Welcome to another week of In Good Spirits! This is our 4th edition, and that means its been a whole month! it has been so exciting to see this newsletter evolve. We hope you have been enjoying it so far and we want to make this better so if you have any feedback please let us know.

Just a reminder, as of 3/18 our Inaugural Cocktail Competition is officially locked for new entries, but stay tuned to see who came out victorious!

High Spirits: Cannabis in Cocktails?

Weed. Marijuana. Grass. Hash. THC. CBD. It’s everywhere, it seems. What was once a taboo subject is now mainstream, signaling a seismic shift in the way we consume and enjoy recreational substances. As society's attitude around these substances continues to evolve, an inevitable convergence is taking place between the cannabis and bar industries.

Worlds Colliding

Bars and dispensaries are beginning to find common ground as they explore innovative ways to incorporate cannabis into traditional drinking experiences. Well-established online bar and cocktail personalities are getting creative with the trend and producing some pretty cool results :

The amazing Tess Posthumus — award winning bartender and owner of Flying Dutchmen, Dutch Courage Cocktails, and Belly of the Beast Bar — sheds light on the endless possible synergies between cannabis and cocktails with her book High Cocktails.

 Cocktails By Hawk is showing his range and shares some impressive variations of the “high” ball (get what he did there?) on YouTube.

Meanwhile Jason Eisner is “blazing” a trail in the Los Angeles cannabis cocktail scene, infusing classic recipes with a twist of CBD.

Business is Booming

The cannabis industry is thriving, with projections estimating billions in revenue in the coming years. The global cannabis beverages market is projected to grow 54.31% in forecast period between 2021 and 2028. Rather than viewing this as a direct threat to bar and restaurant business, there is a considerable opportunity for innovation, and a chance to learn more about how the public’s appetites are shifting.

Rebel Coast Wine has been producing THC-infused wine since 2017, and is seen as a pioneer in the CBD/Cannabis drink space.

Minnesota-based Indeed Brewing Company recently rolled out a line of THC drinks in its Minneapolis taproom one month after legislators made the changes to state weed laws. This year, the brewery estimates that their line of THC beverages will account for 20 percent of their overall revenue.

And The Cannabis Drinks Expo is a great example of bridging the gap between the bard and cannabis industries. The CDE is a huge multi-day event showcasing the latest trends and developments in cannabis-infused beverages and a great place for bartenders and budtenders alike to collaborate.

Here to Stay?

Our Take: As Rolling Stone points out, initial projections had anticipated a marriage of traditional bar culture with cannabis, but the world has been slow to adopt.

While we believe that the Marijuana craze is not going away anytime soon there aren’t many (or any?) locations where weed can be consumed publicly or in a public place. This is the final shift needed before we believe bars will start actually serving THC cocktails rather than just CBD ones. Once that happens, oh boy, the bar worlds going to change big time. And were excited to see where it goes.

Why is Finding Your Favorite Whiskey Impossible?

Y’all want to watch a bunch of people get really angry? Here’s Not Just a Bartender using a Pappy Van Winkle in a cocktail.

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Have you ever searched high and low for a specific bottle of whiskey, only to come up empty-handed? You might be dealing with the mysterious world of Allocated Whiskies.

Decoding the “A” Word.

Think of allocated as code for "limited supply."

Your favorite whiskey is popular for a reason – it's carefully crafted. However, this popularity can sometimes mean the distillery can't make enough to satisfy everyone. There are even rumors that some distilleries intentionally limit their supply to create a sense of scarcity.

Unlike liquors like vodka, whiskey (and tequila) takes years to make. This creates a supply bottleneck.

Who’s Calling the Shots?

Distributors typically have the say on where these prized bottles go. They use them to reward top-selling retailers and bars and motivate them to move certain products. Smaller shops often feel the squeeze, getting fewer (or none!) of those coveted bottles.

In some states, government controlled boards decide what is allowed to be sold in their state, also contributing to allocation issues. And some legal issues in some states.

Less Bourbon, Mo’ Problems

The insatiable thirst for allocated bourbons like Pappy Van Winkle and BTAC has created a breeding ground for unethical practices, such as counterfeiting bottles, or retailers & bars taking part in extreme price-gauging. And a secondary market where people are treating bottles as “investments” to pass off to the next sucker at a sometimes 1000% mark-up.

And in Oregon, liquor regulators were caught diverting prized whiskey for personal use. 

Beyond Bourbon

Bourbon's not the only spirit feeling the allocation pressure. The rise of Japanese whisky has made many bottles hard to get. Brands enjoying cult-like status in this category are often allocated. Some aged and special edition Scotches & Irish Whisky fall into this category, too.

And Tequila isn’t far behind them. Its nearly impossible to find any Fortaleza or G4 in stores (Don’t believe us? Just go peruse the comments section in any of Lui’s videos about Fortaleza).

Looking Ahead: A Brighter Future?

The good news is that many distilleries are ramping up production, with Buffalo Trace announcing that they will be doubling production.

In the meantime, exploring lesser-known brands can be just as exciting. Many incredible distilleries have popped up in the U.S over the last 20-30 years and many small batch producers are making whiskeys to rival the big guys even if they don’t have the brand recognition, yet.

Plus, doesn’t it just feel better supporting the little guy?

Our Take: You got to remember that spirits are agricultural products and Whiskey and Tequila take YEARS to make a single bottle. And while yes, there is some shady practices from terrible distributors to some shady producers, and an absurd secondary market. A vast majority of it is simply an economics problem, Supply vs. Demand.

Sure, it can be annoying that our favorite bottles are often rationed, over-priced, and likened to finding a needle in a haystack. The reality is, there are TONS of great bottles out there that are begging to be enjoyed. Talk to your favorite bartender to find something new, or visit a small, local distillery. What do you have to lose?

Oh, and no. We cannot and will not help you get a bottle of Fortaleza.

Stop asking.

Thank you to every one who submitted an original cocktail !

We have received almost 100 entries for our Inaugural Cocktail contest! And its been so fun to read through your incredibly creative submissions. We will be working diligently and testing out these recipes, before deciding on the finalists and making our final video announcing the winner of the $500 cash prize!

So keep an eye out for that.

We hope you had as much fun creating these dope cocktails as we did reading them.

🍹In Other News:

• Lui released a video covering the notorious Cazcanes brand trip with over 20+ Content Creators! And he even threw in 3 cocktail recipes into the story.

• Icon of the NYC cocktail scene, Author & owner of Amor y Amargo, Sother Teague launched a new season of his show, Sother Hospitality! Learn bartending from one of the best.

• St. Patrick’s day was last weekend, and not to be outdone by green beers. Anders Erickson made a bunch of St. Paddy’s day cocktails from Tik Tok!