What&rsquo;s happening in wine and whiskey this week:
<h3 dir="ltr">This Week&rsquo;s Unicorn Review Stories</h3>
🍷 When it comes to wine, New Zealand might be best known for its Sauvignon Blanc. But there's a lot more going on, <a href="https://www.unicornauctions.com/unicorn-review/new-zealand-wine">particularly on the North Island</a>.
🥃 The Isle of Skye is a rugged island off the coast of Scotland that is home to some fantastic whisky distilleries. <a href="https://www.unicornauctions.com/unicorn-review/isle-of-skye-whisky-distilleries">Here's a guide</a> to how to navigate visiting them all, including one on the neighboring Isle of Raasay.
<h3 dir="ltr">New Bottle Releases</h3>
New Riff Balboa Rye ($60)
If you&rsquo;re going to get one rye whiskey for your home bar, consider this excellent bottle from Kentucky distillery New Riff. It&rsquo;s made from a mashbill of 95 percent heirloom Balboa rye and five percent malted rye. That makes for a tasty and complex bottled-in-bond, 100-proof whiskey with big notes of spice and fruit that is perfect for sipping or mixing.
High West Cask Strength Bourbon ($70)
This is a new release from Utah&rsquo;s High West, a blend of bourbons bottled at cask strength of 117 proof. The blend consists of several straight bourbons distilled in Kentucky and Indiana aged between six and 20 years. Each has a unique mashbill, including one that is made from 60% corn and 40% malted barley and one that is made from 60% corn and 40% rye.
<h3 dir="ltr">Unicorn Whiskey Pick of the Week</h3>
Lock Stock &amp; Barrel 25 ($1,000)
How much would you be willing to pay for a Canadian rye whisky aged for a full quarter century? Lock Stock &amp; Barrel, a brand owned by Cooper Spirits Co., is hoping that you won&rsquo;t blink at spending a thousand bucks, and potentially more than that on the secondary market. The thing is, it just might be worth it.
<img src="https://directus-11-4sui.onrender.com/assets/cfebc8d1-0f6a-41b5-9d79-2ef51b6e6e01.jpg?width=1200&amp;height=675" alt="Lock Stock Rye"> 
The whisky was distilled at Alberta Distillers in Calgary, where so much Canadian rye bottled by other brands is (we&rsquo;re looking at you, WhistlePig). There&rsquo;s a good reason for that&mdash;the distillery makes really good rye, and the climate in Alberta means that it can be aged for a long time without getting really overly oaky as it would down south here in America. This is the oldest age statement to date from LSB, and indeed it seems to be the oldest rye whiskey (actually, whisky) on the market at the moment. It was fermented with koji, according to the brand, and distilled from a mashbill of 100 percent rye in 1999 on copper pot stills before being aged in barrels for a quarter century. It was bottled without chill filtration at 111 proof.
And it&rsquo;s a really good rye, with deep notes of dark berry, caramel, vanilla custard, black pepper, baking spice, and cherry syrup. The higher proof provides some heat, and helps to bring all the flavors together as you sip. At that high price, this is clearly intended to be a sipper&hellip; but if you feel like breaking some rules, go ahead and make a Manhattan with it&mdash;after all, you bought it, you should enjoy it any way you want (and this is a really good way, I can vouch for it).
There are just 250 bottles available, but this seems to be a bit of a sleeper whisky. If you find one in the wild and have a grand burning a hole in your pocket, go ahead and buy it. 
<h3 dir="ltr">Unicorn Wine Pick of the Week</h3>
For this week&rsquo;s selections, we&rsquo;re going to go Old School Chardonnay. Thomas Fogarty Winery and Talley Vineyards have both been around for quite a while&mdash;Fogarty started his winery in 1981, Talley Vineyards was founded by Don Talley in 1982. Both are family wineries well into their second generation, with legacies that have stayed modern while outlasting modish trends. Both are devoted to cool climate Chardonnay, and both still make wines that reward cellar time.
Dr. Fogarty founded his winery after a career as a surgeon and medical technician, perfecting a catheter that became a universal tool in vascular surgery. The Fogarty brand has been a stalwart of Santa Cruz family wineries, now run by the second generation. Fogarty&rsquo;s son, Thomas Jr., had the good sense to promote his talented winemaker, Nathan Kandler, to general manager, and he has deftly stewarded this brand&rsquo;s traditional approaches into the present day. Few Santa Cruz wineries cast a wider net than Fogarty&mdash;Kandler draws from vineyards up and down this coastal range to make a suite of singular vineyard designate reds and whites.
Thomas Fogarty 2023 Santa Cruz Mountain Langley Hill Vineyard Chardonnay ($85)
Kandler&rsquo;s Chardonnays get ever more refined and meticulous&mdash;this wine fits the bill, from a 5.25 acre vineyard high above the San Francisco Bay at 2,000 foot elevation. Lifted and bright, it has a lemon blossom scent that deepens to lemon curd and golden apple with air. The flavors seem rich at the outset only to firm up as it travels along the palate, with notes of beeswax, honeyed citrus, and a penetrating acidity to counterbalance any impression of weight.
<img src="https://directus-11-4sui.onrender.com/assets/4019ce74-fb86-4876-92a8-b458db7f444b.jpg?width=1200&amp;height=675" alt="Fogerty Charonnay">
Talley Vineyards 2022 Oliver&rsquo;s Vineyard Edna Valley Chardonnay ($60)
Oliver&rsquo;s Vineyard was the Talleys first grape planting in the Edna Valley, a cool site planted in 1991 (it&rsquo;s named for the family&rsquo;s patriarch who founded their farm in 1948). Modestly weighty and satisfying, this Chardonnay leads with scents of caramelly lees and lemon curd, and an interesting herbal note frames a sweetcorn sweetness. The flavors are generous, with a caramelly note from oak. And the fruit is all rich citrus, broad but with a linear frame and the acidity Edna Valley is known for, which will contribute to the wine&rsquo;s longevity.

The Week in Wine and Whiskey: January 23

New Zealand wine is often reduced to one single, unmistakable calling card&mdash;Sauvignon Blanc. Explosively aromatic, the wine&rsquo;s passionfruit, guava, and ruby-red grapefruit scents loudly announce themselves, followed by notes of fresh-cut grass and green bell pepper, signatures so pronounced they&rsquo;re nearly impossible to miss in a blind tasting. It&rsquo;s easy to understand how these &ldquo;sauvy b&rsquo;s,&rdquo; led in the 2000s by producers like Kim Crawford and Cloudy Bay, became global sensations. They&rsquo;re fruit-forward without sweetness, refreshingly crisp in their high acid, and effortlessly easy-to-drink.
Last year when I traveled to New Zealand on my honeymoon, however, that style felt a bit like old news. I skipped Marlborough entirely, bypassing Sauvignon Blanc&rsquo;s home in the South Island, and focused on regions on the North Island that have long existed outside the glare of mass-market fame&mdash;Waiheke Island, Gisborne, Hawke&rsquo;s Bay, and Martinborough. There, I discovered some of New Zealand&rsquo;s most compelling wines. And no, they weren&rsquo;t Sauvignon Blanc.
<h3 dir="ltr">Auckland/Waiheke Island</h3>
The Auckland Geographical Indication (GI) in the northwestern part of the island is made up of a cluster of small sub-regions, many settled by Dalmatian immigrants from Croatia, like the Brajkovich family of Kumeu River in the Kumeu/Huapai area northwest of the city. Today, the winery is run by third-generation winemaker Michael Brajkovich, New Zealand&rsquo;s first Master of Wine, who also spearheaded the country&rsquo;s transition from cork to Stelvin closures (screw caps).
Kumeu River is known for its Chardonnay, especially from Mat&eacute; Vineyard, which walks a beautifully balanced tightrope between lush oak spice and wet-stone minerality, honeyed nuts, and crisp lemon citrus. It earns comparisons to white Burgundy, though it leans just slightly riper.
Beyond Kumeu, Waiheke Island is the fastest growing sub-region of Auckland&rsquo;s. Just a 40-minute ferry ride from the city, it has become an increasingly popular weekend escape, with its own wine route, boutique hotels, and upscale restaurants&mdash;kind of like the Hamptons of New Zealand. Despite its growing fame, the island remains charmingly quaint with no stoplights or fast-food chains, and its warmer, drier climate supports excellent Bordeaux-style red blends.
I had assumed the wines here would be mediocre at best, a pleasant day trip for tourists who are bussed from stop to stop. While some options like Wild Estate, where vineyard archery is prioritized over winemaking, fit that stereotype, others far exceeded expectations. The heart of Waiheke winemaking lies in the Onetangi Valley, a warm area with sun exposure and maritime breezes from the Hauraki Gulf. Gently sloping vineyards sit on clay-rich soil mixed with ironstone and gravel suited for Bordeaux varieties, while the long, even growing season allows grapes to ripen without overdoing it.
Stonyridge was the first to put Waiheke on the map with its Larose red blend of Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Cabernet Franc, Malbec, and Petit Verdot. Its 1993 vintage was ranked first by French sommeliers alongside Petrus, Lafite Rothschild, and Latour in the Grandes Vins Rouge du Monde. In a vertical tasting of the 2015, 2016, and 2020, each wine proved immaculately structured with the potential to age, particularly important if you&rsquo;re considering cellaring these bottles.
Even more intriguing (though less famous) is Stonyridge&rsquo;s neighbor, Te Motu. Its restaurant, The Shed, serves delicious seasonal dishes such as lamb ribs, and its wines are equally compelling. In a vertical of Te Motu&rsquo;s flagship Onetangi Valley Cabernet-Merlot blend, the 2000 vintage particularly sang, reminding me of old Bordeaux&mdash;earthy, leathery, hints of cigar box, with a touch of lingering plum fruit.
Mudbrick Vineyards offers another kind of sophistication, with a rich Onetangi Valley red blend of Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon, Petit Verdot, and Syrah, or its red-fruited, earthy Montepulciano. And Man O&rsquo; War Vineyards stands out for its Syrahs, especially its Dreadnaught, a dark-fruited, peppery, smoky wine that retains freshness despite its slightly jammy character.
<h3 dir="ltr">Gisborne</h3>
Gisborne sits at the eastern edge of New Zealand&rsquo;s North Island and, thanks to its proximity to the International Date Line, is often touted as the first city in the world to see the sunrise each morning. Its maritime climate, fertile alluvial soils, and abundant sunshine make it naturally suited for agriculture. Yet Gisborne has long carried a reputation problem.
When Captain James Cook anchored here in 1769, he dubbed it Poverty Bay, believing the area lacked the resources he sought. By the 1960s, the region had become synonymous with bulk wine production, planted to varieties like M&uuml;ller-Thurgau, Palomino, and Chasselas, and commonly cropped at yields approaching ten tons per acre.
When Marlborough overtook Gisborne as New Zealand&rsquo;s largest wine producer in the 1990s, large companies like Montana and Constellation withdrew and vineyard acreage began to shrink, forcing the remaining winemakers to turn to more serious craft if they wanted to survive. These winemakers had relied on Chardonnay, leading them to proclaim Gisborne as being the &ldquo;Chardonnay Capital of New Zealand.&rdquo; But as Marlborough surpassed them in volume of that variety, many began exploring alternatives and planted Pinot Gris, Gew&uuml;rztraminer, Chenin Blanc, and Albari&ntilde;o. While Chardonnay remains the most widely planted grape, these alternatives often prove to be the most interesting.
One of Gisborne&rsquo;s quality pioneers was Bill Irwin, who in 1968 began elevating Chardonnay at Matawhero Wines by planting the region&rsquo;s first Mendoza clones. He also introduced Gisborne&rsquo;s first Gew&uuml;rztraminer vines, which proved especially successful. After the estate fell into disrepair, it was purchased and revitalized in 2008 by Richard and Kirsten Steale, with Kim Crawford as a consulting winemaker.
The revived Matawhero range stays true to its heritage, particularly with a Gew&uuml;rztraminer marked by expressive rose florals and ripe lychee fruit. The Steales also launched the Church House label, experimenting with Arneis, Albari&ntilde;o, Chenin Blanc, and Gr&uuml;ner Veltliner. Chenin Blanc and Albari&ntilde;o have emerged as standouts, with the latter offering bright, zesty grapefruit flavors that compare with its Spanish counterparts.
At Millton Vineyards, Annie and James Millton charted another path. In the early 1980s, they became the first producers in the Southern Hemisphere to adopt biodynamic viticulture, decisively rejecting Gisborne&rsquo;s bulk-wine identity. Today, Millton is best known for its Chenin Blanc from the Te Arai Vineyard, partially fermented in demi-muids to create a rounded, off-dry style reminiscent of Vouvray. They also make Clos de Ste. Anne La Bas Chenin, a dry version offering a nutty, savory profile layered with apple and quince fruit and a subtle touch of woolly lanolin.
<h3 dir="ltr">Hawke&rsquo;s Bay</h3>
Hawke&rsquo;s Bay, about three hours south of Gisborne, is perhaps the North Island&rsquo;s most celebrated region. It&rsquo;s best known for its Syrah, particularly from Gimblett Gravels, a terroir born from an earthquake that altered the course of the Ngaruroro River, leaving an alluvial fan of gravel, silt, and loam. With growing-season temperatures averaging 66&ndash;75 &deg;F, Syrah from this area is often compared to cooler-climate Northern Rh&ocirc;ne examples, though its blackberry fruit tends warmer and brighter.
Trinity Hill, established in Gimblett Gravels in 1993 and helmed by winemaker Warren Gibson since 1997, produces particularly elegant Syrah with their flagship, Homage. Using varying amounts of whole-bunch fermentation (typically 20&ndash;30 %), Gibson crafts wines with lifted black raspberry fruit, nuanced scents of bacon and pepper, and robust tannins&mdash;a Syrah built to age. The estate also produces a series of single-vineyard wines. My favorite is Thomson&rsquo;s Block from the elevated, north-facing Roys Hill site with sandstone over limestone soils. Hand-picked and foot-trodden, this wine is more restrained in berry fruit, leading instead with cedar, licorice, and five-spice notes.
What surprised me most however were the unusual whites I encountered during a nine-course tasting menu curated by the husband-and-wife team of Chris Stockdale and Jeanette Woerner at Wallingford Homestead. Expecting the region&rsquo;s staples&mdash;Chardonnay, Syrah, and Cabernet blends&mdash;I was instead presented with Viognier, Gr&uuml;ner Veltliner, and Fiano. My wood-fired eggplant was paired with Bilancia&rsquo;s Uvaggio, a field blend of Viognier, Marsanne, and Roussanne from the north-facing La Collina Vineyard, a wine that balances lush honeysuckle richness with fresh acidity and apricot stone fruit.
With her wine &ldquo;Florence,&rdquo; Jenny Dobson made the first commercial Fiano in Hawke&rsquo;s Bay for her eponymous brand. The Fiano is grown on volcanic and gravelly soils that preserve both acidity and balance, and has aromas of citrus blossom and red apple, complemented by crisp wet-stone minerality. Yet the showstopper of the evening was Lime Rock&rsquo;s Gr&uuml;ner Veltliner, grown on limestone slopes near Waipawa at an elevation that moderates ripening and maintains natural acidity&mdash;Pinot Noir is another specialty of the estate. Vibrant and energetic, the wine offers white asparagus aromas and chalky minerality.
Hawke&rsquo;s Bay&rsquo;s diversity stems from its varied climate, which can differ by up to 12 degrees from the coastal Te Awanga region to Gimblett Gravels inland. Cooling sea breezes challenge varieties like Cabernet Sauvignon on the coast, yet they thrive further inland. Soil composition varies widely as well. Hawke&rsquo;s Bay has roughly 25 distinct soil types, from gravel beds, sand, clay, and greywacke&mdash;a hard, gray sandstone&mdash;supporting everything from Pinot Noir to Cabernet Sauvignon. While plantings of Fiano and Gr&uuml;ner Veltliner remain rare, I&rsquo;m hoping these successes will pave the way for more exceptional, distinctive white wines from the region.
<h3 dir="ltr">Martinborough</h3>
Martinborough, Masterton, and Gladstone are the three sub-regions of Wairarapa, the North Island&rsquo;s southernmost wine-growing area, but Martinborough is its heart. The region is notoriously windy, buffeted by the nearby Cook Strait, which influences the Pinot Noir grown here&mdash;small berries with thick skins produce deeply colored wines with robust tannins. Martinborough&rsquo;s proximity to the coast, combined with the Aorangi Mountains to the east and west, creates a natural wind funnel that shapes the climate. It is the coolest and driest area on the North Island with significant diurnal temperature shifts, a factor that helps craft elegant, nuanced, and age-worthy Pinot Noirs.
In 1980, Clive Paton, a dairy farmer, read an article by soil scientist Derek Milne identifying Martinborough as suitable for wine. Paton sold his cows and founded Ata Rangi, purchasing a gravelly site to plant Pinot Noir. Today, under the guidance of Paton&rsquo;s acclaimed winemaker Helen Masters, Ata Rangi is the flagship winery of the region. Masters&rsquo; Pinot Noir is intensely red-fruited and delicate with complex layers of violet flowers and vanilla spice. The winery also produces a delicious and textured Pinot Gris, aged on its lees for a creamy mouthfeel while retaining bright pear and jasmine flavors.
Escarpment Vineyard, founded in 1998 by Larry McKenna and acquired by Australian Torbreck Wines in 2018, is located in the Te Muna Road area, a cooler, higher site than vineyards closer to town. The winery bottles Pinot Noir from four single-vineyard sites in its Insight Series. Kupe, from the winery&rsquo;s estate vineyard, is the most structured and powerful with deep plum and black cherry fruit. Kiwa, from Cleland Vineyard, is more savory and herb-driven; Pahi, from Pahi Vineyard, is refined with floral violet and rose; and Te Rehua, from Barton Vineyard, is ripest in its plum and blackberry flavors.
While I mostly avoided Sauvignon Blanc on my North Island travels, I would be remiss not to mention that one-third of Martinborough&rsquo;s plantings are dedicated to the grape. Here, the style is restrained rather than exuberant, showing gooseberry, grapefruit, and cool, stony minerality. Palliser Estate keeps its Sauvignon Blanc lively with some lees aging giving texture to the mid-palate, proof that sometimes even old news grapes can feel fresh again.

There's A Lot More to New Zealand Wine Than Sauvignon Blanc

What&rsquo;s happening in wine and whiskey this week:
<h3 dir="ltr">This Week&rsquo;s Unicorn Review Stories</h3>
🍷 New York&rsquo;s Finger Lakes wine region is one to watch. <a href="https://www.unicornauctions.com/unicorn-review/new-york-finger-lakes-wine">Find out more about the region and some of its best producers</a>.
🥃 Woodford Reserve master distiller Elizabeth McCall is focused on maintaining tradition and encouraging innovation. We spoke to her to find out <a href="https://www.unicornauctions.com/unicorn-review/woodford-reserve-elizabeth-mccall">more about her vision for the distillery</a>.
<h3 dir="ltr">New Bottle Releases</h3>
Penelope Beaufain Four Grain Bourbon ($45)
MGP-owned Penelope Bourbon just released this new four-grain expression in collaboration with home furnishing brand Serena &amp; Lily. While Penelope uses a four-grain mashbill for other expressions, this 84-proof release is said to have been custom blended by master blender and cofounder Danny Polise. It comes in a bottle with a floral motif from a home on Beaufain Street in Charleston, the hometown of Serena &amp; Lily.
Woodford Reserve Double Double Oaked ($200)
Double Double Oaked is a version of Woodford&rsquo;s classic Double Oaked that spends an additional year in a secondary set of new charred oak barrels&mdash;hence, the name. This whiskey was formerly part of the Distillery Series, but made its debut as a limited-edition core portfolio offering last year. It&rsquo;s now back for 2026, but act fast because supplies are limited.
Elijah Craig Barrel Proof Rye A126
Last September, Heaven Hill&rsquo;s Elijah Craig whiskey brand introduced its first batch of Barrel Proof Rye, building on the tradition of its Barrel Proof Bourbon. That whiskey was fantastic, a 108-proof rye aged for more than 12 years. The second batch, and the first of 2026, is also great&mdash;it&rsquo;s aged for just under 12 years and bottled at just a hair over 120 proof. That means it&rsquo;s packed with flavor but does not overpower your palate as you sip.
<h3 dir="ltr">Unicorn Whiskey Pick of the Week</h3>
Russell&rsquo;s Reserve Single Rickhouse 2025 &ndash; Camp Nelson E
This whiskey came out in the fall, but it&rsquo;s worth covering even after we&rsquo;ve entered the new year because it&rsquo;s just that good. Russell&rsquo;s Reserve is the smaller batch label produced at the Wild Turkey Distillery, and it&rsquo;s arguably one of the best bargains in the bourbon world&mdash;it has one of the few truly high quality 10-year-old bourbons you can find for about 40 bucks in its portfolio.
<img src="https://directus-11-4sui.onrender.com/assets/a2d9c96d-f4e6-482a-a787-301c47727315.png?width=1200&amp;height=675" alt="Rr Single Rickhouse">
The Single Rickhouse series was created to explore the concept of terroir in whiskey based on maturation location, something we recently covered in this&nbsp;<a href="https://www.unicornauctions.com/unicorn-review/whiskey-warehouse-terroir">piece</a> about how different distilleries tackle the concept. Camp Nelson E is the fifth Single Rickhouse release, and according to the brand this whiskey was aged in an entirely different maturation environment than previous releases, all of which come from Wild Turkey&rsquo;s Camp Nelson warehouse campus. Camp Nelson E was built in 1946, and it&rsquo;s said to be located closer to the river than others on the site with more consistent shade throughout the year.
Master distiller Eddie Russell selected barrels from the fifth floor of this seven-story rickhouse for this release, high enough for things get hot but not as extreme as the very top level. The whiskey was bottled at 128 proof, which gives it the honor of being the highest proof Russell&rsquo;s Reserve expression to date. That&rsquo;s pretty strong, but the flavor and complexity still shine through despite the elevated ABV. There are rich notes of oak, vanilla, custard, maple, and cherry syrup on the palate, along with a healthy dollop of spice and some hot mulled cider on the finish.
If you have a chance to try this in a side-by-side tasting with the previous Single Rickhouse releases, do so&mdash;it will either make you a believer in the concept of warehouse terroir, or perhaps lead you to conclude that it&rsquo;s all nonsense. Whatever the case, you won&rsquo;t be disappointed with the quality of this fantastic bourbon.
<h3 dir="ltr">Unicorn Wine Pick of the Week</h3>
These two wines, also part of my project devoted to cool-climate, far-west vineyard sources from California fruit, couldn&rsquo;t be more different. But they share an ocean view roughly 80 miles from each other, and the Pacific definitely contributes to their character.
Sandhi Sta. Rita Hills Romance Chardonnay ($90)
Sashi Moorman makes this wine, drawn from a recent addition (2015) to the Domaine de la C&ocirc;te suite of vineyards (it&rsquo;s one of the westernmost Chardonnay vineyards in the south Central Coast). It&rsquo;s found just outside of Lompoc, in the western Sta. Rita Hills, where those vines are exposed to relentless ocean breezes, creating conditions for fruit purity and flavor intensity, and the salt air doubtless provides its own unique mineral fingerprint, as does the extended lees contact. Crisp and toasty at once, this leads with a toasty suite of golden fruit flavors, apple, and pear. The palate is pleasingly warm with a generous middle that belies the coolness of the place where it&rsquo;s grown, but ends with a finish marked by mouthwatering tension.
<img src="https://directus-11-4sui.onrender.com/assets/323b082d-30fb-4569-88aa-6d85b6a881c6.jpg?width=1200&amp;height=675" alt="Romance">
Saxum 2022 SLO Coast Cayucos Ridge Vineyard Syrah ($200)
Collectors of Saxum, take note&mdash;Justin Smith has a new project. This vineyard is called Cayucos Ridge, and as the crow flies it&rsquo;s not terribly far from Saxum&rsquo;s original estate in the Willow Creek district of Paso Robles, and only four miles from the ocean. While Paso feels several miles from the Pacific, at Cayucos Ridge the sea feels close enough to touch. It&rsquo;s early days for these young vines, but the 2022 feels quite complete with a spectacular spiciness not often found in Smith&rsquo;s Paso bottlings. There&rsquo;s a scent of currants, wild herbs, potpourri, and a hint of woodsmoke. The flavors are dark-berried and intense with a concentration and tannic payload that speaks to the wind at this one-of-a-kind place.
<img src="https://directus-11-4sui.onrender.com/assets/9e60f45c-dc67-4a88-8018-4588ff0bf2d0.jpg?width=1200&amp;height=675" alt="Cayucos">

The Week in Wine and Whiskey: January 16

When can we stop calling a wine region &ldquo;emerging?&rdquo; When do we get to say it&rsquo;s actually &ldquo;arrived?&rdquo; Is it only after a proven track record of creating exceptional wines? Perhaps it&rsquo;s when the talent is finally recognized for its efforts in the vineyards and cellars? Or maybe it's the terroir?
I pose this question because I have been writing about Finger Lakes wine for nearly 10 years, and in that time the region is consistently referred to as &ldquo;emerging.&rdquo; Sure, it doesn&rsquo;t have the same pedigree as a region like Burgundy, but the term doesn&rsquo;t quite feel appropriate anymore.&nbsp;
Over the past decade, I&rsquo;ve watched the FLX (as we locals call it) become confident about its footing as a globally celebrated American Viticultural Area. I found myself so drawn to the beauty of this place and the kindness of the people that I relocated to the area from my hometown of Boston. I even switched careers from marketing to wine writing, as well as educating at a wine and culinary center on Canandaigua Lake.&nbsp;
Most recently, the FLX was named the <a href="https://www.wineenthusiast.com/culture/industry-news/wine-star-awards/american-wine-region-2025/">2025 Wine Star American Wine Region of the Year</a> by Wine Enthusiast Magazine. This was a massive win for the 140 wineries that dot the lush and rolling green hills between the region&rsquo;s 11 glacier-carved lakes. Many are small, family-owned businesses. Some are growing their own estate grapes, while others partner with local vineyards to source fruit throughout the region. They are turning 10,000 planted acres of vinifera and hybrid grapes into an important slice of New York&rsquo;s economy.&nbsp;
A genuine commercial interest in the region dates back to the 1870s, when US Bonded Winery No. 1 (Pleasant Valley in Hammondsport) won gold at a sparkling wine competition in Vienna, Austria. This was a first for the U.S., and it piqued the interest of Champagne-based winemakers like Charles Fournier of Veuve Clicquot to emigrate after Prohibition to pursue making bubbles.&nbsp;
In the early 1950s, Ukrainian refugee Dr. Konstantin Frank arrived after fleeing his home during World War II and eventually landing in the FLX. His experience farming cold-climate vinifera on a 35,000-acre experimental grape station in Odesa, Ukraine, made him uniquely qualified to reveal New York&rsquo;s true potential. With the help of volunteers across the region, Frank and Fournier ignited a vinifera revolution further bolstered by Guy Devaux of Mo&euml;t et Chandon (and Mumm Napa) through the &lsquo;60s and &lsquo;70s. Their confidence in New York&rsquo;s potential for fine wine helped the region exponentially.
<h3 dir="ltr">No Grit, No Glory</h3>
The Finger Lakes region is known for having unpredictable weather like late-season freezes, stifling summer humidity, relentless downpours, and drought. Disease and animal pressure can also impact crops.&nbsp;
The lakes, including the Great Lakes Ontario and Erie, are essential to the region's success. Seneca is the largest and deepest, followed by Cayuga, which is also the widest. Both are some of the deepest in the United States and rarely freeze in the winter. The lakes moderate the extreme temperatures, offering heat retention in the winter and cooling the region in the summer.&nbsp;
Many growers are refining their sustainable vineyard practices, while winemakers are focused on expressing the uniqueness of each growing season in the cellar. Some of the most beautiful and age-worthy bottles have come from the most difficult years.
Unsure where to start? The region is often compared to the Mosel, Bordeaux, and Alsace. And rightfully so, with its cool-climate viticulture, impactful lakes, and diverse geology (slate, limestone, and shale with soils spanning from clay to sandy silt). The wines range from bone-dry to dessert-sweet, and are expressive of the site and the maker. They are typically crisp, aromatic, and mineral-driven. The reds are generally bright, fresh, fruit-forward offerings with structured acidity and well-integrated tannins.&nbsp;
Riesling is always a good choice, along with Gew&uuml;rztraminer and sparkling wines (many are producing M&eacute;thode Champenoise). For reds, explore Cabernet Franc, Saperavi (the Finger Lakes has the largest acreage of this variety outside of the Republic of Georgia), Blaufr&auml;nkisch, and Bordeaux-style blends.
<h3 dir="ltr">Six Cellar-Worthy Producers Worth Seeking Out</h3>
Dr. Konstantin Frank Winery
For more than 60 years, the Frank family has been crafting cool-climate wines from the Finger Lakes. Dr. Frank traded 35,000 acres in Odesa, Ukraine for 188 on the west side of Keuka Lake. He experimented with 60 different grafted vinifera onto phylloxera and cold-resistant rootstock. His first commercial vintage was in 1962&mdash;his American dream, realized.
Today, the estate is focused on its old vines (the oldest are Riesling and Pinot Noir planted in 1958) through careful vineyard management and care in the cellar. The wines are balanced in flavor and structure.&nbsp;
Dr. Frank Winery is also known for its sparkling wine program&mdash;Frank&rsquo;s son, Willy, produced the region&rsquo;s first M&eacute;thode Champenoise wine in 1985. The business is now run by his great-granddaughter, Meaghan, and her father, Fred.
Hermann J. Wiemer Vineyard &amp; Winery
In the 1970s, German immigrant Hermann J. Wiemer transformed his vineyard on the west side of Seneca from soybeans to vinifera. He also established a nursery in 1974 that still serves growers nationwide. In fact, HJW remains the only East Coast winery with an operating nursery, and the only Demeter-certified property east of the Rockies.
The focus at HJW is crafting clean wines that let the vintage shine. The estate wines are hand-harvested, sorted, and processed in small batches. Wiemer&rsquo;s legacy is carried on by Fred Merwarth, who began as an apprentice in 2001 before taking over the business in 2007 with his wife, Maressa, and friend, Oskar Bynke. In 2021, Merwarth became the first and only New York winemaker to be named the Enthusiast&rsquo;s&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wineenthusiast.com/culture/industry-news/wine-star-awards/fred-merwarth-winemaker/">Wine Star Winemaker of the Year</a>.&nbsp;
HJW is one of the only wineries with a consumer-friendly wine library built to showcase decades of wine designed to last. Here, guests will be surprised by the vibrancy of their older vintages, which are also available for sale.
Ravines Wine Cellars
Winemaker Morten Hallgren was one of the first winemakers to showcase truly dry Riesling in the Finger Lakes. Born in Denmark, Hallgren grew up in Provence, where his family managed an estate winery. Committed to the industry, Hallgren earned degrees in Viticulture and Enology before traveling the world to make wine in Bordeaux, Texas, North Carolina, and the Finger Lakes.&nbsp;
2025 marked 25 years of business for Hallgren and his wife, Lisa. During that time, they&rsquo;ve become known for their vibrantly aromatic dry Rieslings, old-world-inspired Pinot Noir, and structured Bordeaux blends. The wines are crafted using fruit from their certified sustainable vineyards on Keuka and Seneca Lakes.
For those looking to collect Finger Lakes reds, older Ravines offerings are particularly compelling, especially the Pinot Noir and Le Petit Caporal, a blend of Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, and Cabernet Franc.&nbsp;
Red Tail Ridge Winery
Run by Nancy Irelan and her partner in wine and life, Mike Schnelle, Red Tail Ridge anchors 50 acres on Seneca&rsquo;s west side. Before the Finger Lakes, Irelan was based in Napa where she worked as the vice president of viticulture and enology research &amp; development for Gallo. Her projects in collaboration with Cornell University and the USDA brought her to the Finger Lakes, where the pair purchased property in 2002.
Irelan crafts terroir-driven wines that stay true to Schnelle&rsquo;s efforts in the vineyards. She works with Riesling, Chardonnay, and Cabernet Franc, but has championed more obscure varieties as well, like Dornfelder, Teroldego, and Lagrein.&nbsp;
She is also known for her sparkling wine. In 2025, she launched Limnad to critical acclaim from reviewers. Limnad is a separate label focused 100% on Finger Lakes sparkling.
Forge Cellars
Forge is a joint project between Rick Rainey and Louis Barroul of Ch&acirc;teau de St. Cosme in the Southern Rhone Village of Gigondas. Barroul&rsquo;s goal with Forge was to &ldquo;express in wine the soul of a place.&rdquo; This is made possible with Rainey, who steers the operation, and winemaker L&eacute;ana Goddard.
Sustainability is the driving force behind everything Forge Cellars does. This means responsible farming and supporting local growers, less excess in the production process by removing capsules and reducing bottle weights, and a commitment to providing staff with a living wage.&nbsp;
Through partnerships with up to 16 Seneca Lake growers, Forge has popularized single-vineyard offerings of Riesling, Pinot Noir, Chardonnay, and Cabernet Franc. Every wine sees some level of oak treatment, adding texture and complexity.&nbsp;
Trestle Thirty One
Trestle Thirty One was founded by Nova Cadamatre, the first female winemaker to earn her Master of Wine in the U.S. A graduate of Cornell University, Cadamatre returned to the Finger Lakes following her time as director of winemaking for Robert Mondavi in Napa. Her move home was a leap of faith, not only in the FLX but in herself.&nbsp;
Cadametre&rsquo;s wines are dry, textural, and precise. They are generally small-batch productions of 150 cases or fewer.&nbsp; Trestle celebrated 10 years of business in 2025 and is currently offering a Riesling vertical for sale that demonstrates not only the distinct terroir of the Finger Lakes but also Cadamatre&rsquo;s growth as a bi-coastal winemaker consulting on projects in New York and California. She currently operates an urban tasting room in the city of Geneva, but will break ground on a future Seneca Lake winery soon.

Why New York’s Finger Lakes is a Wine Region to Watch

What&rsquo;s happening in wine and whiskey this week:
<h3 dir="ltr">This Week&rsquo;s Unicorn Review Stories</h3>
🍷 The Jura is a region of France that is home to some fantastic wines, including its signature Vin Jaune ("yellow wine"). <a href="https://www.unicornauctions.com/unicorn-review/jura-wine-sous-voile">Find out more about the region and how its wines are built to age</a>.
🥃 Terroir is a well-known concept in wine, but how about spirits? These whiskey distilleries are <a href="https://www.unicornauctions.com/unicorn-review/whiskey-warehouse-terroir">intent on proving that maturation location has an impact on flavor</a>.
<h3 dir="ltr">New Bottle Releases</h3>
Cathead Tintype #3 &lsquo;Kenny Brown&rsquo; (SRP $135)
This is the latest edition of this Mississippi distillery&rsquo;s Old Soul Bourbon series. It&rsquo;s an 11-year-old whiskey bottled at cask strength of 103.5 proof, made from a high-rye mashbill (60% corn, 36% rye, 4% malted barley) that was named after blues musician Kenny Brown. This is the oldest release in the series to date.
Great Jones 10 Year Distillery Reserve Bourbon (SRP $200)
This is the oldest whiskey to date from this New York City distillery. Great Jones is owned by Proximo Spirits, and while it does distill whiskey onsite, what you&rsquo;ll find in the bottle is made upstate at Black Dirt (also owned by Proximo). This whiskey was made from New York State-grown grains, aged for a decade upstate, and bottled at 105 proof.
Crown Royal Marquis (SRP $40)
Crown Royal is one of the biggest names in Canadian whisky. This new release gives the original core portfolio blend a finish in rum casks, adding extra notes of brown sugar, vanilla, and tropical fruit to the palate. And, of course, it comes in Crown Royal's signature velvet bag.&nbsp;
<h3 dir="ltr">Unicorn Whiskey Pick of the Week</h3>
Jacob&rsquo;s Pardon &ldquo;Cask Collective&rdquo; 16-Year-Old Oloroso Sherry Cask-Finished Whiskey (SRP $125)
The debut release of Jacob&rsquo;s Pardon&rsquo;s Cask Collective series has a bit of a Spanish tinge to it. This brand was founded by Palm Bay International president Marc D. Taub and his son Jake, and counts author and spirits expert F. Paul Pacult as its master blender.
<img src="https://directus-11-4sui.onrender.com/assets/abc4ef3e-ba2e-4a60-b60c-fac67d62f03d.jpg?width=1200&amp;height=675" alt="Jacob's Pardon">
This new release is not a bourbon, but an American whiskey&mdash;specifically a light whiskey distilled at MGP in Indiana&mdash;made from a mashbill of 99 percent corn and one percent malted barley. It was aged for 16 years in used barrels, and then finished in 50-year-old Oloroso sherry casks that were sourced from Span's Bodegas Williams &amp; Humbert (also part of Palm Bay International). Just 48 barrels were selected for this release, which was bottled at 96.5 proof.
For those who are unfamiliar with light whiskey, it was a style that was codified in 1968, a time when whiskey had largely fallen out of favor. It&rsquo;s distilled at a much higher proof than bourbon, and aged in used or un-charred barrels (remember, bourbon must be aged in new charred oak). It was originally meant to be a milder, lighter version of whiskey that might appeal to vodka drinkers, and while it fell out of favor for a long time, it has had a bit of a resurgence&mdash;although it&rsquo;s still a very small category in the greater whiskey landscape.
The Jacob&rsquo;s Pardon lineup consists entirely of light whiskey, some of it which is bottled at very high proof. That's not the case here, and the whiskey is better off for it. There are sweet notes of vanilla, maple, and caramel on the palate, and the sherry finish (the exact amount of time is not disclosed) has imbued it with notes of fruit, spice, and honey, without completely overpowering the character of the liquid. If you&rsquo;re a bourbon drinker looking to expand your horizons, give this a try and see what you think.
<h3 dir="ltr">Unicorn Wine Pick of the Week</h3>
Lady of the Sunshine 2024 SLO Coast Bassi Vineyard Albarino ($40) Scar of the Sea 2023 SLO Coast Bassi Vineyard Syrah ($50)
I&rsquo;ve been researching a story devoted to exploring the western vineyard sources in California, which means I&rsquo;ve had the ocean&rsquo;s influence smack in my face all fall. I can tell you it&rsquo;s unrelenting, an incursion machine, coming at the coast and inland valleys with peripatetic currents of fog and wind. As anyone who&rsquo;s visited the California coast in the summer knows, the beach can be a cold place to visit, and there are vineyards ten miles from the shore that are colder than vineyards two miles from it. That would describe Bassi Vineyard, less than two miles as the crow flies from Avila Beach in California&rsquo;s Central Coast.
<img src="https://directus-11-4sui.onrender.com/assets/1c079521-6016-4daf-84f2-6b83ca8e39ba.jpg?width=1024&amp;height=576" alt="Wines Jan 9">
As of 2024, Bassi is owned by Mikey and Gina Giugni, who produce wines for their his-and-her labels, Scar of the Sea and Lady of the Sunshine. Even though the ocean is close, the vineyard is protected by a ridge to its south, which keeps the sea&rsquo;s daily atmospheric ambush at bay. On a recent visit in November, I watched a fog bank form toward the top of the ridge. It gathered in size, but never advanced, making Bassi an exceptionally dramatic and visual microclimate. As a result, you have a vineyard that&rsquo;s very cool, but not so cool that you can&rsquo;t attain ripeness.
Bassi is farmed biodynamically, to six varieties. All of them are textural marvels; they share a tension that can only come from fruit sources that are literally on the edge of where grapes can ripen. The Lady of the Sunshine 2024 SLO Coast Bassi Vineyard Albari&ntilde;o is bright and bracing, giving off scents of lime, herb-oil and salty air. Its limey, lees-tinged flavors are marked by a flinty, energetic, mouthwatering texture, made for oysters.&nbsp;&nbsp;
The Scar of the Sea 2024 SLO Coast Bassi Vineyard Syrah, meanwhile, is for anyone who loves savory Syrahs. Aromatically, it&rsquo;s all smoke and crushed peppercorns with a hint of purple flowers. The flavors remain savory, with smoky, black pepper accents forming a kind of lattice around a core of blackberry fruit. Like his wife&rsquo;s Albarino, the texture is arresting, bright, and full of rippling tension.

The Week in Wine and Whiskey: January 9

The idea of aged Jura wines tends to conjure one specific image in the minds of drinkers. Vin Jaune (or &ldquo;yellow wine&rdquo;), arguably the region&rsquo;s most notable cuv&eacute;e, derives its entire legacy&mdash;its golden color, nutty taste, and rarity&mdash;from the length of time it spends aging in barrel, a minimum of six years and three months.
The Jura is located just over an hour east of Burgundy on the Swiss border. With just 2,000 hectares of vines&ndash;many of which are dedicated to the region&rsquo;s native grapes like Ploussard, Trousseau, and Savagnin&ndash;it is France&rsquo;s smallest region, although home to some of the country&rsquo;s most legendary winemakers. Twenty minutes south of Arbois, the capital, is the small town of Poligny, a single lane road lined on either side with homes, shops, and a bar which serves as the local haunt for winemakers.&nbsp;
<h3 dir="ltr">Lulu Vigneron</h3>
About halfway down Poligny&rsquo;s main road is &ldquo;Lulu Vigneron,&rdquo; the home and cellar of vigneron Ludwig &ldquo;Lulu&rdquo; Bindernagel. Originally from Bavaria, Lulu is a trained architect who lived and worked in Paris for many years before becoming a winemaker. Originally, he intended to make wine in Burgundy, although as a region less welcoming to outsiders, he and his wife Nathalie Eigenschenck opted instead to settle in Jura.
Lulu&rsquo;s icy features&ndash;whitish-gray hair, piercing blue eyes&ndash;masks a profoundly warm and convivial center. I visited Lulu this past summer to taste his wines and to understand what makes them both emblematic of the region and entirely their own. Using long &eacute;levage, Lulu crafts primarily white wines that are rich and nutty while still preserving a trace of youthful vitality, producing cuv&eacute;es that challenge the Jura&rsquo;s traditional model and promise to withstand the test of time.&nbsp;
There are qualities of Jura wines that make them inherently suited to aging. As a rule, oxidation allows wines to mature beautifully. By some estimates, Vin Jaune can last up to 70 years, with controlled exposure to air over time contributing not only to deep nuttiness and subtle sweetness, but also to longevity after bottling. Jura&rsquo;s soil makeup is another factor&mdash;it&rsquo;s a complex nexus composed of blue, gray, and red marl, giving the region&rsquo;s wines the mineral spine they need to age gracefully.
<h3 dir="ltr">The Importance of Soil</h3>
I arrived at Lulu&rsquo;s in July, along with a wave of wine enthusiasts on summer holiday who have descended on the Jura to marvel at its vineyards at the height of the growing season. Behind the domaine&rsquo;s unassuming fa&ccedil;ade lies a garden overrun with fresh herbs, lemon trees, and stalks of tomatoes overlooking rolling hills of vines below. It&rsquo;s here that I join Lulu before we head down to the cellar together to choose the bottles we want to open.
In the garden, Lulu and I sit opposite one another at a large glass table and begin tasting from the bottles we&rsquo;ve selected. Lulu asks if he might take my notebook and pen, and I gladly hand them over. Between drags of a freshly lit cigarette, he begins to diagram Jura&rsquo;s hidden landscape&mdash;perhaps a reflex from his former life&mdash;like the layers of soil that lie beneath the surface of the vineyards. He not only delineates sheaths of blue and gray marl, of Lias and Trias&mdash;composed to varying degrees of decayed sea life dating back to the Jurassic period&mdash;but also indicates which soils give rise to each of his cuv&eacute;es.&nbsp;
From where the Lias soil meets the thick layer of Trais, Lulu harvests vines of Savignin and Chardonnay that give him the cuv&eacute;e he calls QV Etoiles, a play on words that refers to the marl and limestone soils rich with the fossilized remains of ancient, tiny marine animals, including some that are shaped like stars. QV Etoiles is an ouill&eacute;, or topped up wine, that tastes of lemon zest and sea salt, with a zippy quality that is softened by aging the Chardonnay over two years on the lees.
From slightly more shallow soil, Lulu gets BB1 (baby one), his inaugural wine, a blend of 80% Chardonnay and 20% Savagnin topped up and aged in neutral oak for 17 months before bottling. This is a vibrant wine, full of youth and energy with notes of chalk, roasted apple, almond, and a bright, lemony finish. But it&rsquo;s ChaCha, made of 100% Savagnin that was truly a standout.&nbsp;
Named for the parcel in the village of Ch&acirc;teau-Chalon where it&rsquo;s grown, ChaCha ages in barrel sous voile for at least four years without topping up before it&rsquo;s carefully tasted and bottled. Together, we sampled a 2020 bottle, which had completed its aging, and the 2022s that he said will remain sous voile for at least another two years before being deemed ready.
ChaCha was unlike many Savagnins I&rsquo;ve tasted&mdash;rich, savory, and yeasty, yet wonderfully youthful despite its oxidative style. It has a unique citrusy quality, like lemon drop candy, that is bright, racy, and delightfully alive. At 14% alcohol, this is a big and bold wine, but was just as easy to sip by the glass as any of Lulu&rsquo;s other cuv&eacute;es.&nbsp;
<h3 dir="ltr">Patience is a Virtue</h3>
Lulu explained that when he first began making wine, he often felt tempted to taste the barrels more frequently and at earlier stages. Over time, however, he&rsquo;s grown more patient with the process, and more inclined to allow the wines to express themselves naturally over time. The long aging sous voile creates wines that are more resistant to oxidation in bottle. So even though there are no added sulfites, the wines Lulu produces are robust. They also retain a natural acidity from the grapes that is sure to mellow over time, evidence of the wine&rsquo;s enduring youth even after four years of aging.&nbsp;
There is a warmth to everything Lulu does, from the wines he makes to the way he welcomes guests and the home he keeps in Poligny, that feels like a timeless expression of care. But with the chalky soil, the acidity of youth, and the amount of care Lulu puts into each of his wines, after 12, 24, and 48 months of aging it&rsquo;s clear that this is really just the beginning of what will inevitably be a long lifecycle for these stunning and balanced cuv&eacute;es.

Aging Jura Wines, and the Stunning Promise of Young Sous Voile Bottlings

What&rsquo;s happening in wine and whiskey this week:
<h3 dir="ltr">This Week&rsquo;s Unicorn Review Stories</h3>
🍷 Champagne gets all the glory, but Prosecco is the best-selling sparkling wine in the world. Here are some <a href="https://www.unicornauctions.com/unicorn-review/prosecco-italian-wine">recommended bottles to drink now</a>.
🥃 Instead of a &ldquo;best of&rdquo; list, we put together a list of some of the most <a href="https://www.unicornauctions.com/unicorn-review/most-interesting-spirits-2025">interesting and unique spirits released in 2025</a>, from tequila to rum to whiskey.
<h3 dir="ltr">New Bottle Releases</h3>
New Riff Red Turkey Wheat Bourbon
New Riff re-released its Red Turkey Wheat Bourbon this fall, the first time in about four years. This is a wheated bourbon made with heirloom red turkey wheat varietal in the mashbill&mdash;the full breakdown is 70 percent corn, 25 percent red turkey wheat, and 5 percent malted barley. It was aged for a minimum of five years and is bottled in bond. 100 proof; SRP $60
The Glenlivet Eternal Collection, Second Edition, 56 Year Old
This ultra-aged single malt scotch from the Glenlivet came out in November in a run of just 60 bottles. After aging for more than five decades in a bourbon barrel, the whisky was put into a specially produced cask for a secondary finish that was seasoned with a blend of sherries&mdash;Oloroso, Pedro Ximenez, and Palo Cortado&mdash;and bottled in a specially designed decanter. 85.4 proof; SRP $61,500
Hatozaki Small Batch 15 Year Old Mizunara Cask Finish
This is the oldest age statement to date from this Japanese whisky brand, part of its Omakase collection. It&rsquo;s a blend of whiskies that were initially aged for 12 years in new charred oak, and then finished for a final three years in mizunara casks assembled from trees harvested from the Hokkaido region of Japan. 92 proof; SRP $66
<h3 dir="ltr">Unicorn Whiskey Pick of the Week</h3>
Cazcanes No. 7 Extra Anejo (80 proof; SRP $200)
This week we&rsquo;re going to take a look at a tequila instead of a whiskey, and what a tequila this is. Cazcanes has been making waves over the past year, as more people are becoming familiar with this excellent brand. It recently made news when it was announced that former WhistlePig CEO, Jeff Kozak, was joining the brand as president, a move which very well may help accelerate its growth.
<img src="https://directus-11-4sui.onrender.com/assets/de87c38f-6f58-4dde-9c3d-1781bcb4d4ac.jpg?width=1200&amp;height=675" alt="Cazcanes"> 
Cazcanes is produced at NOM 1614, where brands like Tres Agave and Matthew McConaughey&rsquo;s Tequila Pantalones are also made. It&rsquo;s an additive-free brand, even though it can&rsquo;t really advertise as such anymore due to the regulations set forth by the CRT, and it is made using more traditional methods including slow cooking the agave in an autoclave (not exactly a stone oven, but still), fermentation with a proprietary yeast strain, and distilled in small pot stills.
There are a range of unaged expressions available, including Still Strength and High Proof versions of the blanco. These are great sipping tequilas, but the aged expressions are some of the best out there. The new Extra Anejo is fantastic, and it's a great option for whiskey drinkers looking to get into agave spirits. The minimum age to be called extra anejo is three years, but this tequila spent a bit longer than that in barrels previously used to age whiskey from distilleries like Jack Daniel&rsquo;s, Jim Beam, and Four Roses. A little of the tequila in the blend was finished with French oak staves as well.
The result is superb. The agave character is not lost after this extensive aging, but it&rsquo;s augmented by notes of oak, chocolate, vanilla custard, maple, honey, and some black pepper spice. If you&rsquo;re looking for a rich and complex tequila to sip, or perhaps use in an Old Fashioned, definitely consider this bottle.&nbsp; 
<h3 dir="ltr">Unicorn Wine Pick of the Week</h3>
2024 Troon Applegate Valley Druid&rsquo;s Red Blend ($30)
For the New Year, I sought to come up with a wine that would act as a companion, a wine I would want around all year long, that would be happy-making through good times and rough patches. Usually three categories fit this bill for me: Cru-Beaujolais, with its serious charm; Chianti Classico, because of its versatility and rustic pleasure; and C&ocirc;tes du Rh&ocirc;ne, for its accessible, satisfying breadth and succulence.
<img src="https://directus-11-4sui.onrender.com/assets/84843dce-1691-46d5-ba73-5cf2071cbf4f.jpg?width=1200&amp;height=675" alt="Druids Red">
Then I tasted one wine toward the end of the year that seemed to embody all these things. It&rsquo;s a Rh&ocirc;ne-inspired blend from Troon Vineyards called Druid&rsquo;s Red.
Troon is in the Applegate Valley in Southern Oregon, a place that&rsquo;s warmer than the Willamette Valley by and large, but cooler than most California appellations, with the heat units to ripen most Rh&ocirc;ne varieties without difficulty. This blend of Syrah (25%), Cinsault (21%), Mourvedre (20%), Carignane (19%), and Grenache (15%) fits the bill.
Troon has been under the ownership of Dr. Bryan and Denise White since 2017, and they had the good fortune to hire Napa veteran Craig Camp to manage the property (Nate Wall makes the wine). Camp has systematically transformed the viticulture at the Troon Estate to Demeter-certified biodynamic and, in 2022, became Gold Label certified Regenerative Organic. The team&rsquo;s commitment to the practices have completely transformed the property and the wines.
As this is a blend, it&rsquo;s made for maximum flavor and impact. In addition to multiple varieties, the team uses multiple picks, fermenting lots, and vessels&mdash;both concrete and neutral barrels have given this wine an effortless balance in 2024. Charming in its dark fruit character (I detect maybe a bit of carbonic juiciness from the whole cluster lots) it leads with aromas of lavender, clove, sage, and dark berry fruit, with a Syrah-based smokiness that haunts the wine. The flavors are forward and generous, with plenty of acidity, the tannins fine and light. This is a wine I&rsquo;ll want to have at my side all year long.

The Week in Wine and Whiskey: January 2

Not everything can be Champagne. Not every recording can be Voodoo or Kind of Blue, or every painting The Milkmaid. Not every view can be of the Grand Canyon, or every bite of every morsel the be-all and end-all of every damn dish in the whole damn world. Sometimes you&rsquo;re not in the mood. Sometimes you just want something delicious that you don&rsquo;t have to think about. That is how I used to think about Prosecco. Then I started to really think about it.
It&rsquo;s the holidays, of course, the time of year for such thoughts, when corks get popped and the world&rsquo;s appetite for bubbles experiences exponential growth. And why not? Bubbles are practically synonymous with festive occasions&mdash;for toasting, washing down dinner or hors d&rsquo;oeuvres, and priming the pump for a good time.
To be clear, I love Champagne, I have nothing against Champagne. I drink it like it&rsquo;s going out of style whenever I get the chance. And we&rsquo;ve made mention of several domestic sparkling wines over the past year to consider. Both categories, though, have become pricey; stocking up for a large gathering will set you back more than a few bucks. Last week my colleague Gina Pace recommended several fine <a href="https://www.unicornauctions.com/unicorn-review/cava-wine-holidays">Spanish Cavas</a> that are a fraction of the cost of most Champagne, and are brisk and delicious too. Today I want to circle back to Prosecco, another versatile alternative. But I want to focus on the D.O.C.G.s, a set of unique historic regions where the quality is, as they say, &ldquo;garantita.&rdquo;
Italian Prosecco is currently the largest sparkling wine category in the world, a feat that has taken less than 30 years to achieve. In 2008, well into the boom, roughly 100,000,000 bottles of Prosecco were consumed; last year, that figure was nearly 700,000,000. Owing to its popularity, the region wherein Prosecco could be produced was greatly expanded&mdash;the Prosecco D.O.C. now extends to nearly 28,000 hectares, well beyond its historic borders. These are lesser parcels, where the vines are planted on the flats, cropped abundantly, and mostly machine-harvested. For this reason, the best terroirs in the spectacular sub-Alpine hills of Valdobiaddene and Conegliano, as well as the steep ridgelines of Cartizze (considered the region&rsquo;s Grand Cru), are all designated Superiore D.O.C.G. And if you want to drink the good stuff, you need to look for D.O.C.G.
Italy has a lot of beautiful wine regions, but Conegliano-Valdobbiadene might surpass them all (it&rsquo;s certainly in the top five). Vineyards are pounded into the sides of steep, hilly hogbacks, with vines spilling down hills of almost dizzying gradients, clinging to rows of narrow, softly-contoured terraces called ciglione. The landscape, definitively manmade, is even more remarkable when you learn that in the 19th century the region&rsquo;s inhabitants, en masse, carved out terraces and planted vines to create the region we know today.
In doing so, they transformed their region in one go, a feat of cultural fortitude that seems staggering in this day and age. This makeover earned it status as a World Heritage Site by UNESCO in 2019. Needless to say, the grapes in Valdobbiadene-Conegliano are hand harvested. Any tractor would end up tumbling to the bottom of the hill.
Eighty-five percent of every bottling must contain a variety known as Glera. Prosecco was the accepted name for the variety for centuries. But by the early 2000s, when the variety known as &ldquo;Prosecco&rdquo; could be grown and bottled as &ldquo;Prosecco&rdquo; even when it was made in Australia or California&rsquo;s Central Valley, the powers that be started having second thoughts.
Since 2009, the word was shelved as a varietal name and re-deployed to describe the region, much like Champagne. The name of the grape reverted to Glera over the objections of some, including &ldquo;Wine Grapes&rdquo; authors Jancis Robinson, Jose Vouillamoz, and Julia Harding. They insist on calling it Prosecco, asserting the variety is &ldquo;misleadingly renamed Glera for commercially protective reasons.&rdquo;
Glera will never match the grandeur of Champagne varieties Chardonnay, Pinot Noir, and Pinot Meunier. As a variety, it&rsquo;s simple and thin-skinned, a relative monotone, though not without charm. It is mildly floral with soft citrusy scents, a firm palate, a hint of phenolic bitterness, and an elegant astringency that lends itself well to bubbles.
That effervescence is conveyed to the wine via the Martinotti method, a second fermentation not in bottle but in large tanks, virtually indistinguishable from the Charmat method in France. Glera performs nicely in these circumstances, with the mousse giving the flavors a little edge and bite.
Perhaps the best thing about the Martinotti method is that it allows wines to be made to order with astonishing consistency, ensuring a fresh product whenever and wherever the demand arises. (The wines are hugely popular in Britain and the E.U.) There are a small number of variations, ros&eacute;s, methode ancestrales. Some Proseccos are bottled &ldquo;Col Fondo,&rdquo; where residual yeast remains in the bottle. Not surprisingly, in the age of Pet Nats, these are in vogue.
Recommendations are below, but remember that consistency in this category is exceptional&hellip; if you find what you like, even commercial bottlings are good for a good drink. Your main concern might be dosage. As in other parts of the world, Prosecco D.O.C.Gs are bottled with varying degrees of sweetness, from Zero Dosage and Brut, to Extra Dry and Demi-Sec. To my palate the Brut has the cut to keep the wines lively and balanced. Sometimes, though, the richness and body of an Extra Brut is deeply satisfying, especially with a light meal. Go find out for yourself. And whatever you do, don&rsquo;t overthink it.
<h3 dir="ltr">Adami 2022 Col Fondo Valdobbiadene D.O.C.G. Prosecco Superiore &ldquo;Sul Lieviti&rdquo; Brut Nature ($25)</h3>
Col Fondo bottlings retain a touch of the lees leftover from the secondary fermentation. This is a bit cloudy, with scents of pollen and lemon, honeycomb and walnut. The texture is delightful, crisp at first with a nutty overlay and a sneaky expansive richness before the phenolic cut.
<h3 dir="ltr">Bisol 2024 Valdobbiadene Prosecco Superiore D.O.C.G. Brut &ldquo;Crede&rdquo; ($30)</h3>
The current regime represents the 21st generation of this agricultural family; director Gianluca Bisol says that during his tenure he&rsquo;s placed new emphasis on the soils of the 50 hectares under his management. All of the Bisol wines are worth trying, but I was intrigued by Crede bottling (a word for clay in the local dialect), that included 15% Chardonnay, which lent body and elegance to a very firm, almost pithy expression of Glera.
<h3 dir="ltr">Fagher Valdobbiadene NV D.O.C.G. Prosecco Superiore Le Colture ($20)</h3>
This is a delightful drink, with a generous scent of fruit blossom and a hint of citrus. The flavors are rich, the entry generous, with a golden, juicy peachskin freshness throughout, framed by a crystalline, saline edge.
<h3 dir="ltr">L&rsquo;Antica Quercia 2022 Conegliano Valdobbiadene Prosecco Superiore D.O.C.G. Brut Rive de Scomigo &ldquo;Mati&ugrave;&rdquo; ($28)</h3>
The name is a mouthful, but so is the wine. Farmed biodynamically, winemaker Claudio Francavilla makes this wine from a single hillside vineyard (Rive). Foot-trod and fermented with indigenous yeasts, made without a dosage addition. A small amount of yeast solids stay in the juice over winter. It&rsquo;s splendid and wild in the glass, with scents and flavors of crisp apple; the hint of lees lends depth and elegance.
<h3 dir="ltr">Malibran 5 Grammi Extra Brut Rive di Santa Maria de Feletto ($30)</h3>
From an estate rich in special vineyard properties (Rive) this one, in the hills overlooking Conegliano, has a modest richness that&rsquo;s enhanced by the addition of five grams dosage. The white peach notes give way to richer flavors, like pear with a hint of orange oil.
<h3 dir="ltr">Sommariva NV Prosecco di Conegliano-Valdobbiadene Superiore Brut ($20)</h3>
Kermit Lynch has worked with two generations of the Sommariva family, whose wines are now being made by the founder Caterino&rsquo;s daughter Cinzia. Lively and soft, this pretty Glera based sparkling wine has a scent of peach blossom and citrus, lean and tangy on the palate, with flavors marked by a crisp minerally finish.

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Bourbon

The Week in Wine and Whiskey: January 23

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The Week in Wine and Whiskey: January 23

Wine

There's A Lot More to New Zealand Wine Than Sauvignon Blanc

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There's A Lot More to New Zealand Wine Than Sauvignon Blanc

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The Week in Wine and Whiskey: January 16

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Wine

Why New York’s Finger Lakes is a Wine Region to Watch

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Why New York’s Finger Lakes is a Wine Region to Watch

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The Week in Wine and Whiskey: January 9

Week in Wine & Whiskey

The Week in Wine and Whiskey: January 9

What to Drink

Aging Jura Wines, and the Stunning Promise of Young Sous Voile Bottlings

What to Drink

Aging Jura Wines, and the Stunning Promise of Young Sous Voile Bottlings

Week in Wine & Whiskey

The Week in Wine and Whiskey: January 2

Week in Wine & Whiskey

The Week in Wine and Whiskey: January 2

What to Drink

How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love Prosecco (D.O.C.G.)

What to Drink

How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love Prosecco (D.O.C.G.)

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