Castle & Cairn

There are few things better than kicking back with some friends, either IRL or in voice chat, and having a few beverages while enjoying one of your favorite games. While there is an almost unlimited number of games you could choose, the best games for "getting after it" have a few things in common. Elements of a Good Game for Schwifty Enjoyment Low Complexity - Games that are highly complex usually just don't turn out quite as well after six beers. Low Cost of Quality - Games that punish you heavily for mistakes or from which there is a large impact on progression for misplays are also less ideal. Who can relax when any misplays set you back weeks? Low Social Cost - Games where your sobriety (or lack thereof) and potential gameplay impairment negatively impact the gameplay experience of others are also not ideal.  *Always drink responsibly.   7 Great Video Games to Play While Drinking Each of the following games does a reasonably good job of balancing our desired charac...

Whiskey is celebrated the world over for its complexity and depth of flavor, much of which comes from the oak casks in which it is lovingly aged over multiple years. In this guide, we'll explore the process, science, and relative impact of various factors throughout the whiskey maturation process, referencing case examples where possible. Though humans have been making whiskey for a long time, many producers have relied up on experience and intuition rather than data to guide their aging cycles, though this has begun to change.  The Science of Whiskey Maturation Whiskey Maturation is a multifaced processes through which continuous chemical and physical changes occur within the embrace of the oak cask. These changes can broadly be categorized into three types of interactions: Additive Changes - Focus on the addition of chemicals to the spirit from the barrel or flavoring staves. Chemicals from the charred oak like lignans, phenols, and tannins work their ways into the aging liquid,...

If you've peeped our traditional " Five Bottle Bar " guide, you're well aware of the concept. The premise is alluringly minimalist; create a fully appointed bar with just five bottles, one from each of the main cocktail spirits: Vodka, Gin, Whiskey, Rum, and Tequila. For unaged spirits, there are great deals to be had in quality products at a low price, but how will that change with age? In this post, we'll instead focus on the world of whiskey  which is rich and varied across (to name just a few categories): Bourbon - From the USA, 50+% corn mash though there are subcategories for Wheated, High-Rye, and Low-Rye Rye Whiskey - Also typically from the USA, 50+% percent rye mash Scotch - mainly single malts and blends from Scotland, varying significantly depending on region Other Nationals : Canadian, Indian, Irish, and Japanese Whiskies Rules: Prices will be those available on Total Wine set to Georgia, USA and bottles will are priced at the standard 750ml volume...

If you've been poking around on social media or whiskey forums, you may have noticed enthusiasts throwing around the term "tater", often with some negative connotation. Meaning of "Tater" The use of Tater as slang in the whiskey community seems to have taken off during the bourbon boom of the 2010s. It's meaning varies slightly from person to person, but can be summarized as follows: Tater - noun. A person who chases hyped or rare bottles for social status rather than an appreciation of the spirit. Often a tater will have more money than expertise and may be motivated by a fear of missing out rather than their own tastes. No one is sure what the actual origin of the term is, but the juicy rumor is that it came from a Facebook group for bourbon hunters at the beginning of the last boom. The story goes that some off the more experienced group members, the ones the rest of the group turned to for tips on the next drop, decided to play a prank on the legions of ...

Greatly expanded by the craft whiskey movement and bourbon boom, finished whiskey has grown tremendously in popularity, meriting attention from heritage distillers and whiskey connoisseurs. What is Finished Whiskey? While almost all whiskey must be aged in oak, finished whiskey refers to the process of taking that aged whiskey and giving it subsequent aging(s) in other barrel(s) or with wooden rod additives. You may hear the first aging referred to as "primary" aging which is typically the longest part of the aging process with the additional aging or "secondary maturation" being a much smaller part of the timeline.  Finishing Timelines of Common Whiskeys The following common finished whiskeys and their aging timeline show how much the duration of secondary maturation can vary: Maker's Mark 46 - Finished with 10 seared French oak staves for around 6 to 8 weeks A ngel's Envy Kentucky Straight Bourbon - Finished for 3 to 6 month s in port wine barrels Dewar...

Per the National Alcohol Beverage Control Association , 17 and jurisdictions in Alaska, Maryland, Minnesota and South Dakota adopted  various forms of the traditional "Control" model. Those governments entirely control the sale of distilled spirits and, occasionally, wine and beer through at the wholesaler level.  13 of those entities also control retail sales for off-premises consumption; either through government-operated package stores or licensed agents. Control states are a mixed blessing: consumers get pricing consistency and some assurances on quality, but may pay overall higher prices or see strange product allocation practices. This page will focus on the former advantage, transparency. Most alcohol control boards publish a good deal of price and sales data freely on the internet. Iowa has the most robust feature set and has public APIs for both pricing and actual sales data.  By looking through these datasets, savvy consumers can: Assess what bottles may b...

The concept of the "Five Bottle Bar" has been around for quite some time. It's premise is alluringly minimalist; create a fully appointed bar with just five bottles, one from each of the main cocktail spirits: Vodka, Gin, Whiskey, Rum, and Tequila. Whether constrained by apartment space, money, or as a thought experiment, choosing the perfect five bottles requires building a thorough knowledge of spirits options. In this guide, we'll explore our recommendations for traditional five bottle bar setups at various price points as well as my personal bar picks. After you read, check out our whiskey 5 bottle bar edition . Rules: Prices will be those available on Total Wine set to Georgia, USA and bottles will are priced at the standard 750ml volume. Traditional Five Bottle Bar Setups These will include one of each of the fundamental cocktail spirits at three price points. Note that these prices are only for the liquor, fleshing our your cocktail bar will take a bit more fu...

Whiskey is defined simply as a "distilled spirit made from grain mash". In this article, we will take a deep dive into the main crops from which whiskey is made with a particular emphasis towards grades, growing conditions, and their impact on the resulting whiskeys' flavors. Whiskey mash bills are primarily comprised of mixtures of four primary grains: Barley Corn Rye Wheat Barley - The Single Malt King Known for its use in Scotch, Japanese, and Irish whiskey, Barley is the grain of choice for single malts, including the burgeoning American Single Malt category. It is a historic crop due to its easy-to-grow and relatively hearty nature and is still the most widely used grain in the world. Known for contributing a warm, nutty profile to whiskey, you may see high barley content whiskies accompanied by tasting notes like toast, biscuit, toffee, cereal, or cocoa. Barley is most often malted (let germinate and then cooked to stop the growth, allow yeast greater access to the ...