Welcome back, friends! Last week I tried to sprinkle in some lighter content because sometimes the real world is a little too real. Keeping a balance is good for you all reading, and for me when I’m researching topics to write about, so we don’t completely lose our minds. We have so many exciting things coming up in the following weeks and lots of amazing industry folks to put in our spotlight. We hope that we can give you a little bit of everything so that no matter what you came here for you have something to stick around for too.

That being said, this week we are going to talk about some heavy things that are having huge impacts on spirits companies, bars, restaurants, and a lot of other related industries.

We also gave our website a little facelift so make sure to go check it out and maybe browse some of our older newsletters to see what else we’ve covered. We also have a “contact us” link at the bottom of the home page for anyone looking to give feedback, share ideas, or reach out about almost anything else.

I promise I won’t claim time travel this time

Since we have been talking whiskey and age statements lately, it felt like a good time to talk about this iteration of the highly esteemed Elijah Craig Barrel Proof Bourbon. I am a pretty big fan of bourbon and American whiskey in general, so I was intrigued by the headline on this one. This whiskey however is not actually very young, and I mean that by the standards of the title it bears.

Bourbon has to be made from at least 51% corn, made within the United States, and to be labeled as “straight” has to be aged at least 2 years in new charred American oak barrels. There are other requirements, but as a condensed definition this sets the standard for “young” in this case. This release, Batch C925, is the youngest (9 years 1 month) but still clocks in at a not so subtle 129 proof.

Reading this has definitely inspired me to save up some deep-dive energy to explain how so many different factors effect the flavor, proof, and optimal aging of bourbon and other whiskeys. It also made me want to go get some Elijah Craig because I’ve been a very basic bourbon bitch lately when I go to the liquor store. Either way, if you’re in the market for a expensive but not break-the-bank kind of expensive bourbon I think this might be worth checking out.

The impact of ICE raids and how to keep you or the people you care about safe

Lui and I have been discussing our goals for this newsletter and what pillars we want to build this house on. We have always both agreed that the human element at the core of this industry - the connections and community that we build everyday - is where we want to focus. That means we won’t soft-step around the hard issues. We want to highlight the joy and creativity that is happening while also speaking out about the most ugly things our friends, family, and co-workers are facing.

If you’ve been here for a while you know where this is heading, if not, this is something we talk about often and are very passionate about. So buckle up or head out cause we need to talk.

I will be heavily citing this article from Punch by Emma Janzen for this section.

The insane increase in ICE raids have had a wide-reaching impact on pretty much every industry in this country. We are going to talk primarily about the industry we are all here for - hospitality, spirits, etc. - but it is so important to remember that at the center of this discussion the people being targeted by these raids, regardless of industry, are going through a lot of the same things as our coworkers and friends.

Yes, the most obvious impact is that if people are being kidnapped off the streets there are a lot of bars and restaurants that just lose someone without any notice but there is so much more to this than just the obvious. In her article, Janzen speaks with people from many major cities around the country about the toll that this “campaign” is having on their establishments and their cities. The major take-away is that this industry is being targeted specifically because “approximately 21 percent of the workforce is powered by foreign-born workers (including documented and undocumented immigrants), according to Census Bureau data from 2023.” ICE agents are pushed to reach “quotas” which results in the mass disappearing of anyone they claim look like immigrants.

What the populace seems to be forgetting is that regardless of actual immigration status people are being profiled and deported without due process. The mental toll that this puts on anyone that isn’t very outwardly white passing is incredible and it is putting some in such an impossible place that they can’t risk the trip to and from their workplace. This means some employees are asking their employers to sleep in the restaurant in order to avoid being targeted. They can’t afford to not work but they also essentially can’t afford to be out in public.

The things that stood out to me upon reading were also the ways in which the bars and restaurants that had been interviewed made every effort to protect and empower their staff. Some restaurants have special buttons programmed into their POS systems to alert fellow staff if ICE is in the known vicinity, some run drills to prepare staff for the flight or flight moment of being confronted with an agent or agents, and all of them are making efforts to make their staff and co-workers aware of their rights in these situations.

For more information about your rights as regards to immigration the main resource is ACLU Know Your Rights. It is however important to note that some states are enacting laws that seek to either protect or further penalize those of any immigrant status so please make sure to check your state government websites to help spread accurate information within your own local communities.

The tug-of-war between science and business has lots of heads spinning

The drop in alcohol consumption in the United States is generational but also driven by a want to be healthy. In an era when data is cherry-picked to serve the interests of those with the biggest wallets it can be hard to find actual facts. We all know that drinking isn’t good for you. There have been sensationalized studies in the past that have claimed that “x” number of drinks a day/week/year actually extend your life! The truth of the matter is the more science is done the more we know that drinking is generally bad.

I was drawn in browsing spirits news articles when I spotted one claiming there was a “neo-prohibitionist movement” and I was genuinely confused how I might have missed that. The article didn’t really prove to me that anyone was trying to abolish alcohol so much as push non-drinking as the healthiest choice. The argument was that publishing studies that showed drinking had been linked to a number of increased health risks on a federal level would kill the industries that relied on alcohol as an industry (namely wine in this case). The main argument presented was that the studies were called for under the ICCPUD – the Interagency Coordinating Committee on the Prevention of Underage Drinking but were representative of data collected on adult drinking. This is definitely a reason to take pause, misrepresenting the purpose or demographic of a study isn’t great, but the results of the study are still important to take note of.

The facts of the matter though are that there are actually some very intriguing take-aways from the studies that were called for under Biden then dismissed under Trump. Alcohol is not good for you in a lot of ways, it increases cancer risk, and a number of accident-related injuries or mortalities BUT in a study done by National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine (NASEM) they stated “with moderate certainty… compared with never consuming alcohol, moderate alcohol consumption is associated with lower all-cause mortality” clarifying that “all-cause mortality refers to the total number of deaths in a population due to any cause”.

The authors of the studies that are now no longer being used by the government will likely still publish their findings elsewhere but have been assured that their work will not be utilized by the original body that requested it.

This is the kind of thing we should be bringing back from the past! Just saying.

Quick Hits:

“Oh, and if I somehow didn't make it clear enough, this is stupid, the president is a fascist and if you support any of this please unfollow me. Don’t email me telling me “I cant believe you’d mix politics into your content” Just unsubscribe & kindly fuck off.” - Luiz Fernandes, March 7, 2025