Every month, we’re tasting a huge amount of beer, whiskey and other beverages. In some cases, we’re taste-testing the industry’s best new products, and in others, we’re coming across hidden gems in the wild. Our favorites from the last four weeks are gathered here, in the best things we drank this month.
To learn more about our testing methodology and how we evaluate products, head here.
Stranahan’s Snowflake Batch #26: Pyramid Peak
Johnny BraysonStranahan’s is at the forefront of the American single malt whiskey movement — the Colorado-based distillery says it’s the top-selling brand in the segment — and its annual Snowflake release has developed the sort of cult following usually reserved for the most hyped bourbon brands. Snowflake is so named for the dual reasons of its winter timing and the fact that no two releases are alike. This year’s installment was the 26th and sold out in record time — just three hours — but I was lucky enough to secure a sample for tasting.
The 2023 Snowflake single malt spent 6 – 8 years maturing in char #3 American oak casks before undergoing a wide variety of finishes in rum, sherry, ruby port, mezcal and Islay quarter whisky casks for another year or two before all getting to know each other in the bottle. The resultant whiskey is all kinds of complex and delicious. On the nose, I get mostly caramelized fruits, while the palate sees those disparate finishes all fighting for my attention. There’s a touch of Islay peat smoke, some dark fruits, brown sugar and caramel and an earthy umami note, all of which ends in a pleasantly warming finish that’s perfect for a winter’s evening. — Johnny Brayson, Associate Editor
Smuttynose Old Brown Dog
In our day and age of hazy beers being what everyone wants, the brown ale has been a long (unfairly) snubbed style. Lightly hopped and leaning on sweet, brown malts, they’re a perfect style for the winter months. Except you’re hard-pressed to find many breweries who are still brewing them in 2023.
One of the longstanding prime American examples is Smuttynose Old Brown Dog. Smuttynose had some issues back in 2018 when it was sold at public auction to a VC firm. Since then, the legendary New Hampshire brewery has undergone lots of change and its beers have been hard to find over the past five years. But to my delight, I came across Old Brown Dog in the liquor store recently and snapped up the four individual cans they had. It’s still a well-balanced brew with a bit of hop bite that dulls just in time for that sweet malt to take over. At 6.5% ABV, it’s a beer that drinks above its weight in alcohol. Here’s to hoping I can find more of it throughout the winter because the world needs more brown ales. — Ryan Brower, Managing Editor
