San Francisco was the North American city that first embraced pisco, the Peruvian grape spirit, and drank it from the Gold Rush to Prohibition. It seems fitting that a new, clear, unaged brandy, inspired by pisco, comes from the area (it’s bottled in Ukiah, to the north). Punningly called Frísco, it is distilled in copper pot stills from wine based on Muscat de Alexandria grapes grown in California. The result is smooth and aromatic, with some heat (90 proof) and decided sweetness on the finish. It does not deliver the vanilla and dried fruit notes typical of brandy that has spent time in oak barrels, so it can stand in for vodka in summery cocktails.
Frísco American Immature Brandy, friscobrandy.com. On the East Coast: $35 for 750 milliliters, boutiquewineshoppe.com; on the West Coast: $31.50, bittersandbottles.com.
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