April 10, 2018
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I’m so proud to announce that my second book, Drinking Distilled: A User’s Manual, is out now! Just a couple of years in the making, this one is radically different from my first book, The Bar Book: Elements of Cocktail Technique. Drinking Distilled is a sort of how-to manual for those of us who enjoy | Read More
April 17, 2021
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I’m copying this over from Instagram, which I never do, However, it was one of the rare Instagram posts of mine that actually has to do with hospitality, so I felt it was important to share here. The State of Oregon approved restaurant workers for COVID-19 vaccination on April 5th, and after spending many mornings | Read More
March 15, 2021
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The Irish Coffee used to freak me out. Now, granted, this was back in the day when it was nearly impossible to find the answers to just about any bartending questions online. So you kinda had to go with what the guests or the more experienced bartenders told you was correct. And that information was | Read More
February 8, 2021
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This experiment was inspired by a guest we had at the bar a few years ago, it was one of those experiences that sticks with you. We had a relatively new bartender – new to us, and new to bartending that we were so happy to have. I was working with her one night when | Read More
February 4, 2021
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For over a decade now, I have been a judge at the San Francisco World Spirits Competition. It has been an incredible honor for my professional career to be part of the world’s most prestigious spirits competition, and one of the oldest, for half of its life. The Competition is run by Anthony Dias Blue, | Read More
November 30, 2020
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Update: Since there seems to be some confusion among non-bartender types, this spreadsheet is only for pricing out individual bottle shots. If you’re looking to price out a whole cocktail, please refer to this post for the appropriate spreadsheet. Hey guys Jimmy from Florida just wrote in for the VFW hall he’s managing (I’m a | Read More
October 28, 2020
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I used to have this recipe crammed in with the original Egg Nog post, but this year I think it deserves its own page. And for many reasons. I mean first off, the Clyde Common egg nog has surpassed the original base recipe in popularity. I never could have imagined how popular a tequila-sherry egg | Read More
September 9, 2020
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I recently posted on my Instagram about my excitement around finally learning how to use the fruit of my lone Italian Prune Plum (or Empress Plum) tree that grows right outside the back door to my kitchen. I spent all day Sunday learning how to make plum jam (among other things) and then was taught | Read More
August 26, 2020
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I have this awful habit, as a blogger, of never getting things posted in time and they just drag on year after year. The fact that I’ve never posted my Tom and Jerry recipe is one of those casualties. I get busy during the holidays, and every year I don’t remember to post it until | Read More
August 13, 2020
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OK listen. Yeah I know it sounds s u p e r weird, but bear with me on this one, and trust me: I haven’t led you too far off the path thus far, and I don’t plan on starting now. Here’s the story. It’s hard for me to complain about where my job has | Read More
August 3, 2020
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Look at this crew. I did some half-assed math the other day and realized that this group (counting our dear Amelia, not pictured) has collectively worked this bar for nearly 40 years. That’s not combined years tending bar in general, mind you (that number is closer to 70) that’s the totaled number of years we’ve all | Read More
May 17, 2020
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One of my favorite drinks I’ve ever come up with has never been tasted by anyone but me. Okay, that’s not entirely true but there are like five people in the world who’ve ever tried it. And I’ve been going through my site lately (as a currently unemployed bar manager, I have all this time | Read More
April 25, 2020
Yes, you read that right: Chocolate Chip Cookies. And no, this is not a goofy shot recipe. (As an aside, are any of you old bartenders like me who remember when every shot was some sort of attempt to replicate the flavor of a dessert item? The Girl Scout Cookie Shot, the German Chocolate Cake | Read More
November 16, 2019
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On November 15th, 2019, the world lost one of the great bartenders. Gary was a long-distance mentor of mine, and then he became an idol of mine, then a colleague, and finally a friend. When we lose someone, I think it’s nice to share some fun stories about them. Gary was a true bartender, and | Read More
October 22, 2019
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You know, I’ve been thinking about this story for a while now, and it’s really been bugging me, so I thought I’d get it off of my chest. Also, I have zero desire to name any names or start some sort of brand boycott. This is just a little look inside my head. Here goes: | Read More
October 2, 2019
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I had the pleasure of sitting down (in front of my computer with gmail open) with Celine Bossart of VinePair to talk about my current favorite spots in Portland to eat and drink. I realized that some of you might actually want this information, I know I get a fair number of emails about it, | Read More
These are the books and tools I use every single day to make drinks at home and behind the bar. Clicking on a product takes you to Amazon, which helps me keep this site running, so thank you in advance!
