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There is going to be a whole lotta shaking going on this May in Manhattan – and plenty of stirring and chilling and ice cutting, too. And most likely quite a bit of garnishing. The Manhattan Cocktail Classic (MCC) will hold its inaugural five-day event from May 14 through May... Read More

Among everyday beer drinkers, the Republic of Ireland stands as one of the world’s great brewing nations. The land where velvety pints of Dublin Gold pour forth from countless taps in myriad quaint pubs, from Dublin to Kinsale to Sligo. The nation is also home to the slightly less well... Read More

COCKTALE As far as Irish whiskey cocktails are concerned, few spring to mind so easily as the Irish Coffee. It’s a delicious and warming treat when prepared correctly, but one that can go horribly awry in the wrong hands. For whatever reason, modern bartenders are often woefully uneducated about how... Read More

It is said, in bittersweet fun, that God gave the Irish whiskey so they wouldn’t take over the world.  Theologians will have to take another look at the whole omniscience concept, though: the way Irish whiskey sales have been growing, the plan might just backfire. How much has Irish whiskey... Read More

On a Sunday night in January, Corey Bunnewith explained his Vin Brulé. He developed the mulled spiced wine for the inaugural drink list at Coppa, the neighborhood Italian enoteca that James Beard Award-winning chef Ken Oringer opened with Jamie Bissonnette in Boston’s South End in December. He offered me the... Read More

Mercer Estates, in Prosser, is mainly the story of two families of farmers in southeastern Washington making wine from the grapes they grow. Three appellations are involved: the overarching Columbia Valley, Yakima Valley, Washington’s first recognized AVA, and Horse Heaven Hills, probably my favorite name among AVAs. (It was so... Read More

Based upon my recent assessments, wine from Chablis is as relevant to our market today as it’s ever been. Despite the Recession-fueled downturn in French imports overall and Burgundy in particular, village level Chablis remains viable at a relatively moderate cost and, perhaps more to the point, it provides an... Read More

Her Majesty, the Queen of Pinot Noir, otherwise known as Merry Edwards, was born right here in Newton. I learned the story of how Merry got from eastern Massachusetts to be royalty in California’s Russian River Valley during a recent visit. Meredith Edwards, daughter of an MIT-educated engineer, was taken... Read More

Somewhere, the ghosts of colonists are smiling.  The spirit that the New England settlers not only consumed by the punch bowl, but produced in great volumes and used as currency, is undergoing a major revival.  But this resurgent interest is hardly a rush for rum and colas or a nostalgia-driven... Read More