Issue link: https://digital.copcomm.com/i/113109
SPIRITS Double Cross Vodka, Slovakia ($39.95) Cr��me fra��che and blueberries greet the nose on this exquisite new vodka from Slovakia. Stone fruit keeps up the sweet notes while vanilla and clay lengthen on the long mid-palate. Smooth as all get-out. 94 OLD NASSAU IMPORTS KR�� 82 Vodka, France ($16.99) The pineapple-lemon nose is alluring, with a mellow cocoa border. On the palate, a hint of jalape��o caresses the cocoa, softening any bite with a whoosh of creaminess.The middle exhibits a wash of lemon oil, minerality and tapioca. It ���nishes as clean as mountain air with a feisty spray of white pepper. 92 WESTERN SPIRITS Dry Fly Barrel Reserve Gin, USA ($25) Its honey-gold hue may not look like a gin, but this apple-cider nuanced spirit sure is���distilled from soft white winter wheat. Juniper and coriander are givens, but the lavender and mint are further intensi���ed with the addition of hops, bringing out a bathed-in-oatmeal-and-caramel rarity. This is a spa experience for the palate. 93 DRY FLY DISTILLING Aga���Vie Esprit d���Agave, France ($45) Developed as the world���s ���rst French agave spirit (Mexican agave distilled with cognac), the brand���s D���Argent (Silver) expression offers up sweet pineapple-mango and blood orange zest with its shadow of agave notes in every sip. Sweet blackberry, lilacs and gardenia line the mouth and perfume the air. A hedonistic sweetness hits the palate, ���nishing with a sensation of orange cream. 94 INNOVATION SPIRITS march 2013 / the tasting panel / 65