The holiday season is upon us, which means lots of parties — and loads of opportunities to impress your colleagues, family and (most important) your boss when it comes to ordering the right wine or spirit. But how to get that knowledge. We have sampled the latest wine, whiskey, and beer mags to get you in the spirit.
Wine & Spirits
Wine & Spirits tackles serious topics, including the wisdom of growing organic grapes in Champagne, France, when heavier-than-usual rains are creating mildew that is killing off the harvest. Mixed in are practical best-of lists that are consumer-oriented, including the must-read list of 10 best under-$12 wines — out of 3,271 tasted — and most delicious bubblies, ranging from $40 to $350. Riesling lovers will flip over the Alsace vintages, while red wine drinkers will find silky satisfaction among the best in cabernet and blends and the Barolo and Barbaresco vintages. The after-dinner port selections also shine.
Wine Enthusiast
In contrast, Wine Enthusiast is more about promoting products and regions, and less heady than W&S. For example, its rival has an article questioning if Japanese rice whiskey is really whiskey, Wine Enthusiast covers the new Japanese rice whiskey trend by highlighting how to pour the drinks. Another feature proclaims Australia’s shiraz is back. There are many cocktail recipes, and a practical holiday gift list of the top 100 cellar selections of wines that age well into the 2020s.
Whisky Advocate
Whisky Advocate magazine is meant for those who truly appreciate the drink. There is a very detailed description of the Irish whiskey scene that has exploded from three distilleries in the 1990s to 18, many of which have been founded this decade. Readers find out where they are, how to tour them, and where are the best places to golf and drink in Ireland. Whisky Advocate, too, provides a tourist guide for the best Boston whiskey bars. A Stephen Beaumont column is drink for thought when he reveals that his mother let him sip wine when he was only four years old, and beer soon after. He claims it helped him learn not to fear alcohol, giving him a later appreciation for drinking. Also, in the strange but true department, Whisky Advocate, in describing new blends, introduces us to a quinoa whiskey that “has a nuttiness quite different from the more cereal character of other whiskeys.”
All About Beer
All About Beer, meanwhile, is aimed at the craft brew master. A year-end look at mergers, for some reason that defies understanding, doesn’t tackle the obvious angle: How Inbev (Anheuser-Busch) buying fellow giant SABMiller will affect smaller brewers. Ditto the skewed focus on brew masters, with its countless lists and photos of award winners. That’s nice if you’re in the suds business, but if you’re looking for just a really good brew, fuhgeddaboutit. Consider the good folks at Brooklyn’s Kelso brewery, whose beverage is described — without giving an opinion on its quality. Perhaps, the aim is not to offend. Oh, and the font is so small — it’ll drive you to drink. Hmm, maybe that’s the point.
Bloomberg Businessweek
Bloomberg Businessweek gets into the spirit — literally — with recommendations for five cognacs, which range in price from $45 to $300 a bottle. One company that could benefit from a stiff drink is Google — or, should we say, Alphabet. Either way Max Chafkin and Mark Bergen tear into the Silicon Valley behemoth’s failed attempts to evolve beyond a search business, singling out Morgan Stanley alum Ruth Porat (a.ka. “Ruthless Ruth”), the company’s chief financial officer, and one of its famous flameouts, Google Glass, in their barbed attack. The futuristic glasses’ lavish marketing plan in 2013 included deliveries by sky divers and a partnership with fashion powerhouse Diane von Furstenberg — and was shelved in 2015. The Silicon Valley juggernaut is just “an advertising company with a lot of hobbies,” admits one unnamed former executive.
Economist
Even the venerable Economist can’t resist taking a swing at the onetime Silicon Valley darling. There is no denying Google’s success in search but, as technology and preferences change, will the company continue to be at the forefront? “You’re unlikely to win the lottery twice,” one unnamed former executive said of the company’s prospects. Google’s dominance in search may also diminish thanks to products such as Amazon’s Echo, which performs search functions without the ads, the magazine predicts.
Fortune
Fortune lays a gold egg on its cover and promises at least 34 investment picks inside its 2017 Investors Guide. But with frequent mentions by portfolio managers and writers about how 2016 went against their expectations, should 2017 guesses be believed? We’re not convinced. “Almost nothing went the way it was supposed to in 2016, And yet … few ended up being disappointed by their portfolios,” Jen Wieczner admits in a section dedicated sure-thing stock picks. Despite his track record, Warren Buffett — perhaps wisely — declined to speculate on the market in a Q&A section. “In terms of what it’s going to do next year or tomorrow, I have no idea,” the Oracle of Omaha said, in very un-Oracle fashion.