Red Wine is my drink of choice by far. Never used to be like that but as I have gotten older, cooking has really become a favorite activity of mine. Especially when it comes to grilling.

Nothing goes better with a good steak for example than Red Wine.

What is the best Tequila in the old days I drank it but I can not remember which lol..

Patrón Silver.
Don Julio Blanco Agave

are top notch I guess...

The Gran Patrón Platinum never fails me, but Jose Cuervo and Don Felipe were go to's when I was young and dumb

Drinking some Gin Mare Capri tonight. Not bad

Bought a bottle of Baker's 7 High Rye Bourbon to try and it didn't impress me with the initial neck pour. Hope it opens up better as Baker's 7 is probably my favorite bourbon but curiosity got the better of me to try the rye.

I like well aged (XO) Cognac, Armagnac, Calvados, Cardinal Mendoza, Metaxa brandies. But since Bourbon has become such a. "gourmet" item, I decided to try Old Forester 1910, one of their specialty blends (93 proof). Cost ~$60. Bouquet was mostly alcohol. Taste was nice--heavy, mellow, slightly sweet like caramel. Overall a pretty satisfying drink, but nowhere near as subtle and complex as the brandies I mentioned.

Still a great Vodka !

Smirnoff ( Russian : ???????) is a Russian vodka brand , originating from Russia . The founder of Smirnoff, Pyotr Arsenyevich Smirnov started his distillery during the time of the Tsarist regime , in 1864 in Moscow .

Smirnoff tasted different from all other spirits. This was because the distillate was filtered with charcoal made from the bark of the silver birch . Because it was filtered so well, Smirnoff became one of the best vodkas. Later, tsars and military men drank a lot of Smirnoff and then sales increased for a second time.

The last Chateau Latour I drank was a '66, opened about 17 years ago. '66 was a late-maturing vintage, and the wine was still "hard" even then.

Haha even after several decades, it's not uncommon for wines from this vintage to retain a hard edge, especially from a powerhouse like Latour, whose wines are truly built for the long haul

I hate to admit this, but: I bought a case of Ch. Lafite Rothschild 1970 when it came to market in '73. Kept it in wooden case, unopened, until 2007.Every single bottle was over the hill--all the corks were shriveled.

I'm sorry to hear that TB. A case of '70 Lafite is like a small treasure chest. What a shame to hear the corks didn’t hold up. It sounds like improper storage might have been the culprit, even if unintentionally. Just out of curiosity, did you happen to taste one before realizing the entire case was compromised? Sometimes even 'over the hill' wines can surprise you with a story in the glass, though it’s a far cry from what they should’ve been of course

The first one I opened in '07 was over the hill. I hoped I'd get a winner, just as you suggested, but after six bad ones in a row, I gave up..

Last night, a few chosen loved ones and I enjoyed a bottle of Bertani Amarone della Valpolicella Classico 2015. This is Amarone at its finest. It's complex, balanced, and absolutely out of this world, if I'm being perfectly honest. People often criticize me for recommending wines that are too expensive, but this one is within most people's budget lol

Lucky guests! Amarone is to standard table Valpolicella what diamonds are to rhinestones.

I had some 2018 Opus One last night straight from Napa Valley. It truly is an exceptional wine that evolves in the glass, offering a high-level, velvety texture and a damn impressive impressive finish. Loved the complexity. It's a seamless blend of fruit, spice and earthiness. The 2018 is not my favorite Opus One vintage, but it's up there.

Some fun mob trivia: Opus One is apparently Joe Ligambi's favorite wine. That wasn't my reason for having it though lol

I have now a few bags of empty bottles Gin, Vodka etc but the most are Bacardi LOL
.
Bacardi was founded in Santiago de Cuba on February 4, 1862 by Facundo Bacardí . The brand has had a turbulent history, including the flight of several top executives in the 1960s from the regime of Fidel Castro . That year, the company's assets in Cuba were nationalized . The various operating companies in Mexico , Puerto Rico, the United States , the Bahamas and Bermuda were consolidated into a single company in 1992. Today, it is one of the largest spirits companies in the world, with a turnover of approximately $5.5 billion (in 2008).

Enjoying some 2018 Kosta Browne Russian River Valley Pinot Noir. Very good

Treated myself to 2 very hard to get bottles recently. Pappy Van Winkle 15 year and Van Winkle Special Reserve Lot B (with another bottle still on the way). No way you'd get this for MSRP and I paid a pretty penny on secondary. But again, sometimes you've just gotta treat yo self.

Lot B

Final Pappy I got this week.

Cracking open a few bottles that have been staring me in the face for the last couple of weeks. This was delicious and my favorite of the 3.

NBC 8 year. Surprisingly this was my least favorite of the 3 as the people who picked a previous pick did a good job on that one.

NBC 5 year. This intrigued me and was shocked I liked it more than the 8 year. Solid!

We don't have a real Whisky culture but this one is not bad.

Millstone Whisky
Millstone Dutch Single Malt Whisky's are made within the walls of the artisanal distillery of Zuidam. They have over 50 years of experience in distilling spirits. Their constant drive for perfection brings us this special whisky.

The malt is milled with classic windmills, in this way they try to keep the tradition of the Dutch windmills alive. Until recently almost all Dutch distilleries used the windmills to mill the grains.

During the mashing process, the malt mixes with warm water, transforming the starches into sugars. The yeast feeds on this, creating alcohol. This fermentation takes five to seven days.

After this we enter the distillation and this happens twice, in copper stills. They do this to remove as many impurities as possible from the drink. This creates a delicate and fruity new spirit.

The maturing has a great influence on the taste of this Dutch whisky. The new spirit goes into oak barrels for at least five years. These barrels can have a different history and therefore give their own taste to the whisky.