Becoming a Whiskey Scholar w Colin Blake | Bartender at Large ep 522

American whiskey is one of the most popular spirits behind any bar. Yet many of us couldn't explain what really happens inside the barrel, or why Kentucky's limestone water matters so much. This week we're joined by Colin Blake, Vice President of Peggy Knowles Stevens & Associates. He spent two years building the American Whiskey Scholars certification with industry experts Peggy Stevens and Susan Riegler. Colin walks us through the program's 10 online modules, which run from flavor components to barrel aging. He also explains chill filtration, GCMS analysis and the three types of chemical reactions that happen as whiskey ages in oak. Plus, he tells us how he went from film and photography to running a distilling school. So tune in this week as Colin shares why the American whiskey industry is one of the most collaborative in all of spirits.

These days more and more guests skip Google and Yelp when they're picking a bar. They search Instagram and TikTok instead. So how does a bar without a big marketing budget get found? This week we're joined by Rain Garcia, founder of Garcia Media Works. Rain explains how she uses a SWAT analysis (strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, threats) to find what makes a bar worth posting about. She also talks about why viral views in the wrong city are just a vanity metric, and how to use keywords, carousels, Instagram's trial reels and pop culture moments to get more people through the door. So tune in this week as Rain shares how bars can turn followers into regulars, no matter the budget.

These days more and more guests skip Google and Yelp when they're picking a bar. They search Instagram and TikTok instead. So how does a bar without a big marketing budget get found? This week we're joined by Rain Garcia, founder of Garcia Media Works. Rain explains how she uses a SWAT analysis (strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, threats) to find what makes a bar worth posting about. She also talks about why viral views in the wrong city are just a vanity metric, and how to use keywords, carousels, Instagram's trial reels and pop culture moments to get more people through the door. So tune in this week as Rain shares how bars can turn followers into regulars, no matter the budget.

This week we're joined by Kenta Goto of New York's Bar Goto and James Beard Award-winning spirits writer Noah Rothbaum to talk about their new book, The Goto Bartender's Guide: A Philosophy of Cocktails, Hospitality, and How to Make Great Drinks Every Time. Kenta shares why he waited until Bar Goto turned 10 to finally put his methods on paper. The two also dig into one of the most overlooked ingredients in any cocktail, water, and how matching your stirs and shakes to a spirit's proof can transform a drink. Along the way, Kenta explains his philosophy of intentional bartending and omotenashi, the Japanese approach to hospitality that has made his bar a destination for drinkers around the world.

This week we are joined by bartender, spirits specialist and consultant Lex, who opens up about the hardest chapter of her life. For four years she worked 14-hour bar shifts while raising the little sister she adopted when she was just 26. She also fought for custody in family court on her own, often walking into the courthouse straight from a closing shift with no sleep. So tune in as she shares how she kept smiling for guests through all of it, and how the coworkers who stepped up carried her when she couldn't see the light at the end of the tunnel. She also explains why everyone deserves a little grace, on both sides of the bar.