Tastes
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Rochelt Wachauer Marille
Eau-de-Vie — Tirol, Austria
Reviewed January 19, 2026 (edited January 20, 2026)There are not a ton of eau-de-vie's in my area, so I often have to search online for these. The best one's that I have found are Capreolus, Reisetbauer, Etter and Clear Creek, but probably the greatest of them all is Rochelt. I would say I'm surprised that more bottles are not on Distiller, however, the price tag is considerable. You can get 4 small flask bottles of this, Gravenstein apple, quince and cherry at some retailers, but it's not easy to find these bottles. This one specifically, may be the finest eau-de-vie I have ever had, although I have others still unopened, I find it hard to believe any are better. The nose is quite tropical, but the essence of the fruit shines, almost like an apricot jam. The palate is oily, with vanilla notes and ripe apricot. The finish has a bit of a menthol note to it, while despite the 100 proof, still has virtually no burn. The apricot notes are left on your tongue for a long time. If you are a fan of apricot or like apricot brandy, this spirit is for you. It will open your eyes to how incredible a truly great eau-de-vie can be. I have others from Rochelt, Capreolus, Reisetbauer, Etter and Clear Creek to try, but it's hard to imagine any being as good as this one. The vintage I tried was the 2016. All of Rochelt's eau-de-vie's are aged in demijohns for nearly 10 years, some longer and all are 100 proof or stronger. I have also tried the Rochelt Gravenstein 2013, which I would rate a 3.75, very solid, as well as Rochelt Quince 2006 which I would say is a 4 (granted I'm not a huge quince fan, so I'm guessing most would rate it even higher than that). I have yet to taste an eau-de-vie from Rochelt that is not amazing, but this is truly one of the greatest spirits out there and the first perfect score I have ever given.300.0 USD per Bottle -
Louis Royer Force 53 VSOP Cognac
Cognac — Cognac, France
Reviewed January 19, 2026 (edited January 20, 2026)There are few overproof cognacs on the market and those that you can find tend to be pretty expensive, so in many regards this is one of the better values out there. The nose is features vanilla and oak, but opens up on the palate with cocoa, cinnamon and tobacco notes. The finish has some heat as you would expect from an overproof cognac, with good length and spice notes. As a sipping cognac, this may take a little bit of adjusting since the heat from the high proof is considerable, especially if you are used to the 80 proof cognacs. However, the value is very high with this one and it is an ideal cognac for many cocktails, you just may have to adjust the amounts slightly. Adding a bit of water also helps this one if you are drinking it neat, but again, if you are looking for an overproof cognac, this is probably your best bet for the money.60.0 USD per Bottle -
Rémy Martin 1738 Accord Royal Cognac
Cognac — Cognac, France
Reviewed January 19, 2026 (edited May 22, 2026)A far superior offering from Remy Martin, this one is leaps and bounds better than Remy Martin VSOP. The price is a bit high though, but as a sipping cognac this one is a solid choice and readily available. The nose has vanilla and dried fruit notes. The palate is pretty sweet, with apricot and oak, but not overwhelmingly so like the VSOP. The finish does have a touch of burn, but it has solid length and pepper notes to close. Is this worth the price? I would say it depends on if you are planning to use this primarily as a cocktail ingredient. If so, then you may want to try cheaper options like Hine H VSOP and the Pierre Ferrand lines, but if you want something for everyday drinking, this would be a solid option.55.0 USD per Bottle -
As one of the larger cognac houses, this VSOP is one of the most popular cognacs out there. I never found this to be all that compelling and like their 1738 a lot more, but as a cocktail ingredient it holds up well. The nose has dried fruit and raisin notes. The palate is oaky, with a good amount of vanilla. The finish has a slight burn and spice, while disappearing pretty quickly. Remy Martin VSOP is very one note in my opinion. It doesn't offer much and there are far better cognacs out there to try neat such as Hine H, Pierre Ferrand Ambre, Pierre Ferrand 1840, Hine Rare, Remy Martin 1738 & Louis Royer 53 to name a few. As a cocktail ingredient I would give this a 2.5/3, but neat I would say it's closer to a 2.40.0 USD per Bottle
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Haku vodka from Japan and made from rice, is a very solid vodka, albeit at a slightly higher price. Is it worth it, probably not, but it is a solid vodka and holds up well in any cocktail that I've thrown at it. I get rice pudding and yuzu on the nose. The palate is heavy on the vanilla and sweetness, but it is smooth. The finish is very clean, with little to no burn and hints of lemon and pepper. I don't think this will blow you away, but it's well made and if it was offered at the same price as Ketel One, Absolut or Sobieski, I would rate this higher. It's still solid, just hard to find a place for it when there are others at a much cheaper price, although if you want a rice vodka, this is probably the cheapest one out there.28.0 USD per Bottle
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Ketel One is my go-to vodka for cocktails. It may not be on the level of Stolichnaya Elit or Absolut Elyx, in terms of smoothness, but it's close and you can get it for nearly half the price. The nose features lemon zest and a bit of wheat. The palate is light, but there is some vanilla and grain notes, with a bit of sweetness. The finish is short, with a touch of pepper, but overall very smooth. Ketel One in my area is often even cheaper when you buy the 1.75L size and so it's the first one I reach for when making it cocktails. The only vodkas that I would consider replacing this with would be Absolut or Sobieski. At 750ml those two are a touch cheaper, but I don't often find the large size. Either way, it's hard to go wrong with any of those three.22.0 USD per Bottle
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It may not be cheap, but there are very few vodka's on the market that are as smooth as Stoli Elit. A couple may come close, but out of the 20 or so that I've tried, this one is the smoothest, while also not being bland. The nose, while faint, does have pepper, baking spice and lemongrass. The palate is quite oily, with light grain and citrus notes. The finish is incredibly smooth with no burn whatsoever and with a bit of sweetness to close. At this point, this is my highest rated vodka. It is costly, so is it worth the large increase of Absolut Elyx which is probably my second favorite. Maybe not, but if you want to impress your friends and show them the potential of a sipping vodka, this is the bottle to buy.48.0 USD per Bottle
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Compass Box Orchard House
Blended Malt — Scotland
Reviewed January 19, 2026 (edited January 20, 2026)This hay-colored blend from Compass Box is an excellent choice for cocktails and while not as good as Compass Box Aslya neat, still an overall solid dram. The nose is pretty faint, with just a hint of apple and pear. The palate opens up though with notes of citrus, mainly lemon, peat and stone fruits. The finish is short but has little to no burn and some vanilla notes to close. Compass Box is positioning this blend to be the cocktail ingredient you reach for when a recipe calls for scotch. It may not have the peat notes of Johnnie Walker black, but it works better than most blends in nearly all cocktails. I'm not sure people will turn to it over the mainstays like Dewars, JW and Famous Grouse, but I believe it's just as good, if not better than those.35.0 USD per Bottle -
Monkey Shoulder Blended Malt
Blended Malt — Speyside, Scotland
Reviewed January 19, 2026 (edited January 20, 2026)Monkey shoulder is a blend of single malt scotch, no grain in this one. It works incredibly well in cocktails and while the price is a touch higher than other blends, it also holds its own neat. I get apples and spice on the nose. The palate opens up with a touch of peat, but for the most part it is sweet and watery, with notes of chocolate. The finish is pretty short, with little burn and notes of grass and malt. It's not going to blow you away neat like some blends, but it does work well for an everyday dram and again holds up well in cocktails. The cost is a touch higher than others, so I tend to favor Famous Grouse over this in cocktails, but both work very well.35.0 USD per Bottle -
Johnnie Walker Double Black is similar to Johnnie Walker Black, with the peat notes dialed up a bit. I'm not sure if that makes this one better, I would it's on par with the black, but it really just comes down to how much smoke you want in your scotch and is the price worth it. The nose starts with the smokey notes and orange peel. On the palate it's actually pretty thin, peaty in the vein of Ardbeg 10yr, with some vanilla notes. The finish is average length, with a touch of heat and pepper. The biggest problem for me is the price. In my area it costs $10 more for the double black and I don't think you get enough bang for your buck. I would stick with the black over the double black. Both are good and the heavier peat notes are nice for those that love Islay peat heavy scotch, but I'm not sure the price is worth it. Plus, the black is a better cocktail scotch than the double black.40.0 USD per Bottle
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