2011: A Drinker's Preview

While the excitement of the holidays may be over, there's a lot to look forward to in the next 12 months. We're talking about tasty new small-batch bourbons, must-read books, top bar openings and cocktail trends. Find out today what you'll be drinking in 2011.

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Whiskies Worth the Wait, Part 1

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There are two spirits coming out this year that bourbon fans have to try. Knob Creek is releasing a very tasty 120-proof Single Barrel Reserve ($40), which will be on store shelves in early February.

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There are two spirits coming out this year that bourbon fans have to try. Knob Creek is releasing a very tasty 120-proof Single Barrel Reserve ($40), which will be on store shelves in early February.

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Comments

[Perdendosi]

06:04 PM on 01/19/2011

Strange -- I live in Austin, and wouldn't rank Fino in the top 3 cocktail places in town. There are some amazing mixologists here, and fine cocktail making is a serious endeavor in Austin.

[kapalabhati]

03:02 PM on 01/13/2011

Good god, thank you. After the pig burying story and the shark fin story, a straight up Knob Creek is exactly what I need.

[Charlie Ham]

11:00 AM on 01/13/2011

2011 is the year of the FIREBALL

[PRONESE]

07:11 AM on 01/13/2011

Love the Sight Blade on the Knob Creek Single Barrel Reserve Cap.
More Coffee...
R/ PRONESE

[Priori Decoherence]

05:24 AM on 01/13/2011

What, no Aquavit? Philistines.

[kapalabhati]

03:02 PM on 01/13/2011

Cute.

[EricBishop]

01:53 AM on 01/13/2011

People, please keep this important promise to me in 2011. Enjoy your craft spirits (whiskey, bourbon, scotch, cognac, brandy, maybe even gin, etc.) as you like and have you opinions and get your friends to try you favorites, but IF YOU ENCOUNTER ANYONE WHO PURPORTS TO RECOGNIZE VALUE IN A "premium vodka", beat them senseless with a baseball bat and urinate on their unconscious, bleeding corpse.

That Kettle One ad is an abomination to reason.

[Priori Decoherence]

05:18 AM on 01/13/2011

Are you purporting that all vodkas are the same or that it is impossible to tell the difference between a quality product and a large advertising budget?

[exigent]

09:40 AM on 01/13/2011

Its quite easy to tell the difference between top shelf vodka and schwag vodka (once you've 'tasted' enough)

Vodka isnt my drink of choice because of lack of flavor, but it's a good base for cocktails. Premium vodkas are clean and smooth (the best ones will cause less of a hangover effect due to several levels of filtration)

[ed5446]

09:05 PM on 01/12/2011

PDT, I'm curious to know what makes this 'one of the best bars in the world'...the name?

[robbor]

07:28 PM on 01/12/2011

Teqa, not a very relaxing atmosphere, seating looks very stiff...........who was the interior designer?!?

[SeenItBefore]

06:34 PM on 01/12/2011

I'm a single malt drinker. Never cared much for bourbon - a bit too sweet - and then I bought a friend a bottle of KNOB CREEK a couple of years back. He asked me to lift a few and I discovered I don't care for 'most' bourbons.

Really nice hooch!

[ideasmatter]

09:14 PM on 01/12/2011

Agreed!

[EricBishop]

01:48 AM on 01/13/2011

Knob Creek is NOT "most" bourbons. Glad you discovered it.

[saintstryfe]

06:21 PM on 01/12/2011

Oh yes, I forgot: Tuthilltown Spirits' website: http://tuthilltown.com/home

They were recently named by Food and Wine as a best new American Spirit. I personally recommend the Manhattan Rye and the Four-Grain Whiskey. They also have an vodka made from New York Apples that is really shockingly good as a mixer.

[JFaye]

06:19 PM on 01/12/2011

Knob Creek in a single malt ...great news.

I was introduced to this Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey (deserving of the caps) about two years ago, and there are still no words to explain the taste other than WHOA.

[saintstryfe]

06:17 PM on 01/12/2011

Another Whiskey to look for: Tuthilltown Spirits, the first legal distillery in New York since Prohibition, just got a world-wide distribution for it's small batch, artisan Hudson Whiskey. They have several different varieties, plus rums and vodkas. The Whiskey-nee-Burbons are all made of locally sourced, products, by guys who are literally learning as they go. I just took their tour in the small town of Gardner, NY last week and it was fantastic. Anyone in the Hudson Valley or beyond would enjoy this.

[Kylehndrsn]

11:59 PM on 01/14/2011

Great story, average spirits. needs some more time and experience to increase what he has.

[LFCeline]

05:38 PM on 01/12/2011

Ted Williams is gonna be happy!

[JFaye]

06:16 PM on 01/12/2011

Heck ... I'm happy!

[Sara Mae]

01:36 AM on 01/13/2011

aaaaaaaaaaah except for he just checked into rehab

[BuckyJamesDio]

05:35 PM on 01/12/2011

Maybe someone can help me in my search for Guaro. I live in the Denver area and picked up a bottle from some little liquor store that I cannot find again. The label was simply a stylized letter S and the word "Guaro". It's a Costa Rican spirit made from cane sugar, but unlike rum, is not aged in wood. It's triple-distilled and has almost a vodka-like quality in that there's really no overpowering flavor, but man is it smooth. I enjoyed it on the rocks.

After some Google-searching, I read an article stating that this is now coming to the States and is expected to be the next trendy thing. I couldn't care less about trends, I just want to know if I can find it again.

Anyone familiar with this? Thanks!

[J0E1]

11:13 AM on 01/13/2011

Try the mega liquor stores.  We do have the biggest in the world at DaveCo up north, and some pretty good extra large ones down south like Davidsons (owned by the same family).

[bmattix]

05:31 PM on 01/12/2011

We're probably going to need every drop this year!

[Sara Mae]

01:37 AM on 01/13/2011

especially with how many times I have already seen Sarah Palin in the headlines.