DIRTY HABIT, Union Square (12 Fourth St. between Market and Mission in Hotel Palomar, 415-348-1555) Though I will miss the upscale inventiveness of the menu at Fifth Floor, thankfully, the same team is in effect at its new, more casual incarnation, Dirty Habit, opening Thursday, 5/1. Chef David Bazirgan, Pastry Chef Francis Ang, Master Sommelier Emily Wines and Lead Bartender Brian… Read more →
Article & photos by Virginia Miller Here’s my April 10th photo slideshow and article on 10 best spring cocktails in San Francisco for Zagat: www.zagat.com/b/san-francisco/10-best-spring-cocktails-in-san-francisco#1. Read more →
Article and Photos (unless otherwise noted) by Virginia Miller Three Seattle visits in the past seven months centered around craft distillery and cocktail bar research means a few spirits have stood out among the dozens I’ve tasted from Washington state, most launched in recent years. Here are my top seven from the glut of craft distillers hitting the Washington market:… Read more →
Whatever association you have with the word Schnapps, or Schnaps, as it is known in Germanic countries (the word means “swallow”), it likely isn’t good. Sour apple, pucker, fruit flavors… you might think of cheap, sugary liqueurs in unnatural colors. But this, my friends, is not real schnaps. In Austria, Switzerland, Germany, and the French region of Alsace, schnaps, edelbrande or… Read more →
“Wine is bottled poetry.” – Robert Louis Stevenson The further my palate develops, the more I adore white wines in all their wide range of complexities. Ignorantly, in my youthful days, I used to mostly drink reds, missing out on worlds of flavor. Thankfully, I’ve only fallen more in love with countless white varietals over years of incessant tasting. Among… Read more →
When you get the rare chance to try 50 year old Scotch or Cognac, you do. When it’s a tasting with drink industry legends like James Espey, who is behind the creation of iconic brands like Bailey’s Irish Cream, Malibu Rum and even Johnnie Walker Blue, it’s an imperative. I enjoyed a rousing lunch at Hakkasan this week with James… Read more →
As common as they are, “limited” whisk(e)y releases may seem like a lot of hype. But American whiskey fans (such as myself) perked up when we heard about Diageo‘s Orphan Barrel Whiskey Distilling Co. This new line of rare, essentially foraged or found whiskies, just launched with their first whiskies. 20 year Barterhouse and 26 year Old Blowhard bourbons were… Read more →
I adore New Orleans. I adore coffee. And I adore St. George Spirits. So I was (naturally) pleased to hear St. George was releasing Nola Coffee Liqueur. On its way to stores and bars as we “speak”, this new coffee liqueur starts local with cold-brewed Ethiopian Yirgacheffe coffee beans roasted by Jewel Box Coffee Roasters, an up-and-comer in Oakland, just… Read more →
Visiting a Grappa Legend & a Hidden Absinthe Bar Article and photos by Virginia Miller This October I spent a magical day in the birthplace of grappa, enchanting Bassano del Grappa, a Northern Italian town (in the Veneto region) on the river Brenta at the base of the Italian Alps. Grappa, a grape-based brandy, is integral to Italian culture and… Read more →
Two standout new spirits of the year thus far? Here are two unusual US-made spirits that immediately drew me back for a second taste. Bete from Sidetrack Distillery ($32.95/375 ml)In my three trips to Seattle in seven months, a spirit that keeps impressing me with every sip is the uncategorizable Bete from Sidetrack Distillery in Kent, WA. The spirit is… Read more →