Cream of Asparagus soup, Breuckelen Whiskey on the rocks, Anthony Bourdain on the TV.  All served on a Wine Spectator placemat.

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I was fortunate enough to lead New York Post writer, Chris Erikson, through a tasting last week in anticipation of NY Cider Week; we had a blast (final article above–click to enlarge). Over the course of two hours, I poured eight different hard ciders from around the world and circled back to illustrate how the […]

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There is a hiking trail that skirts the cliffs between the town of Monterrosso and Vernazza in the Cinque Terre region of Italy’s Ligurian coast. Taking approximately two hours, its winding path hugs the coast line of the Meditteranean and bobs and weaves through olive groves and steep vineyards. To this day, it is one of the most beautiful […]

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We descended on the house like General Patton’s Third Army, and quickly fanned out to our battle stations. The grill, the kitchen, the bar; each was quickly manned.  I took to the jiggers and the citrus reamers; I was now in charge of keeping the group primed and oiled with libations.  A misstep at the […]

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Water rations: check.  Food rations: check.  Aviation cocktail rations: check.  Just another lazy Saturday at the Flaherty household.

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The other day, while crushing the exercise bike at my grimy Queens gym—our little foray through Europe packed on 20 pounds of food and drink goodness; do you have any idea how many calories Czech Ghoulash topped off with a liter of Dark Lager packs on?? So shed the blubber, I must—I stumbled upon my […]

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Booker’s Bourbon, Dolin Sweet Vermouth, Angostura Bitters.  Oh hells yeah.  The weekend begins.

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Ecstatic to be leaving Europe today.

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Greetings from Amsterdam (and no, I am not writing you from a smoke-filled coffee shop). Tomorrow, we return to NYC after 93 days in Europe.  Along the way, we have met countless inspiring artisans making wine, beer and spirits in the name of craftsmanship. They toil away in nooks around the world, battling the forces […]

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Rüdesheim is a wine town.  Surrounded by vineyards and perched at the banks of the Rhine River, it is spectacular to see. For two nights, we sat on our hotel balcony watching the boats pass and the sun set over the water (and a ridiculous amount of trains, tracks and barges rumble past–the Rhine is, […]

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My only request for Kat’s beer run was to include “some interesting boozy thing in a can”.  Along with a cold tall boy of Mythos and one of Fix Hellas, she came back with this beauty. “OriGINal Long Drink”: Gin-Grapefruit drink.  Contains the following:  water, sugar, gin, carbon dioxide, acid, flavours, stabilizer, safflower and lemon […]

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It rose out of the lagoon. Sometime around the 4th or 5th century, a resilient group of people had been pushed to the brink.  Exhausted and worn thin by constant foreign invasions, they decided to relocate to the marshy islands far out on the water. And thus, Venice was born. And the most magical city […]

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Lapping it up in Lake Como at a backstreet wine bar.  (Pictured:  Vin Santo del Chianti Classico-Az. Agr. San Felice & Barolo Chinato-Cocchi)

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We’ve sung Willie Nelson’s “On the Road Again” ten times more than the average Willie fan can muster in a 3-week period. It’s been an interesting transition being away from home this long.  As each day is so dense, a week ends up feeling like a month.  Learning traffic signs in the moment while zipping […]

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There could be worse places for an Irishman to get a sunburn than the French Riviera…

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