The Modern Bar Cart Podcast

In this inaugural Modern Bar Cart LIVE episode, Eric teams up with Modern Bar Cart Co-Founder Ethan Hall and live stream producer Eric Holtzman to bring you a comparative tasting of rare Chartreuse! Some of the topics we discuss include: The history of Chartreuse, including its origins as a medicinal elixir, its ties to the Phyloxera plague that killed all the grapes in France, and its rise to notoriety. What distinguishes Yellow and Green Chartreuse from one another flavor-wise, even though the recipes are known only to two people ON THE PLANET, and how their different distillate bases tell stories that extend far beyond their alpine cloister. What types of ingredients and flavors you’ll typically find in Genepies and alpine liqueurs across the board, and how Chartreuse fits into that category while also playing with a great deal of exotic spices and botanicals. Then we taste our rare bottle: The 9th Centenary Liqueur produced to honor the 900th anniversary of the Carthusian order who are responsible for producing Chartreuse. We talk about how we sourced this bottle, what makes it special, and how it adds to the flavor story of the Chartreuse lineup.

In this third installment of the "Breaking Bloody" series, we investigate the fifth flavor, umami by way of a hard-to-pronounce Bloody Mary ingredient: Worcestershire sauce. Guests include: Brinda Ayer, the editorial lead at Food52, a digital publication and community platform designed to bring cooks together from all over to exchange recipes and to support each other in the kitchen. Kate Quartaro. the founder of Colonel Pabst Worcestershire Sauce, which is a Wisconsin-based company that uses a formula designed by Kate’s great grandfather, Gustave Pabst, the son of Pabst brewery founder Frederick Pabst. Cookbook author, food podcaster, and Italofile Katie Parla. She’s here for her expertise in the umami-laden realm of anchovies and fermented fish sauces. The talented producer of the "Breaking Bloody" series, Cera Baker Along the way, we talk about the glutamate molecule, the miracle of fermentation, a fishy conspiracy about the origins story of Lea & Perrins Worcestershire sauce, and much, much more.

In this audio essay, Modern Bar Cart CEO Eric Kozlik walks you through the recent outrage in the spirits industry regarding sexist language in whisky expert Jim Murray's spirit reviews. This is a serious problem for people in all segments of the spirits and cocktail world - from producers to consumers - and it's important to come together and acknowledge the transgression this behavior represents and the ways we can work together to prevent this type of behavior from holding back our industry moving forward.

In this fascinating conversation and tasting with Melanie Asher of Macchu Pisco, some of the topics we discuss include: Melanie’s journey as an entrepreneur - from hustling flowers in Peru at the age of 6, to mergers and acquisitions for international spirits companies, to founding her own Pisco brand. How Pisco is unique from other un-aged fruit brandies from around the world, including which grapes can be used to make it and what other production considerations are required by the category’s geographical denomination of origin. Then we get into the tasting, where we sample Macchu Pisco’s premium base expression, as well as 3 different varieties from the “La Diablada” collection, a custom blend made for the Founding Farmers restaurant group, and wrapping up with a pour of Ñusta - an ultra premium bottling that only gets produced in the order of about 100 bottles per year. Along the way, we talk about what it takes to run a spirits brand, how Melanie thinks about blending in the un-aged spirits space, what to drink with Keanu Reeves, and much, much more.

In this wide-ranging and incredibly revelatory interview with Jarrett Dieterle, booze policy wonk and author of Give Me Liberty and Give me a Drink, some of the topics we discuss include: How Jarrett fused his career in alcohol policy with his passion for great drinks to generate a text that questions the inconsistencies of our fragmented nation’s alcohol purchasing and consumption policies. Why Eric thinks it’s important to frame most of these legislative questions in terms of a “freedom vs. security” stance, otherwise figured as a “conservation vs. risk” query. Jarrett does a great job of re-framing this stance by demonstrating how most of our nation’s alcohol regulations do a poor job of optimizing for both freedom AND security. We also talk about Blue Laws, alcohol control states, and the bizarre battles that poor lawmaking can create between industries that would otherwise coexist peacefully - such as bars and restaurants and the alcohol producers who support them. But, we’re not just here to complain. We really dig into some of these laws, identify some of the faulty reasoning behind them, and really lay bare some of the iniquities behind them that we, as US citizens, have the capacity to change. Finally, we conclude this episode by considering the contemporary legislative changes that have been rapidly changing in the wake of the COVID-19 Coronavirus and what these might mean for the future of Alcohol legislation in the United States.

In this bloody interesting conversation with author, bartender, and bar owner Brian Bartels, some of the topics we discuss include: A little briefing on the state of the industry from Brian’s viewpoint, having launched his bar and eatery, Settle Down Madison in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic. The history of the Bloody Mary Cocktail - including a lengthy discussion of the two key players in its origin story: bartender Ferdinand “Pete” Petiot and vaudevillian George Jessel. How the Bloody Mary spawned various riffs and spinoffs, including the Red Snapper, the Michelada, the Bloody Caesar, and of course, the Red Eye. Why Brian considers the Bloody Mary as a bit of a “moving target” in terms of its formulation - in essence, why it’s such a slippery, variable drink, and yet nobody seems to have any problems with the inconsistency of recipes out there. Some thoughts on brunch, and why Brian falls out of step with many professional bartenders by defending it as a bastion of conviviality in today’s world. Some pointed and surprisingly optimistic projections on the future of the Bloody Mary, A preview of Brian’s newest book project, The United States of Cocktails, And much, much more.

Some of the topics we discuss in this lively conversation with bartender-turned-entrepreneur Effie Panagopoulos include: How Effie’s career took her from being an east coast bartender to a west-coast spirits rep for some of the biggest brands in the world and what she learned by watching the cocktail renaissance unfold in San Francisco. The way a chance bar visit in Greece transported her back to the flavors of her childhood, reigniting her passion for Mastiha and inspiring her to launch her own brand. Some of the ins and outs of designing a formula, including debates about distillate bases, cleaning sticky stills, and navigating the Greek distilling industry. Why Mastiha has its own protected geographic designation – which takes us into some interesting geographical and geological rabbit holes pertaining to the isle of Chios, where Mastic resin is harvested. How the unique properties of this flavoring agent can also pull double duty in the health and wellness realm. Why KLEOS has come to be called “bartender’s olive oil” And much, much more

In this Bar Cart Foundations Episode, we go well off the beaten path to learn about a few cocktail ingredients that you’ve probably never heard of. These include: Fassionola POG Juice Ambergris Lambanog Pandan Acid Phosphate Aromatic Spirit of Ammonia And Mummified Human Remains

In this flavorful conversation with Ivy Mix, author of Spirits of Latin America, some of the topics we discuss include: Ivy’s background in the bar world, including her philanthropic work as a co-founder of Speed Rack. How Spirits of Latin America is tied intimately to Leyenda - a pan-Latin bar that Ivy designed in partnership with Julie Reiner of Clover Club. Why this book is as much a travelogue as it is a cocktail book. Yes - there are recipes, and yes - there is information on different spirits. But the soul of this book is also rooted in people and place. We dig into all this at great length. An interesting perspective shift in the form of a case study on the Havana, Cuba bartending scene, where bartenders tend to have more advanced degrees than their clients. We also dig really deep into Ivy’s cocktail workshopping practices at Leyenda - which generated a number of cocktails in her book. It’s almost impossible to summarize, except to say that she incorporates spreadsheets, improv, mad libs, and formal art crits. It sounds insane, but it’s completely interesting and compelling. To cap it all off, we talk about bar hacks for getting esoteric booze in the quarantine era, the romance of split base cocktails, the problem with everyone wanting to be a National Geographic photographer, what to drink with Ruth Bader Ginsburg And much, much more

In this timely conversation with Caroline Rosen, executive director of the Tales of the Cocktail Foundation, some of the topics we discuss include: The history of Tales of the Cocktail - from its humble origins as a walking tour soaked in history and booze, to its current status at the cutting edge of international spirits and cocktail conferences. How Tales of the Cocktail actually operates - and it's complicated. There’s educational seminars, pop-up events, bar takeovers, second line parades, chance celebrity encounters in hotel lobbies, and a whole lot more besides. What the Tales of the Cocktail has done to pivot in the wake of the COVID-19 Coronavirus - including all the details about their FREE digital education and networking opportunities that will be announced on August 31st. We also cover a bunch of other topics, including the yearly Oscars of the cocktail world - AKA the Spirited Awards, the uncommon economic impact the event has on the service industry sector of the Big Easy, the legendary mid-July aroma of Bourbon St. And much, much more