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Marty Siegal, the owner of Marty’s in Newtonville, has been working in liquor retail for 44 years. (“We’ll make that from when I turned 21, let’s keep this legal,” he told me, adding that he got married that same year.) The family’s liquor business dates from 1948, when Marty’s grandfather... Read More

If you’ve been in this industry awhile, you’ve likely been served a drink by Alexei Beratis.  From behind the bar to behind the scene of some of Boston’s hottest bars and restaurants, Beratis now divides his time between beverage consulting(he owns Of the Spirits Beverage Consulting) and running the newly... Read More

We LUPEC ladies love agave spirits – and few things beat a good margarita.  Every once in a while, though, it’s nice to have your tequila strong and stirred. The Rosita is a perfect solution.  Made with tequila, Campari, sweet and dry vermouth, it’s an aperitif reminiscent of the Negroni... Read More

SANTORINI Now a much desired destination and source of estimable wines, Santorini is defined by volcanic and seismic upheavals. What is today a small archipelago among Greece’s Cyclades Islands in the Aegean Sea are remnants of the rim of an enormous ancient volcano surrounding the submerged former caldera, eight by... Read More

It wasn’t too long ago that having an extensive whiskey selection was limited to a few specialty bars and stores. Most places simply stocked the standard call brands, because whiskey was not a staple on cocktail menus or “on trend” with mojito and martini obsessed consumers. What a difference a... Read More

Winter doldrums got you down?Can’t cope with the T anymore?Getting through a romantic break-up?Wondering what do drink after you’ve sent in your anonymous gripe?The Boilermaker, of course. A series of in-depth interviews with John Gertsen of Drink yielded the following: “I believe that all of the earliest saloon drinking was... Read More

SANDY BLOCK, MW The Sassicaia story is well known. Italy’s original, and in many ways still most emblematic, “Super Tuscan,” the wine’s very existence has probably had more indirect impact in elevating the country’s image internationally than any other. It was the first sustained attempt to create a world-class wine... Read More

Return to the Willamette Valley NEWBERG, OREGON To understand the wine scene in Oregon today, it helps to look back 6O million years to its genesis in the formation of the land, then, contracting the time scale, review the last 5O years. During this recent time, the scene has gone... Read More

RED WINE + COKE.  YES, WE’RE SERIOUS. Having logged many hours behind the stick at Boston’s popular Spanish tapas joint Toro, I can tell you from experience: Americans love to drink sangria while they sample small plates.  And as anyone who knows anything about Spain will tell you, that’s not... Read More