Sommelier Tries Every Trader Joe's Liquor

Hey, I'm Sommelier André Hueston Mack

and today I'm gonna be tasting over a dozen spirits

that you can only buy at Trader Joe's.

Trader Joe's is known for store brand products

at an extremely low price,

but does quality go down with the prices?

I really hope not and today I'm gonna find out.

[upbeat music]

So first up is Texas Vodka. This is 10 99.

What's weird to me is just the Texas part of it.

I don't think it's a thing in the sense of like,

oh, that it has anything to do with Texas,

it's more about the pride of Texas.

But you know, to me it just kind of,

looks like a rip off of Tito's.

Like Tito's started something,

it's kind of piggybacking on that.

It says Trader Joe's on the top of the label,

but if you look closely on the back,

this is bottled by Dynasty Spirits, in Smithville, Texas.

In the industry this is what we call white labeling.

So Trader Joe's is not actually making it,

they're contracting a distillery

and having them make it for them with their labels on it.

And it's a kind of a cost-effective way for them

to use branding in the power of the brand of Trader Joe's,

without having to spend the money to go out

and create a distillery.

There is highly the possibility

that this vodka exists somewhere else

under a different label.

Vodka is a distilled grain,

whether it's corn, wheat, barley.

So this says that it's been distilled six times,

so they're taking the evaporation

and that comes off distilled,

and that's what's transformed into alcohol.

You keep repeating that process

and that's supposed to smooth it out.

So the more times that it's distilled,

the more perfect or smoother it will be.

It doesn't really make a big enough difference

for me to be able to tell.

So we got the nifty glass.

They don't make the glass anymore.

You pour your amount in the hollow stem,

and you can smell it.

But the trick is, is that here, instead of swirling,

you turn the glass on its side

and you roll it back and forth,

and this coats the side of the glass.

Very much and very similar to swirling the glass.

Very different than wine, kind of same process,

but the placement of the glass in my nose is very different.

When I do spirits,

I always try to rest the top of the glass

on the bridge of my nose,

helps mitigate the harsh fumes

and that burning sensation that you get,

because you're holding your nose

a little bit further away from the glass.

It smells like vodka.

It's not rubbing alcohol

but there's definitely association with it.

It smells clean, it smells pure,

you know, maybe a little cut grass, very little.

It tastes like vodka to me.

It feels pretty well made

but it doesn't have a burning sensation and at 10.99,

it's solid.

Next up is Trader Joe's Versatile Spirit Vodka.

This comes in at $10 and 99 cents.

Front and center, it says Distilled from grapes.

Generally when you think about vodka,

it's been distilled from a grain.

Grapes [laughs] are not a grain.

Ciroc was made from snap frost grapes

and it created an ultra premium market.

Wine is made from fermented grapes,

so after the grapes have been dried and fermented

is actually being distilled.

It does list that it's a mix of chardonnay,

Merlot, Cabernet.

So we're gonna hop in here and it definitely smells like

rubbing alcohol, right? [laughs]

So there's a component where

it has some underlying fruit in it,

but it's not overpowering,

it's kind of just lingers in the background.

It's on the rough side. I would call it rustic.

You rustic, you know, I'm giving grace,

it's rough, not as polished, right?

I would bet that this hadn't been distilled,

you know, six times.

This is cool, this would be fun

to experiment and play around with.

And the fact that it's in this under $15 category

feels like I would have a couple of bottles of this

on hand as you know, playtime and to show people,

because it's from grapes,

it definitely has a different side to it.

So next up is Kentucky Bourbon Straight Whiskey, at 15.99.

In order for this to be bourbon,

it has to be made with at least 51% corn.

If it says Kentucky on it, it can only be made in Kentucky.

When it says straight,

it has to be aged at least two to three years.

You can't add any additives or preservatives.

All of the rules about additives and rules in general is,

so people don't make the fake stuff.

When you have a product that is a great notoriety,

people start to knock it off or try to cut corners.

So ideally not have any additives in it is,

you know, holding people to a standard and a purity

of the product.

We're gonna hop in here.

That almost smells like a nectarine to me.

Nectarine,

sandalwood, just a little bit of caramel,

and somewhat like ginger.

That's doing the trick, right?

When I think about like a corn based spirit, do I taste it?

Like I think a lot of times

that's where the caramelness comes from, at least for me.

Obviously I know it comes from

the barrel aging and those kind of things.

There's a richness to it, a mouth feel that I get.

This is hitting spot on for a whiskey.

You know, when you think of two to 3-year-old,

straight bourbon, straight whiskey

and you're like, Okay, it's hitting on that note

like the the follow through mid palate,

and then you think about 15.99,

and you're like Wow.

Price plays, you know, important role in in all of this.

You're tasting in those parameters.

You're like Wow, I tasted bourbons that are

four times this amount

that don't have some of these attributes.

I think this is a great daily sipper

and it's all the way Kentucky.

Next up is Tennessee Bourbon Whiskey

and this comes in at 14.99.

Here you see that it's called Sour Mash.

They use mash from the previous distiller

and then they mix that in with the new mash,

'cause it's acidic and that makes it sour,

and it gives a distinct flavor.

In Tennessee, they actually

have another set of rules called the Lincoln County Process.

To legally make Tennessee whiskey,

ultimately it has to be charcoal filter, right?

And running it through these charcoal filters,

kind of strips some of the impurities out of the whiskey,

but also in parts of distinct flavor.

So this is everything that Jack Daniel does, right?

Lincoln County is where Jack Daniels

was invented and is basically taking their process

and the process of the area into account.

Color's definitely different, darker hue,

smells like Jack Daniels to me.

It smells like fermented green tea.

That's kind of spot on.

14.99, but I think you can buy Jack

[laughs] for the same, for the same price at this point.

Yeah, it's not my favorite, let me put it that way.

If they're trying to imitate Jack Daniels,

I'd rather have Jack.

Just 'cause it feels like

something falls a little bit short here

in that aspect of it.

I wanted to like it more I guess.

This is Trader Joe's Blanco Tequila

and this comes in at 19.99.

Blanco refers to then it's raw state, it's been distilled

but it hasn't been aged.

And generally, some of the other

tequilas that you see that have been aged in oak

and they take on a more caramel tea kind of color.

So 100% agave.

Agave is the plant that's distilled to make this disparity.

It's checking all the boxes,

talking about a hundred percent agave,

okay great, it has jalisko.

And then you know, it's checking that other box.

You're like 19.99, okay, all right, cool.

So it checks out a lot of ways just on face value.

When I think about Blanco Tequila,

I think the first thing to me it's like,

there's a spice or like a pepper,

you know, it's almost kind of like a,

a white pepper that kind of jumps out of the glass.

I'm getting that it doesn't seem to be overwhelming at all.

Like it's there,

but it's not strong.

And I would say the agave's shining through,

it's just the most distinguishable thing about tequila.

Like the thing that makes it distinguishable,

that's the agave that you're tasting.

It has that.

There's a warmthness to it, right?

But like not overpoweringly spirit, it's like not burning,

you know, blowing the back of my head off.

It's not like high alcohol like in that sense.

It just grows, which is more flavor

as you start to swallow on more on the back end,

than anything else.

For me this is ranch water, right?

You know this and sparkling water,

during the summer with some lime in it.

You don't want to adulterate it,

kind of have it in its purist form.

It just tastes pretty natural, it tastes pretty good.

So next up is Trader Joe's Anejo Tequila,

and this comes in at 22.99.

We just had the Blanco, now this is Anejo.

What's the difference?

Anejo has to spend up to three years in oak.

That wood can be expressed through vanilla,

through cinnamon,

because of the compounds that are in the spirit

kind of clinging to the compounds

and the oils released in the oak.

It's really meant to be sipped and enjoyed like whiskey,

and or cognac.

The noses are pretty closed on these.

So when I say the nose is closed, it's just not giving much.

I do get, you know, the spice, the peppers,

the agave, you know, signature note,

but it's not well pronounced, so to speak.

For Anejo this feels pretty watered down and weak to me.

I think Anejo should have more flavor

and be more pronounced and I feel like this is not.

It feels like the flavors are manufactured,

it feels like there's some additives added to it.

It could be a hundred percent agave,

but it still can allow up to 1%

of different additives to it.

So it just feels off in that sense

and it feels a little manmade, like slightly chemical.

It's only $22.

I'd much rather pay double

and get something that I feel that is

closer to the Anejo experience than this.

So next up is Espada Pequena Mescal Artisanal,

and this is 21.99.

It's the smoky cousin of tequila.

In the production of tequila they use 100% blue agave.

Mescal is different,

they can use several different agave plants,

but they're using espadin here.

The piñas are cooked off in a hole in the ground,

that lends to the smoky flavor that you get

in this particular spirit,

which is its calling card.

Oh yeah, there we go.

It's like a smoky bandaid.

That sounds so . . .

When I think in the visual that's really nasty,

but it's a smoky bandaid.

It feels like campfire-y,

but then there's like a smokiness to it

that makes it feel like it's from a chemical fire

or like you know, electrical fire.

A little bit.

It's got that agave like,

kind of bite that you get, right?

Like it's more pronounced but it has smoky overtones.

It feels like a slight kind of

chemical thing in the background.

Drinking this spirit

is almost like kissing a smoker, right?

[laughing] Right?

That's really what it,

what it kind of tastes like and feels like.

It's like you kissing somebody

who's just smoked a cigarette.

There's just something a little thing missing

that I can't go like,

like you should jump out and drink this.

I do like part of it,

but like there's a chemical thing at the end

that doesn't sit right with me.

And it feels like it almost has a a little sweetness to it

that I don't find in others.

If you want to understand exactly what it is,

this will give you some assemblance at it

at a fraction of the price.

But I think you're missing out on some other stuff,

because it's just not quite there.

Alright, so this is Trader Joe's,

this is its Blended Scotch Whiskey

and this comes in at 11.99.

This is a liter, so a liter at $11 and 99 cents,

equals value, banging value.

So it's from Scotland.

There's lots of different rules

in order for it to be called scotch,

but generally, it is malted barley introduced to yeast

and they have to use a certain type of water to distill it.

It can be dried in a kiln with peat.

It doesn't have to be.

Sometimes they're peated it sometimes they're not.

It's says blended scotch whiskey

and that means that you can use distill it

from multiple different distilleries,

they blend for a consistency.

So the idea is that they want to make a signature style

and a signature taste.

We're gonna hop in here, oh wow, I don't smell anything.

So it's really not giving anything off the nose.

There's things in scents jumping outta glass.

It's very muted, you don't get anything.

It really tastes like watered down scotch.

Like it has traces of those elements.

You're like I know that you're in there somewhere,

but it's been watered down.

Like this is like after my uncle

used to come to my house,

right, when I was a kid and he would drink it all

and then he would refill it with water.

And then he got caught

because my dad would mark it with a grease pen

and he got busted.

[laughing] This is what that tastes like.

That's whack, bro.

That's whack.

Keep your $11 and 99 cents.

So moving right along, this is Trader Joe's

Highland Single Malt Scotch Whiskey Ten Year,

and this comes in at 26 point 99.

Those things don't add up.

10 year, age statement, $26 and 99 cents, 27 bucks.

USD. USD.

Just doesn't happen.

Single malt doesn't mean single barrel.

Single malt means that it's from one distillery.

Having it come from one place

is revered in the marketplace as a sign of quality.

You get it from one place,

they distill it, they know how it fits and works

and that's it.

And something like a 10 year age statement on it

makes it rare,

meaning that it's been in barrel for 10 years.

Once you put it in a bottle it stops aging, right?

So all the aging process has to take place in a barrel.

It's contact with wood that impart different flavors

and the longer that it sees time in oak

and takes on a lot of different flavors like leather,

wood, oak, cinnamon, and a lot of those things

are less pronounced but more integrated.

I always kind of look at the back of the bottles

to do a little bit like investigative work,

and so this is Alexander Murray outta Scotland.

What's interesting is when we did Costco,

it's the same distillery and we tasted the 12 year

and it's kind of worth pointing out that like,

some of these spirits are coming from the same place.

There you go. It's like it's got that Peaty Pablo.

Right, so it's peaty,

like a bandaid smell to me.

A clean bandaid [indistinct].

A clean bandaid. Okay?

Peat is like what I'm getting,

definitely getting that honey.

Somewhat floral, there's an element of flowers.

I don't know, I feel like maybe I'm being too hard on 'em.

It feels somewhat soulless, right?

There's not a depth to it or complexity to it

that you can go in over and over that's like deep

and like you can lose yourself in it.

But then I say,

it's 10 years old, let's you know,

let's say that's true,

and it's 26.99.

To me it falls a little short

and I think for other people maybe it wouldn't.

So next up is Trader Joe's Special Reserve Irish whiskey,

and this comes in at 15.99.

What distinguishes Irish whiskey from Scotch whiskey?

They can use malted or unmalted, barley,

but here they kind of skip the whole process of using peat

and so it comes out a little bit cleaner and less smokier.

I think Irish whiskey has been known for easy drinking.

It's definitely fueled many a college campus.

As a shot,

it's easier on the palate than

some of the other whiskeys in that particular area.

And because of that comes at a decent price point

that's feels economical to most people.

So you know, if you read the back label, what it talks about

that they had linked up with an Irish whiskey family

that's been dedicated to crafting high quality whiskey

since the 18th century.

And then what you realize is that

they prominently left their name off,

and I think that's by design.

They tell a little bit of the story,

but a lot of these deals in white label deals,

they actually are not allowed

to disclose where it comes from.

You know, that would bring down the value

if it's something that you already know.

If Trader Joe's is selling the exact same thing

at a lower cost.

Everybody needs to feel protected

in order for it to work.

On that smell, it's just a completely clean

and actually this is jumping out of the glass.

It smells like whiskey.

It definitely smells like whiskey.

There's a little grassy note to it.

No kind of like hay.

Fruit-wise, you know, maybe like sun dried apples,

something like that.

I like that there's a wallop to it,

but it's there and it's gone.

I have my fair shots of Jame-o, you know what I mean?

But this falls right in that ballpark to me

and it feels like,

that you can get it at a better price.

This is the kind of spirits that you actually put in the

crystal clear decanter at your house.

Like when you get too drunk, you switch to that.

When, you know, friends that are over like you know,

my wife's always like, Don't waste it on them.

But I think also like,

having the basics in a bar, which are great,

and then this feels like it fits right in

and slides great in with that basic on

an economic scale that feels very friendly,

because this is you know, is much easier on the palate.

Next up is Rum of the Gods White Rum,

and this comes in at $8 and 99 cents.

I feel like every spirit has kind of gotten it's just due

except rum.

The higher end rums I always felt like,

you know, are really akin to bourbons and cognacs

that should be sought after in the way and sips

and enjoyed in the same way.

So what makes rum different?

We use sugarcane here in rum,

versus, you know, agave in tequila,

or wheat or barley or some, you know, other things in vodka.

The sugarcane is fermented and turned into rum.

It's a product of Barbados, very small Caribbean island.

White rum is kind of like blanco tequila,

kind of it's in its rawest form

and then as you start to think about rums

and how they take on color,

they achieve color through aging, through oak barrels.

It smells slightly like powdered sugar.

I get that kind of in the background,

but like mainly it smells like alcohol.

Tasting this kind of brings me back to like,

why I don't drink a lot of white rum.

White rum To me, you know, it kind of falls into that

same category as vodka.

Rum, you know, maybe has a little bit more viscosity,

in like this form,

but you pour it in drinks and you mix it with something

and that brings it all to life,

and now it's popping, right?

[laughing] You know what I'm saying?

This is kind of like, ah, is it like good rum?

Like I think so I think I would want a little bit more

texture or something to it, like a grip.

It doesn't have any of that, it's just kind of like water,

and you know, just stings at the end.

This is kind of like nah.

All right, so we're moving right along.

This is Trader Joe's Rum of the Gods Dark Rum.

It's coming in at a whopping $8 and 99 USD.

It looks exactly the same as the white rum.

It brings on the color.

What I'm hoping for is that there's some depth there.

I want a little bit of aftertaste.

I want some deep flavors.

I'm asking for a lot at 8.99.

Let's see if we got it here.

The Rum of the Gods.

[Andre laughs]

There's a little bit of sweetness,

a little bit of caramel in the back there.

Smells like brown sugar,

light brown sugar.

Out of the two, I would buy this one.

I would buy the dark rum,

because the darker the berry, the sweeter the juice, right?

You know what I mean? Like this is, it's got flavor.

If you ever had sugar cane, that's what that tastes like,

ever so slightly.

All these things when I'm saying like,

why I'd like them or don't like them,

I think some of them have a place,

like where they can used at.

At this price, 8.99,

I'm making some tiki drinks at my house,

I'd make punch with this and it'd be fun.

Next up is the Art of the Still Organic Gin,

coming in at 15.99.

Gin is a distilled spirit.

Generally it's done with a group of botanicals.

It can be coriander, cloves.

What's playing the lead role is juniper berry.

That's where you're deriving a lot of that taste that you

talk about in gin.

It feels like gin you can't really mess up,

unless there's not enough botanicals, right?

I feel like that's what make gin gin.

It's the botanicals, it should have these aromats that

like are out of this world,

and that's what I'm hoping for.

Like just an overabundance of those things

and still be true to gin.

Already, you know, it's just aromats

hopping out of the glass.

Just a consortium of juniper-y, coriander.

There's lemon lime.

That's magnificent actually.

It's quite herbaceous on the palate.

I wouldn't say that that makes it

stand out to be classic gin,

but I think it makes it a classic variation of it,

which is fun and I think has a time and place

when you're thinking about using this particular

spirit in a cocktail.

That's righteous. I like that.

I can appreciate that.

Always an eye opening experience.

There were some really great values

and some things here that I felt like

really stood out and that were fun.

There's some winners and some losers here,

but I'm all about positivity

and let's focus on the winners.

White rum to me, you know,

it kind of falls into that same category as vodka.

If you went to somebody's house

and they're just drinking vodka straight up,

like you would think something's wrong with him.

Like, you know what I mean? Like you're like,

Really? Like, are you just drinking that?

[Crew Member] My dad's a vodka-straight guy.

[Crew Member] Is he? Yeah.

That's wild.

No offense Papa, but, [laughs]

but that's some wild [beep] right there.

You know what I mean? That's diabolical.

It's like, Ugh, you're just drinking vodka?

Like that's wild.