On behalf of fathers everywhere, let me make this clear: don't buy a lame gift for Father's Day. If your dad likes to relax sometimes with a glass of something that wears its age well, here are a few suggestions for bottles that will make much better gifts than any tie or coffee mug ever could. More
While you can always improvise your way into a half-decent gin and tonic or even a martini (assuming you don't mind a little variation in your drinks), cocktails that require more than a couple of ingredients typically follow common structural formulas that have been honed over time. More
But how to share that excitement with others? What's a good way to try to create that sense of sudden wonder in a mixological virgin? More
A big part of being an adventurous eater is the experience of DIY--of starting with basic ingredients and utilizing heat, time, a deft hand and a little salt to come up with culinary brilliance. (At least, that's the way it's supposed to work.) As it goes with food, so it goes with drink. More
I've been covering spirits and cocktails for the better part of five years, and while I've plumbed deep on rum, American whiskey, absinthe, and other spirits, scotch has long eluded me as a subject of fascination. More
Around last year's tax day I put up a post called Cheap(er) Drinks: Tips for Enjoyable Drinking Without Going Broke. Well, compared to now, April '08 was downright rosy, and in this post-Madoff era, "drink cheap" has become the imbiber's new mantra. More
Spiced rums are dodgy creatures. True, the sweet, vanilla-tinged Captain Morgan has an agreeable enough flavor, but for rum fans the Captain's appeal is not unlike that of fast food--satisfying on a certain level but ultimately disappointing and altogether forgettable. More
The good news is you can find that bottle of single-barrel bourbon, Dutch gin, or small-batch bitters online more often than not. Bad news, though: it's a royal pain to find it and buy it, and oftentimes it's illegal. Some states prohibit all shipments of liquor, while the others cherry-pick which states it's acceptable to order from or ship to More
As the interstate sale of wine and spirits has blossomed in the Internet era, the rules have only grown muddier. More
It's good to get excited by the growth of small-scale distilleries, but as more people enter the industry, products of questionable quality will inevitably show up on shelves, bearing the boutique label and a hefty price tag. To better establish a standard of quality for this rapidly growing industry, it's a good idea to keep talking up the distilleries that are doing it right. More
