The Ellensburg Distillery

I recently got to try a bottle of Ellensburg’s Distillery’s El Chalán Peruvian-​style grape brandy.
It’s very different; it’s more like an aged cognac than I expected, or was prepared for, given that it’s aged a mere nine months in oak. It’s got burnt sugar and vanilla notes, and I hope we can pickup another bottle to save for Christmas before the Washington State Liquor stores all close (they appear to be the only distributor outside of the distillery itself).
We haven’t tried it in a brandy cocktail or the traditional Pismo Sour; it’s lovely warmed and sipped, and fabulous as a side note for quality vanilla ice cream. But honestly, I think El Chalán Peruvian-​style grape brandy belongs in a snifter.

I recently took a hundred dollar flyer a bottle of their «Gold Buckle Club Whiskey». It tastes like machinery. I wouldn’t drink it if I needed to get drunk. I am not alone in this opinion. I recently saw it on the card at The Whiskey Bar in Seattle. I asked the bartender what he thought of it. He called it «an embarrassment». I have had moonshine and bathtub gin, and this is really the worst spirit I have ever tasted.