Cinco de Mayo is almost upon us, and while everyone around you might be screaming for tequila, we want to remind you of the oft forgotten Mezcal.  Mezcal Vago prides itself on its process.  In the case of Mezcal Vago Elote, it’s made by Aquilino Garcia, the father-in-law of Mezcal Vago’s co-founder.  He produces his […]

We haven’t spent as much time with tequila as we should, and it’s time for us to remedy that.  So we took all our tequilas and decided to test them side by side for our 2021 Blanco Tequila Rankings for Cinco De Mayo.  We put them through their paces, testing them on their own for […]

The Derby is not a particularly well known cocktail, and comes from a time period where cocktails were named after champions in the horse races.  The affinity of the sport and cocktails continues to the day with the prominence of the Mint Julep.  If you want to reach back, and give something a little more […]

Finding good bourbon can be such a chore.  If you’re seeking a rare bottle, you could be doing anything from paying 5-10x market price or chasing trucks to deliveries.  While many of these bourbons are incredible, you don’t need a 10 year old bottle of Pappy to make a great drink.  In fact, one of […]

Few vodkas are as ubiquitous as Absolut Vodka.  Launched in 1970’s, Absolut was a bit of a marketing gimmick thanks to it’s transparent bottle.  While this has become more commonplace, the actual product inside still depends on the use of Swedish wheat, water, and process to make.  While we know their upper end Absolut Elyx […]

Although purportedly named for the Scottish poet Robert Burns, the Bobby Burns has undergone several revisions in it’s history to make that hard to see.  Originally made with Benedictine and Irish Whiskey, the recipe gradually evolved, substituting the two for scotch and Drambuie.  This resulting combination makes the Bobby Burns No. 2 a must try […]

While there are a healthy number of cocktails that call for Scotch, there aren’t quite enough of them to earn Scotch a place in our best bottles for beginning a home bar list.  That doesn’t mean that Scotch might not be one of the first bottles you add to that list though.  Used in Rob […]

Allspice or Pimento is a dried unripe berry that is the fruit of the Pimenta Dioica plant in many warm Caribbean climates.  Upon arriving to the new world, and discovering this berry, the explorers concluded it was basically every spice rolled into one.  As a result, the name Allspice kind of stuck.  Given the area’s […]

Part of the tradition of Dyngus Day is for boys to throw water on girls and spank them with pussy willows.  The tradition dates back almost a thousand years (as best historians can tell), and the pussy willow ended up being used in place of the palm, which was not obtainable in Poland.  These would […]

Dyngus Day doesn’t have a lot of cocktails associated with, and we wanted to use Krupnik to make a special drink in celebration.  When we first tasted the sweetness of Krupnik, we quickly realized that it needed an acidic counterpoint to help with the sweetness.  While most cocktails will call for citrus here, it’s worth […]

One of the first things I did in college, after I turned 21, was run an insanely nerdy Design of Experiment with my engineering friends tasting vodka.  We went out and purchased a whole host, ranging from Svedka to Grey Goose to Zyr, and several others.   After imbibing more than we should, we tallied up […]

Every year in Cleveland, there is an annual celebration of Dyngus Day featuring a parade and plenty of polka.  In addition, the traditions of crowning of Miss Dyngus, the tradition of throwing water  on girls and spanking each other with pussywillows remains alive and well.   The celebration is frequently accompanied by delicious Polish food and […]