Guides and tasting notes

Gin Styles Explained: London Dry, Old Tom, Navy Strength and Sloe

What the style words on a gin label mean: the legal definitions of gin, distilled gin and London gin, why old tom is the sweetened one, what navy strength is and is not, why sloe gin is a liqueur, the two meanings of pink gin, and how Australian distillers use native botanicals.

Reposado and Anejo Tequila Explained: What the Ageing Words Mean

The Mexican standard behind the ageing words: two months in oak for reposado, a year in casks of no more than 600 litres for anejo, three years for extra anejo, what joven and gold really mean, the English label substitutions, the 1 per cent mellowing allowance, and which bottles to start with.

Types of Liqueur Explained: What a Liqueur Is and How to Use It

What a liqueur actually is under Australian and European law, the named styles that carry real legal definitions (creme de, creme de cassis, maraschino, sloe gin, nocino, sambuca), the practical families from fruit and citrus peel through herbal, nut, coffee and cream, and which bottle to start with.

Australian Whisky Explained: Tasmania, the Mainland, and the Bottles Worth Knowing

What Australian law requires of a whisky, why the climate, small casks and Australian wine and apera casks make it taste different, and the Tasmanian and mainland producers worth knowing: Lark, Spring Bay, Starward, Archie Rose, Cape Byron, Fleurieu, 5Nines, Canberra Distillery, Backwoods and Nosferatu.

Blanco Tequila Explained: 100% Agave, Plata, Silver and What to Buy in Australia

What the Mexican tequila standard actually says blanco (plata, silver) is, why 100 per cent agave matters more in a blanco than in any aged class, the abocante rule, highlands versus lowlands, cooking, stills and strength, with a named bottle for each point.

Vodka Explained: What It Is Made From, and the Australian Bottles Worth Knowing

What vodka is under EU and Australian law, why the base ingredient (grain, potato, grape, cane, sheep whey) still shows in the glass, how flavoured vodka differs, and which Australian and European bottles demonstrate each point.

Bitters Explained: Cocktail Bitters, Bitter Liqueurs and Amaro

"Bitters" means two different things: dash bottles used a few drops at a time, and bitter liqueurs poured by the glass. This guide sorts them out, then walks through cocktail bitters, the Italian bitter rosso, amaro, fernet and the Australian makers, with a bottle for each.

Types of Rum Explained: Dark, Navy, Overproof and Demerara

Rum is sorted four ways at once: raw material, still, colour and age, and origin. This hub explains each axis, what the shelf words actually mean, and which bottle to start with in each.

Grappa Explained: Italy's Grape Skin Spirit, and What to Buy in Australia

Grappa is a spirit, not a liqueur, and by law it must be Italian. This guide explains how it is distilled from grape pomace, what giovane, invecchiata, riserva, monovitigno and grappa di prosecco or di amarone mean on the label, how to serve it, and which bottles to start with, with the grappa based liqueurs covered separately.

Limoncello Explained: Italian and Australian, and How to Serve It

What limoncello is and how it is made, what is actually protected about Sorrento and Amalfi lemons, how the Italian bottles (Luxardo, Limonio, Distilleria Negroni) differ from the Australian ones (Cello, Three Foxes, Canberra Distillery), two Australian bottles that bend the category (Autonomy Bitter Limoncello, 5Nines Gincello), and how to serve it.

Cachaça Explained: Brazil's Cane Spirit, and How It Differs From Rum

What cachaça is under Brazilian law, why it is searched as Brazilian rum and where the two genuinely differ, how to read envelhecida, premium and the wood on the label, the caipirinha, and the Germana bottles to start with.

Pisco Explained: Chilean and Peruvian, and What to Buy in Australia

Peru and Chile both protect the name pisco, under two different rulebooks. This guide reads both regulations, explains what the grape on the label means, settles nothing about the pisco sour, and points to the Chilean and Peruvian bottles we carry.

Sherry Explained: From Bone Dry to Pedro Ximenez

Most Australians think sherry means sweet. The classic styles are all dry. This guide walks them from fino to Pedro Ximenez, explains flor and the two ageing paths that create them, and points at the bottles worth starting with.

Types of Bourbon: An Australian Buyer's Guide

Bourbon is sorted by law, by label, by mash bill, by how the barrels were chosen and by strength. This guide explains each one, including what Kentucky straight bourbon actually guarantees, and points to the bottles worth starting with in Australia.

Falernum Explained: Liqueur or Syrup, and What to Mix It With

Falernum is the Barbadian lime and almond flavouring behind the Corn 'n' Oil, the Zombie and the Test Pilot. What it is, why the liqueur and the syrup are not the same thing, and what to make with a bottle.

French Apple Brandy Explained: Calvados, Pommeau and the Spirits of Normandy

Normandy is too far north for wine grapes, so it distils apples instead. A plain guide to Calvados: the three appellations, the age words, cask finishes, Pommeau, and the apple grown inside the bottle.