Author: mpietrek

Pot stills at Glenfiddich

Essential Highlights of a Scotch Whisky Distillery Visit

In January 2016, Mrs. Wonk and I crossed the pond to spend…

LS Mea Culpa

E Pluribus Unum: Lost Spirits Confounds Expectations Yet Again

It takes a brave–and possibly mad–person to name their latest project “Mea…

Smuggler's Cove book

Navigating Smuggler’s Cove: Exotic Cocktails, Rum, and the Cult of Tiki, by Martin and Rebecca Cate

A recent trend in the cocktail world is for high-end, world class…

Justin Wojslaw, Diller Room, Seattle

At the Bar with Seattle’s Tiki Warrior Justin Wojslaw

The Tiki revival movement is clearly having its moment these days, having…

Stalking the TTB:  Upcoming U.S. rum releases from Lemon Hart, Angostura, Diplomatico, Mount Gay, Foursquare, and more!  January to April 2016

Another post for the rum wonks out there… On the heels of…

Chasing the Bat: Inside the Bacardi Legacy Global Cocktail Competition

In its highest form, bartending is an intimate, one-to-one experience. A bartender…

The Judges Chamber – Behind the Scenes at Miami Rum Renaissance

The stemmed crystal glass in front of me holds translucent blue liquid….

Cocktail Obsession – There’s Always Money in the Banana Stand, From Seattle’s Rob Roy

As someone who spends, shall we say, significant time in bars, fatigue…