is not the most interesting whiskey in the world. But for $9, this is a pretty great deal and deserves a shot and for me, a spot on my (admittedly bloated) liquor shelf.
A few weeks after reviewing Burnside Bourbon, I was contacted by representatives of Indio Spirits Distillery in Portland, Oregon and asked if I wanted to review a few of their spirits. I agreed and along in the mail came a few (very beautiful) bottles of whiskey. Three in total, including their American, Rye, and Canadian blend whiskies.
The Bourbon Barreled American Whiskey up for review today is particularly exciting to me because it is a high rye whiskey, double-barreled in used bourbon and sherry barrels. On the website, they claim the whiskey is “barreled and bottled” in Oregon, leaving some speculation open that the whiskey itself is being imported from somewhere else (UPDATE: the corn whiskey is sourced from MGP in Indiana, the rye from Bardstown, KY). In any case, this whiskey also won a “Best American Whiskey” Gold Medal at the 2015 International Whisky Competition.
With the background out of the way, let’s begin the review.
Appearance
I really enjoy the branding and appearance of all of the James Oliver bottles. There’s a real retro feel going on that satisfies my inner hipster (a small, quiet voice, I assure you). The whiskey itself is golden with a slight reddishness (the sherry finish, I assume). For what it’s worth, this bottle looks great on a shelf, moreso if you collect each of the whiskies from this producer. The only thing I’m confused about is “Est. 1931” — an impressive date but seeing as Indio Spirits was founded in 2004, I’m not sure what the reference is to.
Nose
The nose gives away that this is a high-rye whiskey. Spices, some breadiness, oak, and a touch of vanilla. The combined aromas are very pleasant, an added bonus being that there’s very little ethanol burn so I can enjoy the aroma without feeling my nose light on fire.
Taste
To me, this whiskey tastes very much like a high-rye bourbon–it just doesn’t bite like most of the high-rye bourbons out there. The texture of the whiskey is medium bodied, quickly coating my palate. I pick up lots of caramel, rye spices, some vanilla, and a hint of that sherry–very enjoyable.
Finish
The finish here is long and smooth, with just the slightest touch of burn.
Final Thoughts
I give Indio Spirits a lot of credit here for thinking outside of the traditional American whiskey box by double-barreling this whiskey in ex-bourbon and sherry casks. But they didn’t just think outside the box, they also delivered a quality product. I really appreciate how this whiskey packs a lot of flavor into a very smooth dram. It stacks up well against its other ~$30 competitors and it definitely deserves a bottle purchase.
I recently had the privilege of being invited to a component tasting with Michael Herklots at the Nat Sherman Townhouse on Feb 10th. I’m a big fan of cigar education, and I knew that the component tasting would make for a unique educational experience, so I jumped at the opportunity to attend.
I arrived at 7:15pm and made my way down into the Johnson Club Room downstairs, which was already smokey and occupied by around 30 cigar enthusiasts, mainly bloggers and friends of the Nat Sherman brand.
Herklots began the evening with a brief history of Nat Sherman, explaining that “before the brand was a place, and before the place was a man, Nat Sherman.” The first premium cigar sold by Nat Sherman, I was surprised to learn, was Epoca, which was reblended in 2014 to rave reviews.
At this point, Michael started the component tasting, with Nat Sherman staff handing out a short cigar purely made of Dominican Seco, the first component of Epoca. After lighting and comparing notes on flavor, aroma, and palate impact, we moved onto the second leaf, Dominican Ligero, and after that Nicaraguan Ligero. The seco cigar offered light, bready notes with some nuts and a musty aroma. The Dominican ligero (my personal favorite), offered similarly musty notes but with richer notes of spice and leather. The Nicaraguan ligero offered much bigger, richer notes, with a lot more of a kick and pepper notes.
Component 1 – Dominican Seco
Component 2 – Dominican Ligero
Component 3 – Nicaraguan Ligero
All three samples were enjoyable in their own right, but Michael illustrated the difficulty of blending cigars by asking the guests to smoke the first two cigars, then second and third, and finally the first and third at the same time. Each combination was putrid and awful. Then Herklots asked us to smoke all three cigars at once, and that’s where the magic happened: a brief glimpse into the Epoca color palate. The cigars combined to create an experience of flavor and balance reminiscent of Epoca.
The Final Product
Throughout the tasting, Michael did an incredible job describing the intricacies of cigar construction, tasting, and blending. More than that, he did it with a New York charm that warmed the room up and invited guests to stay and smoke after the tasting concluded.
And so the evening was illustrative of the kind of Nat Sherman that Michael Herklots seeks to build: on one hand, an establishment that carries on the traditional feel and overall aesthetic of Nat Sherman. On the other, a fierce commitment to pushing the bounds of the traditional Nat Sherman flavor profile, creating new blends and experiences for the 21st century that are all at once old and new.
A couple of weeks back I stopped by a local liquor store in Astoria and came across Burnside Bourbon. There are lots of new boutique distilleries releasing new products every week, but not many from my home town of Portland, Oregon, so I decided to give it a shot.
And without further ado, here’s the review (that rhymed, right?).
Specifics
Spirit Type: Bourbon Whiskey
Distillery: Eastide Distilling
Age: 4 Years
Proof: 96 proof
Appearance
The first thing that you notice when looking at any bottle of Burnside whiskey is the prominent portrait of none other than General Ambrose Burnside, who (you may have guessed), rocked sideburns so hard that they are named after him. The label on the bottle has a classic shape and a sort of washed out paper character that sings of the Civil War. The color of the spirit is a light amber.
Nose
On the nose I pick up heavy notes of corn, vanilla, and some oakiness, all behind a not so subtle ethanol.
Taste
I like the texture of this whiskey. Medium bodied texture starts smooth, and ends a bit rough — a bit like the Northwest in character if you ask me (though this whiskey might be a bit more on the smooth side). As for notes, I pick up oak, hints of rye, and light vanilla and caramel notes. Not exactly overwhelming on the taste side of things, but enjoyable all the same.
Finish
The finish here is medium length with about an average amount of ethanol burn. Pretty standard for what you’ll get for a $25 bottle of whiskey.
Conclusion
For about $25, this whiskey is worth a shot. It has some nice offerings from a flavor and texture standpoint, but there are dozens of contenders in this same price-point competing for this market.
