With business travel limited, at home duty free cabinets may be looking a little empty by now. If you’re looking to change that, then start with the Americas, where liquors have continued to launch and dazzle.
We take a look at 10 bright new additions, which promise the perfect addition to your collection, whether you are aiming for a dry January or you’re going to start sipping straight away. From wine to gin to tequila to bourbon, these fine choices are certainly worth an order.
Gin: AMASS Dry Gin
AMASS specialises in ultra-premium, small batch, botanic spirits, and their gin sure is a treat for the senses. Distilled with 29 botanicals, the California Bay and Cascara Sagrada ground bright top notes of fresh citrus along with complementing flavours Hibiscus, Cardamom, Cacao, and Ginger. It’s a swirl of multi cultures much like the downtown Los Angeles Arts District scene where the brand originates.
Where to buy: amass.com
Wine: Avaline Red
Cameron Diaz and Katherine Power launched a wildly successful range of white and rosé wines earlier this year, and finally a red has been added to the collection. Avaline red is an ultra-clean, vegan wine made with organic grapes and no unnecessary additives. The body is light, giving it that extra honest and wholesome feel, yet its juicy. Senses are warmed with a fruity aroma and gently massaged with a hint of spice.
Where to buy: drinkavaline.com
Tequila: Mijenta Reposado
Mijenta is a luxurious artisanal small batch tequila from the highlands of Jalisco, exclusively using fully mature, certified Blue Weber Agave from the region. They launched Mijenta Blanco in September 2020 and following on its roaring success comes Mijenta Reposado at the end of the year.
Mijenta Reposado is aged in oak barrels, and has a wonderfully fragrant aroma of sweet, nutty, floral, and earthy notes, and is full bodied, yet soft, to taste. The quality is exceptional, and you need not pour a lot to get the strength and flavour, which results in a long cabinet life. Mijenta Reposado is best served neat, on the rocks or as a nightcap cocktail.
Where to buy: mijenta-tequila.com
Whiskey: High West Barrel-Finished Old Fashioned
Utah’s first distillery since the 1870s, High West has mixed up the perfect ready-to-drink bottle of Old Fashioned, made with blends of bourbon and rye for complexity, matured in used rye barrels for a rich, smooth finish, and with demerara simple syrup added for sweetness. It’s delicious on the rocks, with water, or garnished with lemon and orange for some zest. High West also produce a Barrel-Finished Manhattan which is just as delectable and includes two types of vermouth.
Where to buy: highwest.com
Aperitif: Haus Spiced Cherry
Being on a well-being journey doesn’t mean compromising on fun. Haus is the product of a third-generation winemaking family from Sonoma County aiming to make better spirits from whole ingredients. The new Spiced Cherry joins Bitter Clove, Peach Passionfruit, Citrus Flower, Ginger Yuzu, Lemon Lavender and Rose Rosé, in a range of light alcohol content liquors with complex flavours derived from fruits, herbs, and botanicals.
They go perfectly on their own or with soda and tonics, and this particular release has a wonderful combination of sweet and sour heirloom cherries, wild cherry bark, and warm spices. It’s the ideal winter toast companion, and you can even heat up and enjoy by the fire.
Where to buy: drink.haus
Brandy: Bhakta 50
From Raj Bhakta comes the king of brandy, the Bhakta 50. It’s a blend of eight rare Armagnac vintages dated between 1868 and 1970 (the youngest is 50 years old, and the oldest is 152 years old), finished in Islay whisky casks. There are only 38 barrels, each treated as their own release with differing vintage blends, taste profiles, proofs, names and stories. You’re basically getting a truly exquisite collectable, unmatchable on the market, making a fine addition to any premium cabinet.
Where to buy: bhaktabrandy.com
Coffee Cream Liqueur: Sōmrus Coffee Cream Liqueur
For the long time Bailey’s fans, why not give Somrus a try? The Indian answer to coffee cream liqueur, it’s based on ‘kaapi’ and made from coffee and chicory, with dairy cream from Wisconsin, USA, and quintuple distilled Caribbean rum. The drink is all-natural, preservative and gluten-free, and tastes arguably better than traditional Bailey’s; it is silkier, creamier, with a sweet Latte finish.
This can be served over ice or mixed up in cocktails, it can be used to spike coffees and hot chocolates, and even poured over ice cream sundaes. The liqueur comes in a rose gold bottle that will look great in any display cabinet.
Where to buy: somrus.com
Bourbon: Flaviar Corn Trooper 2020 United Craft Bourbon
Bourbon lovers are in heaven with Flaviar’s Corn Trooper 2020 United Craft Bourbon, an all-American blend that unites seven craft bourbons from seven different U.S. states into one tasty, blended bourbon. With bourbons from Texas, New York, Washington, Colorado, South Carolina, Michigan and Kentucky, this is most definitely a unique, harmonious and very American blend.
Expect notes of maple syrup, oak, vanilla, banana, and green olive underlined by a spicy character of cinnamon, ginger, orange peel, dark cherry, and apple peel.
Where to buy: corntrooper.com
Tequila: Volcán Reposado
Volcán de Mi Tierra’s Reposado was created in collaboration with Jalisco’s prominent Gallardo family. It marries tradition with innovation in delivering a seamless union of agave, terroir and wood. Like the Mijenta Reposado, the Volcán Reposado has a soft yet rich flavour with toasted tobacco notes, but what sets it apart is that it carries hints of citrus, honey and pineapple.
Where to buy: volcan.com
Spiced Rum: Candela Mamajuana
Candela is the ultimate expression of mamajuana, the centuries-old native drink of the Dominican Republic. It is a smooth blend of fine Dominican rum, natural spices, and honey. Rum drinkers will appreciate that Candela is made with rum distilled from estate-grown, fresh-pressed sugarcane juice rather than molasses. Top notes of rosewood, oak, and honey will be found alongside a smooth taste with a long, sweet finish. Experience on the rocks or in cocktails. Cheers to that!
Where to buy: drinkcandela.com
