Good Morning! This week I decided to do something a little different. There was so much news this week that we postponed the longer article I had in mind in favor of unpacking as many of the things going on as possible. 

Before we get to that, we are hosting the next Cocktail Dinner Club event on April 30th, with our friends at Suyo Pisco! This event will be held (as they all are) at my bar & restaurant, Ember & Alma, and it will feature 2 original cocktails, tastings and a full unique 3-course meal that utilizes the spirits as well. This event is sure to be a hit and it's likely to sell out, so if you want to get your tickets click here now!

I also posted this video this week about the history of Absinthe and why it was illegal for almost 100 years, which I consider to be one of the most insane stories in all of Alcohol history.

“Additive Free Movement is Hurting the Tequila Industry!” Says #1 Producer of Additive Filled Tequilas…. 

Recently this article was posted on Forbes and I couldn’t help but laugh at it. Representatives of Jose Cuervo came out and said that this gosh darned, additive free Movement is hurting the overall tequila industry. From the article:

And in other news, Shark spokesperson condemns beach warning flags as 'creating unwarranted fear' and 'devastating the surprise encounter industry.'

The truth is, Jose Cuervo along with many of the other bigger brands have seen their sales drop over the last several years while the “Additive Free Movement” brands have seen their sales grow exponentially. This is something we’ve spoken about a lot on here and we have shown how Jose Cuervo has been trying to fight this with some tone deaf ads recently. 

Anyway, this lines up perfectly with the timeline of what the CRT is doing. First they say NO brand can use the Term Additive Free, and try to turn it into a boogie man and then they peddle out their biggest brand to try and double down on that. It's a clear sign they are struggling with the Additive Free movement despite the CRT’s best attempts to discredit it. 

One of my Favorite Bars in the World Officially Closed This Past Weekend

Punch published this article about the last night of service at Leyenda, and it was a bittersweet read. There's just something about the way the author wrote this that stuck with me. Of course, I also said this is one of my favorite bars, so maybe that had something to do with it. 

Leyenda, was an incredible bar co-owned by the incredible Ivy Mix. I've spoken at length on a few videos and articles about how much Ivy’s Book, Spirits of Latin America, changed my career. It served as such an inspiration for me when I was starting my own Latin American themed bar, and I learned so much from the book but also from going to visit Leyenda.

Every time I found myself in New York, I tried to finish my night off at Leyenda. I could be staying in Manhattan and have been out all evening, I would still take a cab to Brooklyn to get in one Tia Mia before they closed. What started as a place that I admired from afar, I started to love in person. Kevin served me on a couple of occasions, and he was always incredible. It was just nice to be able to take it all in person. 

One evening (Evening? It was definitely after midnight), I strolled in, and the bar seemed to be dying down, but Ivy was sitting at the bar having what I assumed was a late-night dinner after working the bar that evening. I ordered myself something to drink and we got to chatting about all sorts of things, and life. It was a special place.

Of course, I am not trying to pretend I was some regular or like I was there all the time, I was just some young crazy kid with silly dreams of opening a Latin American bar and happened to find a place that I could only ever hope to emulate and aspire to achieve what they did. I got to experience their hospitality and incredible cocktails first hand, and it will be missed. 

I guess this is my tribute and goodbye to a bar that, though I only frequented a handful of times, left a huge impression on me and my career. Goodbye Leyenda. 

April Fools takes over the Liquor (Tequila?) World

I have to admit, I am not a fan of April Fool's Day. I am a bit of a grinch when it comes to that. ESPECIALLY because usually brands do some pretty low effort content to try and get some chuckles or cheap likes. 

But two posts managed to catch my attention this week. 

One: 

G4 posted that they were going to start producing Canned Batangas, and sadly while it was just a joke. It did fool a lot of people, and I'll be honest upset me a little bit because a G4 Batanga in a can sounds like heaven. 

And secondly:

Lucas Assis posted that he was going to start his own tequila brand, which I thought was very funny, as so many people congratulated him before realizing what day it was. Lucas has said before that he won't have a tequila brand, but he probably gets asked if he will quite a lot. 

I’ll admit it. He got me. For a split second, I hadn't had my coffee yet and I was a little sleep deprived from taking care of my son and I thought to myself briefly “Oh shit!” And then I saw the NOM and then realized how dumb I was. 

Anyway, I think April Fools day is usually annoying on Social Media but these two examples made me stop and pay attention, and I quite enjoyed them. 

Best Video we Saw this week:

drinksbywild

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Drinks by Wild, posted this video this week in response to EVEN MORE tariff B.S here in the U.S and it made me chuckle so i want you all to see it. 

Quick hits:

• Jeffrey Morgenthaler released a Carbonation Calculator. This is a follow up to other calculators he's published in the past to help Bartenders and I think this one will also be super helpful. 

• Food & Wine published their ‘Top Bars in the U.S According to Experts’ which I thought made for an interesting read. Gave me some more places to add to my list of places to drink.

• Punch posted an article called “How to save a Dive bar — Without ruining it”