Don't let those darn Fruit Flies take over you bar!  Give them an inch and they will take a mile!  There is a lot you can do to prevent them from flourishing.  Here's some things you can do: No standing water, anywhere! All drains including floor - sanitizer Plug beer taps Clean and plug beer drip tray Rinse and store empty beer bottles Cover liquor bottles Wipe down bottles Clean soda gun Bar mats must be clean Keep garnishes covered and cold.  Wash fruit before cutting. Don’t be surprised...

We speak with friend of the podcast & founder and president of the Orange County, CA chapter of the United States Bartender's Guild Amin Benny.

On this week's Episode No. 277, Brian chats with Chad Arnholt and Claire Sprouse of ​Tin Roof Drink Community about green practices for sustainability in the cocktail industry in honor of Earth Day, April 22nd.In 2016, Chad and Claire's efforts were recognized at Tales of the Cocktail with the first Sustainable Spirit Sward and hosted the first Sustainability Summit at Tales in 2017. For past outtakes on sustainability in the cocktail industry on the Bartender Journey Podcast,, listen...

Hazel Alvardo handles the interviewing duties on this episode. She talks to Kurt Maitland who is Deputy Editor of the Whiskey Reviewer website and the curator of the Manhattan Whiskey Club. He just wrote a book called Drink - The Ultimate Cocktail Book.

On this week's episode, Brian chats with Keli Rivers of Sipsmith Gin in honor of National Gin & Tonic Day, which is April 9, 2019.  

I recently attended a huge wine show at the Javitz Center in Manhattan called VinExpo. There were 1000’s of wines to try, plus a few sprits – I had some wonderful whiskey from France called Half Moon. There were also classes and seminars. I attended a seminar sponsored by the Riedel company who makes beautiful glassware – mostly wine glasses. In fact we use Riedel wine glasses at the Private Club where I work. The purpose of this seminar was to show that the glass has a substantial influence...

Bartender Journey Number 273This time on the show we talk about the science of flavor with Derek Elefson.Derek shared some great resources with us:Flavor Wheels: Bourbonhttps://modernthirst.com/2014/08/06/the-bourbon-tasting-wheel/#prettyPhoto/0/ Malt Whiskieshttp://malt-review.com/2015/09/10/whisky-flavour-wheels-and-colour-charts/ Ginhttp://www.ginfoundry.com/gin-news/gin-tasting-wheel/ Winehttps://shop.winefolly.com/products/wine-flavors-chart AROMA-FLAVOR TOOLS FOR SENSORY...

This time on the show we talk with Mr. Philip Duff. He’s been on the show several times. I caught up with Philip after a great seminar he moderated about Irish Whiskey, sponsored by Knoppoge Castle Irish Whiskey -  a great Single Malt Irish Whiskey. Irish Whiskey has such a tumultuous history. There was the great rise and fall of Irish Whiskey and right now another great rise, or resurgence. We’ll get into some of it with Philip during the interview. CAKE is the Point of Sale system that lets...

This week on the show we speak with Andrew Watson who is originally from Australia, but now lives and bartends in Sweden. He is competing in the Bacardi Legacy competition.   Andrew’s Bacardi Legacy Cocktail is called Cubist. Recipe: 45 ml Bacardi Silver | 20 ml dry vermouth | 2.5 ml (or a barspoon) Pastis | 25 ml Prosecco | 20 ml Honey water (1:1) | 25 ml Lemon juice Follow Andrew’s Bacardi Legacy journey: On Instagram On YouTube Our sponsor this week is CAKE POS & Management system from...

Today on the show we talk with Dan Newcomb who is an expert on Liquor Licenses. Its tricky out there trying to navigate the liquor license process. Dan will share some insights with us on this complex issue. Dan's company is Liquor License Advisor. One of the distilleries I visited while in Ireland was Pearse Lyons distillery. Dr. Pearse Lyons had deep family roots in Dublin. There was an old church that had fallen into disrepair and was abandoned for many years. In fact Dr. Lyons’...

Tag along on a distillery tour of Tullamore D.E.W.’s state of the art facility. Opened in 2014 it is the first distillery to operate in Tullamore, Ireland since 1954. Tullamore D.E.W. Whisky Ambassador Kevin Pigott shows us around, shares lots of Irish Whisky knowledge, and even mixes us up some cocktails!

Travel Log from Dublin, Ireland.  Interview with Chris Hayes from Teeling Irish Whiskey.

Florence, Italy is an amazing, beautiful and historic city. Florence's Life Beyond Tourism inciative offers some interesting lessons.  Is it possible to be too ambitious with your cocktail program.  I visited a bar/bistro/restaurant that I thought was trying to do TOO much. I visited two vinyards in the Chianti Classico region: Casa Emma Fattoria Montecchio  

I had some great drinks in Paris! Favorite bars: Prescription Cocktail Club (Cocktail Bar) Dirty Dick (Tiki Bar) Candelaria (Speakeasy) Little Red Door (Speakeasy) The Highlander (Scottish Pub)

A brief wrap up of my adventures in Edinburgh, Scotland.  Plus a snippet of a bus tour around the city. What an amazing city. Full of friendly, hospitable people. A town with deep history and fascinating things to see. And lots of great whisky! Next stop on the Bartender Journey tour - Paris!

Happy New Year. I hope its full of great things for you. I’m starting 2019with an epic trip. I Bartend at a private club and we are closed after New Years Eve for almost 6 weeks. So I am taking my time off and going to Europe for over a month! I am bringing my audio gear and hope to push out some podcasts from the road. I will be visiting some distilleries, and lots of bars and restaurants, so the plan is to have you follow along on the trip a bit. The shows might not always be completely...

Bartender Journey Episode #263 The Old Fashioned. I was at a sitting at a bar the other day and there was a bartender, training a young lady who was obviously brand new to bartending. The younger one asked the one who was doing the training “how long have you been bartending”. She answers “nearly 15 years”. A ticket comes in for an Old Fashioned. Here’s a learning opportunity for the newbie, right? She explains how to make it: “Get a rocks glass Get an orange slice and a luxardo cherry and...

Dave Pickerell was a huge force in American whiskey over that last several decades. Unfortunately Dave passed away at age 62 on November 1 of this year, 2018 in San Francisco. He was there attending WhiskeyFest. He was a big proponent of Rye Whiskey and played a huge roll in the resurgence of American Rye Whiskey. Rest in Peace Mr. Dave Pickerell. You’ll be sorely missed.

We talk to Sother Teague about his new book I'm Just Here for the Drinks. Sother Teague's first book is informative, entertaining and filled with cocktail recipes. We catch up with him at his book release party at Boilermaker Bar at 1st Avenue and 1st Street. Brian also attended a seminar presented by Marie Brizard and at Employees Only NY and competed in a cocktail competition. Cocktail of the Week:MartiniThe Classic Martini is made with 1 part dry vermouth and 2 parts Gin.  It is stirred,...

We chat with GEM & BOLT Mezcal founders Adrin Adrina and Elliott Coon during Tales of the Cocktail 2018.Plus we talk to Calvin Peña and Doug Brickle at the CORE pop-up at MaseGEM&BOLT is the only mezcal on the market to bottle the mythical powers of damiana, a traditional herb that thrives in the same regions as agave. The innovative, herbaceous spirit utilizes fair-trade and sustainable agave that’s converted into mezcal by fourth-generation master distillers in Oaxaca, Mexico. A...

After my shift the other night, I went to a dive bar that I had never been to before. I asked for a Tanqueray and Tonic. It came in a pint glass and was very strong. For a 16 oz drink to taste very strong... well there must have been a lot of booze in there. We talk about that on the podcast this week. Please let us know what you think about this on the Batender Journey Facebook Page!

Listen in to "Toast to Tales", the official kickoff to Tales of the Cocktail. Plus we speak with friend and Bartender Kyle McElfresh.

Tales of the Cocktail 2018 was a great sucess! Here's a quick run down of what went on.  More from #TOTC18 on future episodes. Cheers y'all!

Bar Convent Brooklyn Part 2!

We are live from the Bar Convent Brooklyn conference!  Adventures and a talk with our freind Vance Henderson from Monkey Shoulder!