The concept of terroir, which forms the basis of France’s Appellation d’origine contrôlée (AOC) system, is familiar in viniculture, but what about other crops used in fermentation? The idea that climate, soil type and topography also affect the individual characteristics of the agave plant is the inspiration behind Ocho, the first ultra-premium, vintage single-estate tequila [...]

We’ve grown to expect nothing less than opulence over at the Ritz Carlton Moscow.  Two hundred bottles of champagne matured by the ocean tides and the waves in the dark for over 80 years are being sold at the Ritz for $300,000 a bottle.  The 1907 vintage bubbly had been sent to the Russian Royal [...]