Here We Go Summer!

That's a tour wrap (mostly) and new summer projects

Hello and welcome to my booze-soaked newsletter! If you’ve found your way here through a search, share, or some other means but are not subscribed let’s get you signed up: click here!

Friends,

Sometimes I get a little jealous of other food & beverage writers and their lengthy newsletters that are chock full of travels, recipes, Q&As, and all the other Substack goodies that get people to pay (!) for their email blast. Maybe someday I’ll morph into one of those folks, but for the past few years I’ve been simply been too slammed writing books — and it isn’t letting up. So, another quick update that is less what’s happening in my garden and glass (jealous!) and more behind-the-scenes of the upcoming releases— plus a new book announcement (or three).

First, a giant thank you again to everyone who came out for the Booze & Vinyl 2 tour. It is ridiculously expensive going on an in-person book tour these days, which is why the vast majority of authors don’t do it. A huge thanks to W Hotels who helped make some of the stops possible.

It was amazing wrapping up the book tour in D.C. at the Gibson and then in Los Angeles at T.H.E. Show— such great energy in both cities.

Washington, D.C.

The Gibson was one of the very first craft bars to open in D.C., a real legend, and it was an honor hosting an event there. A huge thanks to staff— it was so much fun— plus, working with the great Chantal Tseng (sherry, haiku) is always such a delight. This visit felt like the best possible house party — super chill, and I was able to talk to guests at length (the timed tickets really helped). A big thank you to Bold Fork Books for being there. We sold out of books and I mailed signed author plates to the store for everyone who ordered a book! I’ll be back in D.C. at Bold Fork Books Thursday, October 27th on the Bar Menu national tour.

Los Angeles

If there’s more fun to be had in the afternoon at a retail shop, I haven’t had it. It was a blast visiting Bar Keeper in Silver Lake, operated by legend Joe Keeper. BK is one of the greatest cocktail merch and liquor stores in the US, and we had a rompin’ good time. Can’t wait to be back!

Being in LA for the first time since the pandemic meant I could meet up with a number of folks I’ve met online through podcasts and radio shows in the intervening years. Of course, the wonderful Emiko from T.H.E. Show (I’m on T.H.E. Talk podcast here). Plus, the fabulous Mo Herms of Music and Booze with Mo. Her show is fantastic, give it a listen. AND, I was able to meet up with Aaron Krause from the great movie and liquor podcast, BoozeDancing — our spin through a few LA bars was a highlight of the trip.

What’s Next

No rest for the wicked, so I flew home to recipe test for Booze & Vinyl: Holiday Edition. Things have been happening fast this year. I announced this book quickly on Instagram a few weeks ago — but here it is all official: I’m writing a third Booze & Vinyl. It releases fall 2023. I am excited for this book, which will be a bit shorter at 45 of the greatest holiday albums ever pressed to wax (versus 70 for BV I & II). When the publisher floated this idea, I was interested immediately because it will give me the opportunity to write a winter cocktail book (with the added musical element). I’ve been having a great time working on BV Holiday already, and I can share that the LPs stretch from Bing Crosby’s Merry Christmas (which actually pre-dates the LP format and was first released on a series of 45s) all the way to 2021’s I Dream of Christmas by Nora Jones (which is fantastic, by the way).

In the midst of finalizing the manuscript for The Big Lebowski and writing Booze & Vinyl: Holiday Edition, I’ve been organizing the tour for Bar Menu. I am thrilled with how this tour is shaping up — the biggest so far. There are 12 cities on board with some major stops such as Cochon in New Orleans. I’ll share the completed tour schedule in next month’s newsletter. I’ll also have more book deals to share for spring and fall ‘24. There are two titles in the works with contracts swirling.

The Dubai stop from Booze Cruise is in the newest edition of the beautiful Molly My Magazine on stands right now. In fact, I’ll be doing a takeover of the magazine’s social media at the end of July, so stay tuned. Here is a great cocktail that is perfect for deep summer.

Photo: Jason Varney

Blueberry-Ginger Bourbon Sour

The famed Buddha Bar is a magnet for the glitterati when they visit Dubai. The swanky hot spot boasts an ever-changing menu of trendy cocktails, and the most famous of these is a version of a Whiskey Smash that became the darling of celebrities like Johnny Depp in the early 2000s. Domaine De Canton is a French ginger liqueur and is widely available in stores.

4 blueberries

1 ounce simple syrup

1 ounce fresh lemon juice

11⁄2 ounces bourbon

1⁄2 ounce Domaine De Canton

3 blueberries, for garnish

2 candied ginger slices, for garnish

In a shaker, muddle blueberries with simple syrup and lemon juice. Add bourbon, Domaine De Canton, ice, and shake. Strain into a rocks glass filled with ice. Garnish with alternating blueberries and ginger on a cocktail stick.

Excerpted from BOOZE CRUISE: A Tour of the World’s Essential Mixed Drinks by André Darlington.

Copyright © 2021. Available from Running Press, an imprint of Hachette Book Group, Inc.

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