Drink the Bottles

National Rum Day: A Journey Through the History, Styles & Flavors of Rum August 16 is National Rum Day.   And while we certainly don't need much of an excuse to pour a glass, rum might be one of the most interesting spirits to actually have an excuse for. Rum can be light and crisp, dark and brooding, funky and earthy, sweet and spiced, grassy and vegetal, or rich and contemplative after years in a barrel.   It can be the backbone of a Daiquiri, the soul of a Mai Tai, the tropical star of a Piña Colada, or something you pour into a Glencairn and contemplate for a while.   It can even spend some time in a rum barrel and make a whiskey more interesting. That's exactly what we found when we gathered a collection of bottles specifically for National Rum Day. Our tasting lineup included traditional rums, spiced rums, aged rums, a non-alcoholic rum alternative—and even a Kentucky rye whiskey that spent time in Caribbean rum barrels. So before we get to the bo...

  There are plenty of reasons to celebrate white wine. Dry Creek Vineyard gives us two particularly good ones. There are days when a glass of white wine is exactly what the occasion calls for. Maybe it's a warm afternoon on the patio. Maybe dinner is something fresh off the grill. Maybe you're putting together a cheese board and looking for something that won't overpower everything on it. Or maybe, as is the case today, it's simply National White Wine Day .   Whatever the reason, we're happy to have an excuse to open a couple of bottles. For this year's celebration, we turned to a California winery with more than five decades of experience making white wine: Dry Creek Vineyard . Founded in 1972 in Sonoma County's Dry Creek Valley, the family-owned winery has played an important role in the history of the region—and particularly in the story of Sauvignon Blanc. We recently opened two of its 2025 releases: the 2025 Sauvignon Blanc, Dry Creek Valley , and the 2...