Covering Charleston this issue of Distiller Magazine, my interviews with Virgil Kaine founder/distiller David Szlam and Doar Bros.’ bar manager Stephen Blackmon: Read more →
DISTILLER Bottle Column: September 2023
Reviewed this issue:
— Spirit Works Distillery Sloe Amaro
— Bayou Reserve Select Barrel Rum
— Mala Mia Mezcal
— Tilden Non-Alcoholic Cocktails
— Celosa Rose Tequila
— Martha Stoumen Wine Spritzer
— Kurokame Honkaku Shochu
and 6 more Read more →
Here’s where I love to eat in the Tenderloin
The Tenderloin’s (TL) roughly 7-by-5 blocks get a massive amount of bad press as the center of San Francisco’s worst drugs and homelessness. As it has everywhere, pandemic has made conditions worse as Tenderloin’s decades-old issues have expanded a few blocks. But the TL remains a tiny part of our ever vibrant city with top-notch food, as in every SF neighborhood. Yet due to the TL’s location next to tourist central Union Square and hotels, it gets outsized attention compared to much larger difficult neighborhoods in other U.S. cities. Read more →
13 Harvest Time Wines to Suit Every Palate
From sparkling crushers to thoughtful natural wines, I’ve got 13 bottles to suit a wide range of palates, meals or occasions, including standout non-alcoholic wines, as we are in the thick of harvest season around the world. For more reviews, my summer and holiday wine recommendations. Read more →
“Real Deal” Turkish Food at Palo Alto’s New Meyhouse
When I first dined at Meyhouse in Sunnyvale in 2019 not long after it opened, it was the best Turkish restaurant I’d been to in the West. So when I heard they were opening their second, more elegant Palo Alto location, I was “in,” despite the 45-ish minute drive there and back from San Francisco. As often happens, the opening was delayed, but Meyhouse finally debuted August 9, 2023, in a massive space with open air windows overlooking walkable downtown Palo Alto. Read more →
September 15, 2023
THIS ISSUE:
— Adriano Paganini’s Corzetti Comes to Downtown SF: A major San Francisco restaurateur and Italy native brings new Ligurian-Italian life to Union Square.
— Absinthe Turns 25: The craft cocktail pioneer and all-day, classic French restaurant retains old school French spirit with refreshed lightness in their new menu.
— London Cocktails: My Gin Magazine guide to 9 of London’s most interesting bars now.
— Distiller Bottle Column August: This issue I review brandy, tepache, agricole rhum, mezcal, gin, Scotch whisky, tequila, port, Japanese whiskies, RTDs, and more.
— Distiller Bottle Column July: This issue I review rượu dế Vietnamese spirit, rum, Japanese whisky, gin, Scotch whisky, tequila, cider, vodka, American whiskies, and more. Read more →
Adriano Paganini’s Corzetti comes to downtown SF
Locals don’t exactly flock to downtown San Francisco in regular times, and certainly not post-pandemic as Union Square and neighboring Tenderloin are hit the hardest. But numerous changes have been bringing downtown (slowly) back. The newest is Corzetti, just opened in the new Hotel G off Union Square on August 14, 2023. Read more →
Absinthe turns 25, retaining old school French spirit with refreshed lightness
French food hasn’t exactly been trending nationally, but thank goodness for stalwarts like San Francisco’s Absinthe Brasserie & Bar, a craft cocktail pioneer way back in the late 1990s also faithfully serving upscale French bistro fare and beloved brunches. It still draws Hayes Valley crowds as it hits 25 years old this summer… an impressive feat for any restaurant. Though I’ve been dining here over 20 years, post-pandemic I’ve only been in for a couple weekday lunches and brunch (with absinthe cocktails, of course). It has been years since I returned for dinner. So it was time to go back to “Green Fairy” central on a recent mild Saturday night. Read more →
London Bar Guide at Gin Magazine
One of two of my city bar guides in Gin Magazine, Summer 2023 edition. My Bar Guide to 8 top bars in London now:
Bars featured: Soma Soho, Seed Library, Duke’s, The Mezcaleria at KOL, Rovi, Punch Room at the London Edition, 8 at the Londoner, Tayer + Elementary Read more →
DISTILLER Bottle Column: August 2023
Spirits reviewed this issue:
— Renegade Cane Rum Pre-Cask: Lake Antoine Upper Crater Lake South (Caribbean island of Grenada)
— Brandy Sainte Louise (Cognac and Armagnac, France)
— TEITESSA Japanese Whiskies (15, 20, 25, 27 and 30 year aged) (Japan)
— Tepache Sazon Pina y Canela (Nayarit, Mexico)
— Something & Nothing Spritzes (United Kingdom)
— Glenmorangie The Cadboll Estate 15 year Scotch (Highlands of Scotland)
and six more… Read more →