Laren Spirer is yet another lawyer (and freelance writer) obsessed with food and drink, who also blogs at Sweet Blog o’ Mine and tweets at @sweetblogomine. She has written for Gothamist, Serious Eats, Time Out New York and Tasting Table.
The folks who brought us Famous Grouse blended Scotch Whisky have added a new blend to their portfolio — the Black Grouse, a smooth, sweet whisky with just a hint of smoky peated malts. To showcase the new release, the Black Grouse put together the Distinctive Bartender Tour, with stops in Los Angeles, Chicago, and [...]
If you’re lucky, you’ve got a spirit lover on your holiday gift list. He or she is always up for trying new releases, and gets excited about limited edition or particularly unique spirits. At least one of the suggestions below should fit in your budget and delight the recipient, and ideally, you’ll get a taste [...]
If you’re heading to Antarctica, you’ve got to pack certain essentials. Cold weather gear? Check. Snowshoes? Check. Whisky? Check. In 1907 explorer Ernest Shackleton made sure that twenty-five cases of Mackinlay’s Rare Old Highland Malt were included among his provisions. After his grueling journey, Shackleton made it back intact, but he left several crates of [...]
Looking for a gift for the cocktail geek, bon vivant, or entertainer on your holiday list? Look no further than the PDT Cocktail Book: The Complete Bartender’s Guide From the Celebrated Speakeasy. At the launch party held at Astor Center last week, PDT owner, bartender and author Jim Meehan recounted how he was working on [...]
Hmm . . . Having never been to Portland before, I wasn’t really sure what to expect when I boarded the plane for my journey to Portland Cocktail Week. All I knew about Portland I learned from a few clips of Portlandia, but I had heard rumors of good food and drink, plus the team behind [...]
Every so often you encounter someone who exudes a certain je ne sais quoi — between their overall demeanor, professionalism, passion for their craft, and that little extra special element, you can tell they’re going to go far. These folks are the ones to watch in NYC. Meaghan Dorman is the head barkeep a.k.a. “mother hen” [...]
Kyle Ford, preparing his winning entry, the SS Europa Last week at the bar downstairs at the Andaz 5th Avenue, six bartenders from across the country met to compete in the second annual Bärenjäger Bartender Competition. Kyle Ford, from Empellon, New York, NY, Chad Arnholt of Citizen Public House, Boston, MA, Christopher Martino from The Jack [...]
Fall is upon us, bringing with it the start of a new school year. Back-to-school used to mean new school supplies and clothes, but since those days are over, I’m settling for a list of new bars to visit. JBird is the first of three clandestine cocktail destinations from co-founders Joshua Kaiser and Jamie Hinojos. Tucked [...]
Lately, I’ve been thinking about taking a lazy road trip through Kentucky, guided by the “bourbon trail,” where many of the nation’s largest bourbon distilleries are located. But that was before I met Trey Zoeller. Trey is the President of McLain & Kyne Ltd., who, with his father Chet, makes Jefferson’s “very small batch bourbons,” [...]
[dcs_clearboth h="5"] [dcs_darkspliter size="large"] [dcs_emptyspace h="5"] As you’ve no doubt heard, this week is Tales of the Cocktail, an annual conference in New Orleans surrounding all things spiritual (and not in the religious sense). It’s a wonderful time, and you should go if you can, but some of us weren’t able to make it this year, which is [...]
