PUNCH - To Build a Better N/A Cocktail, Break the Rules

“Bartenders often approach recipe development with questions like, “What if we did a Slivovitz Singapore Sling, or a chestnut fat-washed Negroni?” This easy language, this information-rich shorthand is made possible by decades, if not centuries, of bartenders putting in work, night after night, to build out a robust lineage for almost all of the drinks that get shaken, stirred and poured into glasses the world over.

There is one glaring caveat to this backstory of cocktails: Almost all of the recipes contain alcohol. For the majority of cocktail drinkers, this is fine. But for as long as people have been drinking, people have also been not drinking, yet it’s only in the past five to 10 years that the mixology world has begun to pay significant attention to the nonalcoholic side of things. Walk into a cocktail bar in 2013 and you’d be shocked to encounter even one spirit-free cocktail; now, it’s almost shocking not to see at least a handful of zero-ABV drinks sprinkled throughout the brandy and bourbon drinks. Despite this, we’re nowhere near that complex, interconnected tapestry of alcohol-based recipes.”

PUNCH - Your N/A Cocktail’s Secret Weapon: Hop Water

“The downside of mixing drinks without alcohol is that there is usually a loss of flavor intensity. Since ethanol is a stronger solvent than water, its ability to hold and transmit flavor is an asset to traditional cocktails, and some level of dilution is required via shaking or stirring to make the drink more palatable. With N/A cocktails—by definition water-based—if you add too much dilution, the drink just tastes watery. With hop water, you can get the dilution you need while adding an additional dimension of flavor. The hop varieties used tend to provide more bright, piney aromatics as opposed to the boldly bitter notes found in many IPAs, making it a more flavorful, but not overbearing alternative to plain soda water.”

Eater - The Curious Case of ‘Welcome In’

“Last year, I started to notice a particular phrase cheerfully uttered in my direction when I entered a store, hotel, restaurant, yoga studio — even the venerable halls of the JFK Delta SkyClub: “Welcome in!” I heard the greeting for the first time about five years ago on a trip to Los Angeles, but since then it has seemingly made its way across the country and taken hold in every corner of the hospitality industry in New York. Curious if others had noticed the same thing, I asked my Instagram followers: “Death to ‘welcome in’,” one friend said. “It’s so cringey!” said another. Like me, others felt it had come out of nowhere and was suddenly everywhere.”

Bon Appétit - If You Like a French 75, You’ll Love the Air Mail

As a freshly minted bartender, still learning the ropes at PDT, the neo-speakeasy where I worked, I spent a lot of time studying a Rolodex of cocktail recipes. This was the late 2000s, a time when smartphones were only accessible to well-off early adopters, so I mean a literal Rolodex—an acrylic box that contained alphabetical-ordered, plastic-sheathed notecards with hundreds of recipes, from original PDT drinks to long-forgotten classics.

One of these was the Air Mail. It’s an elegant concoction of rum, lime, honey, and sparkling wine that I would introduce to any bar guest of mine who liked a French 75 and perhaps wanted to try something “off menu.” It eventually ended up in my then-boss Jim Meehan’s excellent PDT Cocktail Book.

Full Pour - Functional Facts

“I love altering my consciousness in numerous ways and I am a relatively open-minded and non-judgmental person, but I have always been deeply skeptical of these claims. Does a drink with a dose of turmeric really help you unwind? I’ve long thought that brands that claimed that their drinks not only promoted health but also offered many of the same benefits of alcohol like relaxation and greater social connection were selling a fantasy, but I have always been eager to verify that assertion.”

Eater - My Drinks Company Folded. But That Doesn’t Make It a Failure.

“Recently I’ve been thinking a lot about failure. At the end of 2022, I shut down Proteau, the nonalcoholic drinks company I started. I had dedicated the past five years of my life to it, and for just three of those years saw my bottles in the market. I can’t escape the feeling that I’ve failed, and I’d be lying if I said that seeing other, similar brands in the marketplace did not elicit a jittery tinge of envy, as if others’ success was paid for with my defeat. But I’ve also come to realize that it’s easy for us to see our efforts in a binary success-or-failure model — and that framing is completely inadequate for our lives and the projects we pursue.”

Food Network - The Best Martini Glasses, According to a Spirits Expert

“The triangular, straight sides are the calling card of the martini glass, but they are also their biggest downfall. Most cocktail coupes have a curved bowl that helps to keep any sloshing liquid contained within the rim of the glass. The straight sides of the V-shaped martini glass are particularly precarious because any tipping, no matter how slight, can lead to a considerable loss of liquid from the glass. That said, practicality is not always at the top of people’s lists when choosing cocktail glassware, and some people just like the look and feel of the classic triangular martini glass, and that’s fine.”

Bon Appetit - Yoo-Hoo and Absinthe—That’s the Drink

I can’t exactly remember the first time I drank Yoo-Hoo, but it’s a safe bet that I took my first sip sometime during the ’90s, the decade of my young adulthood. My mother implemented strict interdictions against sugary foods and drinks, so for me any joyful gulps of this chocolate and milk-whey drink were furtively obtained outside the house.

As an homage to this pivotal decade that featured the unlikely pairing of a New Jersey–based chocolate drink and a French absinthe house, I created the Absinthe-Crag for my latest cocktail book, Saved by the Bellini & Other 90s-Inspired Cocktails. The anise-fennel-and-licorice flavors of absinthe might not seem like the most natural match for Yoo-hoo, but despite the odds, it works.

Thrillist - Drag Legend Sherry Vine Calls Burbank the Next Queer Hotspot

Sherry Vine is one of the most accomplished drag performers out there, and ever since moving to LA—Burbank specifically—she’s kept up her pace. I caught up with her to hear about the second season of her variety show, why she loves living in Burbank, and why queer people need to defend themselves in the face of anti-LGBTQ+ lawmakers.

Bon Appetit - What’s the Naked and Famous? A Better Aperol Cocktail

What if I told you that there was a drink out there that leveraged our beloved Aperol in a totally different way? A drink not only for the summer, but also literally every other season? Meet the Naked and Famous, a startling concoction of smoky mezcal, herbal yellow Chartreuse, lime juice, and of course, Aperol. The drink hits all the notes you want a cocktail to hit. It’s complex yet approachable, slightly bitter but still refreshing. 

Epicurious - A Pizza-Flavored Cocktail? Hear Me Out

At first glance, marinara sauce, mozzarella cheese, and bagels might not seem appropriate fodder for cocktails. (And if you asked my epicurean mother, they’re not fit for human consumption at all.) But after nearly 15 years dreaming up cocktail recipes for renowned bars and restaurants, for my first book, and for my now-shuttered nonalcoholic drink brand, Proteau, I’ve realized that cocktail inspiration can be found in a lot of unexpected places.

Recently, as I neared my 40s, this inspiration arrived in the form of a sentimental sensation deep inside my millennial brain. It was a yearning for the misspent and underappreciated years of my youth: the glorious 1990s. I took this inspiration and ran with it while writing Saved by the Bellini & Other ’90s-Inspired Cocktails. 

Bon Appetit - I’m a Bartender and Yes, I Use Gatorade in Cocktails

I started bartending at a fancy neo-speakeasy in 2008 and, although it was never explicitly stated, there were ingredients that we considered too tacky, too pedestrian, that if I were to bring them to a drink development session, I would have been laughed out of the bar, if not fired. And for good reason. We were part of the vanguard of the cocktail revival and felt it was our solemn duty to bring esoteric ingredients like slivovitz and Old Tom gin to the drinking masses. A few years into my tenure I managed to get a blue curaçao drink on the menu, and it remains there to this day. But there was an entire world of “lowbrow” ingredients that I didn’t let myself appreciate until recently.

Thrillist - 'Drag Is Freedom': Texas-Born NYC Drag Queen Julie J on Fighting Anti-Trans Hate in the South

Photo by Cole Saladino

Julie J has had an extraordinarily busy start to 2023. After organizing a drag benefit show that raised over $25,000 to support the fight against anti-drag and anti-trans legislation in Tennessee, Julie J shows no signs of slowing down. We caught up over the phone to chat about her favorite New York City venues, growing up in Texas, and how she became known as the Maya Angelou of drag.

Thrillist - Robyn DaCultyre Is Doing It for the Culture

I was introduced to Robyn DaCultyre at an Untitled Queen show at C’mon Everybody in late January, and it was one of the most unique drag shows I’d seen in a while. Afterwards I tracked down this self-described “drag creature” and video chatted about her drag origin story, the state of drag in her native Ohio, and the dual identities that make up her persona.

Food Network - 11 Queer-Owned Drink Brands You Need to Know for Pride Month

Every year as the weather warms and days lengthen, many of us look forward to June, known by many as Pride Month, a celebration of the ongoing struggle for LGBTQIA+ (i.e., Queer) liberation that was catalyzed by the Stonewall uprisings on June 27th, 1969. In honor of that, many big brands release Pride-related merchandise as a well-intentioned, if perhaps slightly hollow, display of support of the queer community. But if you want to take your support a step further, here are 11 Queer-owned craft spirits brands to support this pride month — and every month.

Food Network - We Tried Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson's Record-Breaking Tequila

So, what might explain Teremana’s explosive rise? It would be naive to discount Dwayne Johnson’s enormous popularity. After emerging from WWE fame in the mid-90s, he’s been a household name thanks to his copious feature film roles. (His most iconic — to me — was his star turn on an episode of Star Trek: Voyager.) But an A-list founder does not alone a successful brand make. What about the liquid itself? As a spirits expert and judge of the L.A. Spirits awards, it’s my job to stay on top of the latest developments in the drinks world, but I had yet to sample anything from Teremana until now.

Bloomberg - For a Drink in the Park, Mix Red Wine With Coca-Cola. Seriously

As the weeks wear on, and the comedown from Memorial Day, Pride Month, and the Fourth of July starts to settle in, there’s no better cure for summer ennui than a movie in the park. Thanks to inflatable screens and digital projectors, you don’t necessarily need to be in a big city to catch a classic with hundreds of your neighbors (although it helps). But you do need something to sip on as the late-evening sun slips below the horizon, and Back to the Future II starts rolling.

Cue up the Kalimotxo (Calimocho).

Food Network - 30 Best Gifts for Cocktail Lovers, According to a Spirits Expert

Gifting is one of life’s great joys. As a longtime hospitality and drinks professional, the spirit of generosity that guides my work is deeply aligned with the practice of gift exchange between loved ones. Both require an empathic understanding of another person’s perspective and desires and seek to deepen a relationship by anticipating another person’s needs and wants. Here are my top gift picks for any cocktail lover, whether they’re a seasoned pro or just starting out.

Food Network - 4 Best Non-Alcoholic Whiskeys, According to a Spirits Expert

“I don’t have any hard data for this assertion, but in my experience whiskey is one of the most emotionally charged spirits categories out there. Perhaps it has to do with Bourbon’s connection to the United States’ mythic past, Scotch’s projection of rugged masculinity or Japanese whisky’s elegant aesthetic that is so captivating, that it inspires legions of devoted collectors. Or maybe there is a simpler reason: it’s delicious.

It’s not unexpected, then, for people to have feelings about non-alcoholic whiskey. There are plenty of detractors out there, from beverage professionals to bloggers (to Amazon reviewers) decrying the category for being too expensive or quite simply not as delicious as alcoholic whiskeys. But the non-alcoholic spirits category is still emerging, and, when compared to whiskey’s centuries of refinement, downright embryonic. That said, non-alcoholic spirits, particularly whiskeys, have come a long way in the past few years and still have a long way to go.”