From Barrel to Barstool - America's Best Whiskey Bars

Looking for the kind of whiskey bar that changes your mind—and your order? We compare notes with Whiskey Advocate’s Top 150 and hold our local favorites to the same standard, asking what truly earns the title: deep selection, thoughtful flights, smart glassware, and staff who can teach without preaching. From The Last Word’s legit shelves in Ann Arbor to Sugar House’s cocktail mastery in Corktown, and the neighborhood comfort of Butter Run Saloon, we map how atmosphere and curation work together to make a pour unforgettable.

https://whiskybars.whiskyadvocate.com/

We also rewind to a Detroit classic: the Last Word cocktail, equal parts charm and balance, now tougher to find thanks to Chartreuse’s monk-guarded scarcity. That story becomes a mirror for the whiskey hunt itself—allocation games, store picks, and the quiet thrill of a speakeasy where you can taste before you buy. Along the way, we trade recommendations across New York, Seattle, DC, and Colorado, debating whether we chase hype lists or the room that makes us slow down.

Then the night flips from talk to taste. We run a four-glass blind flight with a few surprises: a coffee-infused Bib & Tucker that divides the table but begs for an espresso-martini riff; a Michigan blend finished across American oak, cognac, and toasted oak that proves local juice has matured into itself; and a high-proof curveball that drinks bigger than its burn. When the envelopes open, an Old Soul single barrel takes the crown, with Four Roses reminding us that “easy” doesn’t mean “boring.” The takeaway is simple: the best whiskey bars don’t just collect bottles—they guide you to the pour you didn’t know you needed.

If you love whiskey lists, blind tastings, and the hunt for rooms with soul, hit follow, share this with a friend who needs a new favorite bar, and drop a comment with the best whiskey spot in your city. Cheers.

Transcript

Kicking Off Happy Hour Crew

Matt Fox 0:00

Are we shalling?

SPEAKER_00 0:03

Hey!

unknown 0:04

Hey!

SPEAKER_00 0:05

Welcome to MacKay Happy Hour. Hey! Welcome to McKay Happy Hour. We're gonna drink a fine whiskey and smoke a really fine cigar.

Jamie Flanagan 0:25

It is time for Happy Hour. It is the Man Cave Happy Hour Whiskey, Cigar, Spirits, the stories that go along with it. It's time, Jamie Flanagan.

Matt Fox 0:33

Oh man, it's just what I do.

Jamie Flanagan 0:35

Don't let him do his own.

August Gitshlag 0:37

It's walking and pretty gum. I can't change it up. That is August Kitchlag. I wanted silence there. I went on that awkward pause for a little while. There's no awkward pauses. August Kitchlag over there. Very sexy Matt Foxy is right across the room. That is not me. That is you. Okay. Oh, I still got the cover images. That's okay. You can't see me anyway.

SPEAKER_00 0:57

There we go.

SPEAKER_03 0:57

David Wright, uh, the motor city hypnotist sitting in for some drinks.

Jamie Flanagan 1:01

Yeah, welcome back.

SPEAKER_03 1:02

Happy New Year.

Jamie Flanagan 1:04

Happy New Year.

SPEAKER_03 1:06

It's been a couple months. Yeah. So yes.

Jamie Flanagan 1:08

Welcome back, man. We're uh glad to see you, man.

August Gitshlag 1:10

It's uh we got our whiskey mule here, Spencer. Whiskey mule. Whiskey mule.

SPEAKER_00 1:16

I think somebody just got a new nickname. He's running booze, boys. Whiskey mule. Running booze. I like that.

Matt Fox 1:22

Just call him the mule that there it is.

SPEAKER_00 1:25

I like that.

Jamie Flanagan 1:26

I like that a lot. Yeah, we're whiskey mule and tonight, and we're going to some of the best whiskey bars in America. That is where we're off to. But August, you can see I know we can't see him. And I thought we might be able to see him in the shot. Uh, we got another friend in the corner. We have we have a peanut gallery.

August Gitshlag 1:42

So you can hear him shouting from the background. Mr. Farazz is here tonight. A neighbor of the studio.

Jamie Flanagan 1:47

Yes. Yes. Yeah, it's funny how it's like what a small world. Is you guys have been friends for how long? Oh. Forever and a day. And then his office is like about a hundred yards from here. Right.

August Gitshlag 1:59

Well, that's why I said he has no excuse. So welcome.

Jamie Flanagan 2:01

Yeah, anytime you want to come and hang out. We're we're we're happy to have you. If we I'll plug in another damn microphone if I have to, if you want. He's no, he's a little shy. It's the first time. We got to break him in. We will break him in.

August Gitshlag 2:13

He'll be on here before. He's also one of these dry January assholes. So he doesn't really, you know, he's trying to take all of our friends and make sure they can't pay their mortgages this month.

SPEAKER_00 2:21

Yeah.

SPEAKER_04 2:21

We have to make it.

Jamie Flanagan 2:22

You know, that's uh and as a guy in the banking industry, he should want people to pay their mortgages. Sure, right on, right on. Is there Spence? You said there's a name for it. Yeah. So tell people about their thing we need to make up for it. Oh, yeah, which while we are making up for it big time.

Matt Fox 2:35

Anyone else's liver hurt right now?

August Gitshlag 2:37

No, I think I finally passed the last of my Christmas cheese, though.

Matt Fox 2:40

Okay.

August Gitshlag 2:41

Yeah. There's a lot of cheese, a lot of wine. Okay, I finally got it all out of me.

unknown 2:45

Yeah.

August Gitshlag 2:46

It takes a week. Takes you know, 10 days, a couple days is a give us a week, we'll take off the weight.

Matt Fox 2:51

Is that what we're doing?

August Gitshlag 2:51

Yeah, I mean, I mean, basically be two weeks of January just to get rid of the holidays. All right. You are now Dexatrim. Thank you. Yeah, I know. I have my bag packed to go to the gym tomorrow. We'll see how that goes. You're one of those guys.

Matt Fox 3:01

Well, I try January, folks. I can I can really appreciate, but these guys that resolution first at 10 a.m. It's that that's that New Year's resolution. I'm gonna go to the gym. And all the regulars are like, mother.

SPEAKER_00 3:13

And I'm pouring Bailey's in my cuff. I got it. I'm not gonna find out how to find his way to the gym. I can get to the gym. The bag's backed.

SPEAKER_03 3:21

We need another couple weeks to be able to do it. But it's also a newbies drop off. It's also my brother's birthday tomorrow.

August Gitshlag 3:26

So my parents' house and have a big meatball and noodles dinner. So I don't know. I'm gonna go to the gym to go eat meatballs. Who knows? Is that what we do now? We eat meatballs.

Dry January Jokes And Resolutions

Matt Fox 3:34

Eat balls over gym. Yep. I stopped calling it the gym, or I stopped calling it the John. So when I tell people I'm going to the gym, I'm actually going to the John. Okay. You go to the gym a lot. So I go to the gym a lot. Yeah. Two, three times a day.

August Gitshlag 3:48

We're gonna put you in one of those becoming your parents commercials now. Yeah.

Matt Fox 3:52

I believe you uh brought the wrong car. We had the red convertible.

Jamie Flanagan 3:57

All right. So I'm I'm I'm noshing on some double neat from our double neat box. These I'm like jamming on some almonds. These are maple slower said almonds from our buddies over at Double. Yeah, you guys fell in love with that. I did. I did. I was eating some jerky earlier, and then I had this, and I had a sip of some whiskey. It was crazy good. So I'm enjoying. This is my dinner tonight. A little, a little double neat uh beef jerky and almonds. I have a busy day. I went over to the uh Irish Music Cafe podcast before I came here. John McKnight, I think he's listening. He said he was gonna be listening. Carras plays in an Irish music band.

August Gitshlag 4:34

Oh, do you really? For 20 years? Shut the front door. Fantastic.

Jamie Flanagan 4:38

Bass player or an Irish band. What band?

unknown 4:40

Odd enough.

August Gitshlag 4:41

What?

unknown 4:42

It's called Odd Enough.

Jamie Flanagan 4:43

Odd enough? Odd enough. Odd enough.

August Gitshlag 4:45

They were saying at Eastern Palace Club that night that you were gonna go up and then come up.

Jamie Flanagan 4:48

Alright.

August Gitshlag 4:49

That was yeah, that was the band plan.

Jamie Flanagan 4:50

Odd enough. All right. So yeah, but I was doing that and I rushed there and then I rushed here. And now I'm eating almonds and beef jerky for dinner. But it's their yummy, they are yummy, double neat maple slow roasted almonds. Anyway. So Foxy.

Matt Fox 5:08

Yes, sir. What do you got going on over there? Me? Yeah, I've got so much happening going on. So as far as what, like life in general, or what?

Jamie Flanagan 5:16

Spencer brought us presents. Well, the whiskey mule, yeah. You stopped in and he why are why are we calling you a whiskey mule today, Spencer?

SPEAKER_04 5:22

Well, brought in some uh two uh store pick uh eagle rares from uh neat and stuff right right right right right.

Matt Fox 5:29

You said you said my favorite word bottle pick store pick rare rare of the eagle persuasion, yes.

Jamie Flanagan 5:36

Okay, so I'm just dad joking all over the place over here. Neat neat or stir, right? Shut it down. Neat and stir, neat or stir, shimmy and shake. What is it? Neat and stir, neat or stir, shimmy and shake, shake and bake, sip and serve, shake and bake, shake and bake, shake, shake it, so let leave me hanging on the shake and bake. But yeah, so we got the bottle picks from from there. They did, and he was nice enough a couple episodes back. We were we were talking to who are we talking to?

SPEAKER_04 6:04

Jerry.

Jamie Flanagan 6:04

Jerry. So he was nice enough to say, Hey, we got a new barrel coming out. You guys are you guys interested? And it's a it's a nice eagle. Have you tried it yet, Swan?

SPEAKER_04 6:11

I have not tried it. I just got mine as well. All right.

Matt Fox 6:13

Oh my goodness, look at that.

Jamie Flanagan 6:14

So it's a nice eagle rare, it's it has beautiful looking bottles. So they got any kind of sticker on it, right?

SPEAKER_02 6:19

We've got a little sticker on it, right?

Matt Fox 6:20

Yeah, the Sazorak Barrel Selects.

Jamie Flanagan 6:24

All right, so we're gonna be trying that one. Oh, we are okay on a on an upcoming episode.

Snacks, Gifts, And Store Picks Arrive

August Gitshlag 6:29

We got we got all kinds of stuff because we're talking about the best whiskey bars in America today. Yes, and how we've all been to one of them. But I I actually I've been to three here in the state. Oh, no, I've been to Chartreuse. I've been all I haven't been to the to the third line. I've been in the in our last word. Yep. Have it not been to the last word the other two. My favorite cocktail of all time is the last word. Yes, harder and harder to find because no one has chartreuse. I got it in my house. I have a little bit left, and fortunately, the black salt ham track has a plenty of it.

SPEAKER_04 7:00

It's also a place right around the corner from here. Oh, in Berkeley? Yes.

August Gitshlag 7:03

I mean, actually, Oak Park. The Oak Parker. I love the Oak Parker.

Jamie Flanagan 7:06

Oh, the Oak Parker.

August Gitshlag 7:07

Do they do the last words? Yeah, they have a great schnitzel in that chart. Have you had it? Do you know what it is?

Jamie Flanagan 7:11

I've had it. It's a nice way I know it. It's Dave, do you know what we're talking about?

August Gitshlag 7:17

Were you here for the chartreuse episode that I did? No, I don't believe so. Okay. No.

Jamie Flanagan 7:22

So there's a cocktail that was invented at the D the DIA. DAC. DAC. That one. Yeah. At some acronym in Detroit.

August Gitshlag 7:30

Okay. In like the 1913 or something like that. Yeah. Pre-World War I.

Jamie Flanagan 7:33

So the Detroit Athletic Club. And it kind of went out of fashion, prohibition, and what have you. And but when whoever wrote like the cocktailed guide to whatever, they used to be. And he wrote this big the the landmark cocktail guide. And he included the last word from the DAC in it. Well, chartreuse, and you know a little bit more about the shoot chartreuse.

August Gitshlag 7:58

Yeah, and the in the monk, it's a it's a French spirit, it's chartreuse by these monks in in France and all this stuff. So it's really hard to get. It's been become very highly allocated. People like to get their dick sucked so they don't become monks anymore. Right, right. So they're not making nearly as much of it. And it's well, not that that really stops, but who knows what happens in those uh monasteries.

SPEAKER_03 8:17

Can you just say you're a monk and make it a little bit more?

August Gitshlag 8:19

Apparently you weren't an alter boy in the 70s, so alright. What? So anyway, but the the cocktail itself. Oh, sorry, I was being a monk for a second.

Matt Fox 8:30

I you would do the python monk. I was doing the python monk thing on the phone. Okay.

August Gitshlag 8:34

Uh but it's it's one part chartreuse, one part gin, one part lixardo liqueur. And then you shake it up and put some lime in it, and it is just like it's one part lime.

Jamie Flanagan 8:44

One part lime, yeah. It's four four equal parts. Four equal parts, yeah. Yep, it is and that's the thing. We did it, and and somebody suggested it to us because it was an equal part cocktail. Yeah. I think our friend Sarah at the flavor journal, she likes the equal part cocktails, right? So, and and you don't like complicated cocktails.

August Gitshlag 9:01

People that have, you know, if it's got more than three ingredients. I worked at a dye bar for 18 years. Go eat my butt. I'm not making you a dark Manhattan.

Jamie Flanagan 9:09

Yeah, yeah, yeah. That's that's actually what I ordered this last week.

August Gitshlag 9:12

It's dark Manhattan. It's rum and coke. That's it. That's all you get. That's it. No, and I'm the first guy to order some now when I go to these places, but I was always a dick to everyone. Like, what's your leather apron? So, yeah, yeah, yeah.

Defining A Great Whiskey Bar

Jamie Flanagan 9:22

But the chartreuse and monks have have have reduced their production too because it was like the popularity of the the spirit, and they were making so much, and it started getting in the in the way of their their mission of being monkey or whatever, you know. They felt it was getting in the way, so they've they reduced production, so it's even harder to get now. Anyway, the name of the cocktail is the last word, which is coming in on the top 150.

August Gitshlag 9:49

Wow, we use that uh radio top four voice.

Jamie Flanagan 9:52

So, yeah, but there's a little left out over here.

Matt Fox 9:54

That was good. I like that.

Jamie Flanagan 9:56

So, whiskey advocate, and that's what we're talking about today. Whiskey Advocate has a list of the top 150 whiskey bars in the United States of America, and three of them happen to be in Michigan. And the first one we were talking about there, and we went to wait on a rabbit hole with the last word, is the last word in Ann Arbor. And I've been there, and it they do have a very, very nice whiskey selection. Okay, it is it's a very, very nice bar. If I were to pick three bars in Michigan, uh the butter run would be on it, and that was the other one. That's where we're gonna finish with the butter run because we have a couple bottle selects from Butter Run, we're gonna dive into. But the other two bars for me probably wouldn't have been on it.

August Gitshlag 10:39

If you were to never, never.

Jamie Flanagan 10:41

If you were to pick well, I don't know.

August Gitshlag 10:42

I haven't been to Lastword, so I can't say that.

Jamie Flanagan 10:44

If you were to pick uh your favorite whiskey bars, because in Michigan or Metro Detroit, Metro Detroit or Michigan, what would you pick? Well, I'd pick Butter Run.

August Gitshlag 10:51

I mean, that's first of all, it's a familiarity, it's it's a bias. Right. I've been going there since they opened. I've been Dave's been handing me shots of you know Tokyo whiskeys for 10 years. You know, just here, try this, try this, you know. I also have the bias of the painted lady, which it's they're but they're getting ready. That their whiskey selection's down from where they used to be. Okay, down. Okay. There is another great whiskey bar, it's brand new though, Bourbon Shores. Oh, think we're shores. Okay. Uh the owners there, one of them's about Hampton. It used to be Colleen's bars pop, yes.

Jamie Flanagan 11:22

It was uh Pat and I uh Acrely, we went in there, that was one of our stops. So we would have a little book club, we're both teachers in the in the area, and that's kind of a meeting point. And we went in there and like in the in the transition, I'm oh, they changed it. It's a whiskey bar now. And we're like, oh, it's still just the same crappy crappy bathroom. Not even oh my god, there was like a shower.

SPEAKER_02 11:40

There was a shower curtain around the stall.

Jamie Flanagan 11:42

There was no stall, it was just a curved shower curtain with a uh oh my god.

August Gitshlag 11:46

They've gone out of their way to get a bourbon selection in there and brag about it to the point where it's pissed off Dave. Dave knows they have unallocated stuff in them, and they're traveling to get it. Okay, well, so yeah, okay, but you're not supposed to sell that way. Okay, but but it has it leads to one hell of a selection, though. Sure, yeah.

SPEAKER_04 12:03

Any good time, any time. All right, Spencer is uh another good one that you and I went to. Really good selection. Right near uh your you used to live near it. Uh oh yeah, secret room.

Jamie Flanagan 12:13

Oh, that's a secret secret. So that's a cheat now. They're a cheat code. That's uh that's uh yeah, it's not really a whiskey bar, though. No, it's not, but so you have you have you have, and that's a thing with my our number two on the list is the sugar house in Corktown. I love Corktown.

Matt Fox 12:31

Amazing cocktails there, right? I gotta give that to them, but as a whiskey bar, is it a whiskey bar?

SPEAKER_04 12:36

No, but they have an amazing selection of whiskey, though.

Jamie Flanagan 12:38

They do, yeah.

Matt Fox 12:40

But they the but they put it themselves on.

Jamie Flanagan 12:43

Is it one of the is it the top three in Michigan? Is it the top three in Michigan, top 150 in in the country? I don't put I don't put I don't think I put it there. And although, you know, I don't want to because I'm I'm so happy they made the list. I'm I'm glad as many Michigan and Detroit people made the list as possible, but I I don't want to was it Dave? Is it Dave Kikowski? Is it uh he's the guy there? I think it's Dave. I don't know. He's the main main cat at the sugarhouse. But no, I love those guys, and they're they they've had us in there a couple times to do episodes and things, and those are we doing uh we did an art bag there.

SPEAKER_02 13:16

Here's a question what classifies you as a bourbon bar?

Jamie Flanagan 13:20

That's my question. Is it a bourbon? It's a whiskey whiskey bar.

SPEAKER_02 13:24

Without an e-bar.

Jamie Flanagan 13:25

It's a whiskey bar. Yes, yes. So we we're talking whiskey bars. Okay, you got burger and beers, right? You got your craft cocktails, yeah. What else? What else kind of bars would you say?

Matt Fox 13:36

Well, you're always looking for the tiki.

Jamie Flanagan 13:37

There's tiki bars, yeah. Always looking for the experience, Irish bars, Belgian bars.

Matt Fox 13:42

Yeah, you're looking for the experience when you go to a bar, whether it be the drinks, the atmosphere, music, or what have you, like downtown Detroit, Cliffs Bells in downtown. Oh, they they've got amazing cocktails down there and a great atmosphere. And they've got a really good selection of whiskey in Burman. What's the other one that's down? Is it two Jane's?

Jamie Flanagan 14:01

Yeah, yeah, yeah.

SPEAKER_03 14:02

They have a good selection.

Jamie Flanagan 14:03

Isn't it? Now they're a distillery, they're a tasting room. Are they a tasting room? I think they're a tasting room. I do enjoy their stuff.

SPEAKER_03 14:09

Yeah, and it's they have a bar area. I've been in there many times.

Jamie Flanagan 14:12

I think it's a tasting room.

Matt Fox 14:13

Same thing with DCD, Detroit City Distillery. They're a tasting room, yeah. They're a tasting room. You can you buy their stuff.

The Last Word Cocktail And Chartreuse

August Gitshlag 14:18

You gotta get their stuff. I got their bottle of their rye as part of my uh the uh whiskey taco foxtrout whiskey society. Yeah, yeah. Now that I'm a member, membership has its privileges, and uh that's a wholly decent bottle. Yeah, and and I've never I I've said some things about some of the juice out of uh DCD in the early days, uh, but their rye is one thing they've always kind of they didn't rush out too early. I felt like yeah, I feel like all the Michigan places rush out their brown liquor too early. Uh they had, you know, whole decent vodka's and gins. Yeah, like really good stuff.

SPEAKER_04 14:48

They had to start somewhere and they all started. They'll have to start somewhere. Yeah, if they don't have anything else to out to sit there and supplement everything, they're gonna okay, want to be known for what just the vodka and gin that they can put up basically. So they put it out there, and unfortunately, some people push them off, and then now they come into their own. Well, they're they're finally old enough, right?

August Gitshlag 15:04

They've aged into them themselves. And I think it's uh I could tell with this bottle.

SPEAKER_07 15:08

Yeah, like us. Yeah.

August Gitshlag 15:11

I'm not turning in my parents. Are you sure you don't have that red convertible? I don't have to call anyone to ask for IT help to my TV doesn't work. I'm not turning in my parents.

Jamie Flanagan 15:19

Yeah, so all right. So we had uh the last word in Ann Arbor of uh of the 150 best whiskey bars, whiskey advocate. Nice place. I've been there and nobody else, but it's it's it's pretty cool. And then we have the sugar house. We all feel it's a little bit more of a cocktail bar than a whiskey bar, but again, a great they do really got a great whiskey selection. They do great barrel picks. Um, and I think that's the thing. I think it might be a barrel pick. I think I I don't know what the criteria is. The whiskey advocate website is is difficult to maneuver. There'll be a link in the website from what we're talking about. It's it's difficult to maneuver and and see. So I don't know if there's a criteria of what constitutes a whiskey bar on there. Did you read what some of these places I mean?

August Gitshlag 16:02

I went through and just went to the the states I've been to recently. Like I went to Chicago, yeah, trying to find one. Have I been to any of these? Oh wow, you know, I wish that place I'd known about this place I was here, blah blah blah.

SPEAKER_07 16:15

Right.

August Gitshlag 16:15

But I I'm just trying to find the bars again is kind of tough. Yeah, was there another one that's one in Seattle that I swear I am going to go out of my way to go to? Yeah. This description. Oh, come on.

SPEAKER_04 16:29

So why are you looking that up, Dave? You were asking about what classifies a whiskey bar. Oh. So according to AI, the description of that. Well thank you. To classify a whiskey bar, it needs to be a specialized, extensive whiskey selection, Scotch, Bourbon, Irish, Japanese, etc. Yeah. With a detailed menu offering tasting flights, quality glass, ice, knowledgeable staff, and an ambiance, highlighting the spirit, going beyond a regular bar's limited options by focusing on education and variety.

Matt Fox 17:00

Well, that's what then we're a whiskey bar.

Jamie Flanagan 17:02

Yeah, pretty much. So, but then that the best kept secret, Tony's bat behind the wine garden there. Because you can buy that was cool because we were there, and you're like, I'm gonna try this. And you could you could pick if you want to do a half ounce, a one ounce, or a two-ounce pour of whatever you want, and then it could be neat or on the ice or or or chilled. You could have it however you like as well. There are a lot of options, and then Tony and his bartender, Tony, is just a wealth of knowledge, and then so and that's kind of his point. That's why he opened up speakeasy. He opened a bar, he got a liquor license to open a bar behind his party store so people would try those things and go, Yeah, I want to buy that bottle and take it home with me.

SPEAKER_04 17:40

He's got so many bottles back there that are unattainable, they're unattenable. Unfortunately, the one that I wanted to taste, he opened the bottle and I said, Can I? This is my last one.

August Gitshlag 17:48

Yeah, I couldn't, I couldn't buy a bottle. I mean, he's got all those red breasts back there that we were fortunate enough to try back in the old days. But right, you can't buy that. You're probably gonna get that stuff. Yeah, I'll call every favorite in for all of Farassa's cousins in every liquor store in town, and I'm gonna be able to get that stuff. So I think I can get it. I got you.

SPEAKER_04 18:06

So according to this, I I would say that actually classifies almost as a whiskey bar for the selection of whiskey that they actually have at the sugar house? No, at the Best Kit Secret.

Jamie Flanagan 18:14

Best Cap Secretary. Oh, yeah, absolutely. Yeah, yeah. According to this definition, oh yeah, for the curation, but it's a speakeasy in a cocktail bar. But that that's he's trying to sell his bottles of whiskey. I mean, really, that's that's of all the ones I read about.

Michigan Spots On Whiskey Advocate’s List

August Gitshlag 18:28

This one in Seattle is like the most unique one. Did you find it? And it's like I was right by this place and I had no idea. It's called the doctor's office. Oh, all right, turn your head pop off.

SPEAKER_04 18:38

You're going for a checkup.

August Gitshlag 18:39

A hospital medicine specialist and longtime cocktail geek designed this 12-seat tasting room to recall the alleyway bars of Tokyo's Jinjigou Golden Gai district. The bar offers a healthy list of rare single malts, some dusty santori from the 1970s, and vintage bourbon once owned by Howard Hughes. Oh my god. Oh wow. And the best damn flaming Spanish coffee on earth. I'd wager there's some Howard Hughes' booze collection.

Jamie Flanagan 19:05

I would wager there's some Howard Hughes urine in that for sure. Oh, yeah.

August Gitshlag 19:09

Does it come with milk jugs of pee? Yeah.

Jamie Flanagan 19:11

Oh, yeah, yeah, yeah. Does it come with some Howard Hughes urine in the U.S.?

August Gitshlag 19:14

Well, is it Howard Hughes pee or is it Vincent Gaffreon's pea? I mean, I don't know. Which would you rather have in your cocktail? Neither. Thank you very much. I'll take the dream, that'll take the genius pea. I'll take the genius pee. He blew goose it right out of him himself. Or spruce goosed it, right?

SPEAKER_03 19:34

When you get that, then you just have to start having his manifests. So you'll just end up being OCD the rest of your life.

August Gitshlag 19:40

Hey, I I'll invent a bra. My girlfriend Rita Hayworth, you know, I'm here.

Jamie Flanagan 19:46

That's a cool 12 seat, 12 seat. Yeah. Now Tony's best kept secret in St. Go shores. No, no, sorry, 40 seats.

August Gitshlag 19:54

There's only 40 seats.

Jamie Flanagan 19:55

And he's like busy.

August Gitshlag 19:56

That's how Sugarhouse is, too. They do not let you order a cocktail if you're standing. You have to be standing.

SPEAKER_04 20:00

They actually don't even let you stand near the bar. You can't even at sugar house. Yeah, no, if you're standing by the bar, they will not serve you. They do not actually want you standing by the bar.

August Gitshlag 20:08

Oh, they're like a one-in per seat, one out, and they've always have been. Yeah.

SPEAKER_04 20:11

It's almost like the soup Nazi from Friends. Yeah.

August Gitshlag 20:13

Well, it's because it takes 17 minutes to make that$30 cocktail. Yeah. Well, yeah. So they can't do the turnaround.

Jamie Flanagan 20:22

But yeah, so uh yeah, Tony's Tony's limited to 40 seats, and he's turning people away. It's like we were in there, we got we got carte blanch, though. So anybody on the man cave, we get you throw the you throw that man cave card in there, you'd be all right. Yeah, but a few things and said, This is on me.

August Gitshlag 20:39

Handed it up.

Jamie Flanagan 20:40

Oh my god, yeah, yeah, yeah. You're like, you're like, oh Tony's the best.

SPEAKER_00 20:45

Yeah.

Matt Fox 20:45

So of that of that list, Jamie, of the 151 best whiskey bars.

SPEAKER_00 20:50

Yes.

Matt Fox 20:51

Where have you been?

Jamie Flanagan 20:53

The three in Michigan. Yeah. I I hunted through the other ones. I haven't seen any of the other ones. You said you hit one of the others.

Matt Fox 21:00

I hit one in DC, the Fountain Inn. It was years ago.

Jamie Flanagan 21:03

Yeah, it was years. I saw that on the list. I was wondering if the red phone booth in Atlanta would be there because I went to the red phone booth in Atlanta. Oh no, I went to the red phone booth. We talked to the people in Atlanta. I went to the red phone booth in Nashville. Right. Neither one of those are in. And they they both have really good. But you were in DC?

Matt Fox 21:20

Yeah.

Jamie Flanagan 21:20

All right.

Matt Fox 21:20

It was years ago, years and years ago.

Jamie Flanagan 21:22

I'll stop cutting you off. Go ahead.

Matt Fox 21:23

No, you're good. And and it felt like it was it was the atmosphere. It was a whiskey bar, but it was the atmosphere. Yeah. Jazz music and everything. Because when you're when you're in the DC area, there are a number of jazz clubs in that area. And the music there is yeah, you got the saxophone, you got the club. Yeah, I looked at New Orleans too.

August Gitshlag 21:38

I was hoping the bit the black penny would be on that list.

Matt Fox 21:42

I always look for atmosphere. You know, when I when I'm going out and I'm in a different state, I want the atmosphere. Everyone's got drinks, everyone's got cocktails. I want the atmosphere. I want to have that feeling of relaxation when I sit down with a cocktail when I'm not home. When I get home, I'll relax again. But when you're out and about, when you're on a vacation in a different state, you want atmosphere.

SPEAKER_04 22:03

The atmosphere, but also the unique experience. Like, say, like like August is saying, like, okay, you want the chartreuse. What do you want in there that you're not necessarily going to always have at your house? Even though Jamie may have it at his house, not everyone has this at your house to make that particular cocktail or how they make it. Right. You know, I'm gonna you know heat up some little uh sprig of uh rosemary and put this in there, and you know, however, they put it on there. You're doing this stuff, right?

August Gitshlag 22:26

Squeeze this ferret so it parts just right, right?

Jamie Flanagan 22:32

I less time you squeeze the ferret guilty squeeze squeeze the ferret. Is that anything like all right anyway? Taming the shrew. Oh, yeah, you go like taming the shrew. I like that.

Matt Fox 22:43

Yeah, anyway. So yeah, it just it's all about you know, of those 151, would I want to go to every single one of them? Probably. Would I have the opportunity? No.

August Gitshlag 22:52

One of the ones that I've been by a hundred times and never been in, which is is St. Elmo's Steakhouse, the legendary steakhouse in uh Indianapolis. Is that on the list? It's on the list, yeah. St.

Jamie Flanagan 23:01

Elmo's is on the you know, I would I would see that and I would probably go meh.

August Gitshlag 23:05

Like during it, because you get the theme like I'd be like, I'm gonna remember like who's based in Indianapolis. The NCAA is based in Indianapolis, like the NFL Combine is always in Indianapolis. It's in Indianapolis. All those big wigs, they're all they're all regular. That's that's their house. And a couple of the people that I fold with that I'm in the in the leagues, they they work there. Two of the women that I that I camp with at the 8500, they work at St. Almoes. Nice. So I've never been in there, but I hear there's nothing but legendary things about this place, right? Everybody, it's a C and B scene, Indianapolis, you know, certain times of the year. Yeah, you see Jockey Stork having a steak in the corner.

Jamie Flanagan 23:41

Oh my god. That's like I was up at the uh O'Connors public house, and then George Blahop ponies up to the bar next to me. And I'm like, I'm like, oh my god, I'm just considered listening to a talk to the person next to him just because that was fun.

Matt Fox 23:55

Did you yell Detroit basketball at him? He's a different guy. But he sits right next to him.

August Gitshlag 24:02

You say, What time is it? Two and twenty.

SPEAKER_00 24:09

Oh my god, that's good.

What Counts As A Whiskey Bar

SPEAKER_04 24:10

There's three other these in uh Colorado I've been to. Uh there you go, Spence. Oh, you hit him? Yeah, the whiskey Fort Collins, the whiskey bar at Estes Park at the Cascade Restaurant, and J Bar.

Jamie Flanagan 24:19

No, now would you say those were like one of the best best whiskey bars you've ever been in? Is are they to blow your socks off or no? Fort Collins, yes.

SPEAKER_04 24:27

Uh over 2,000 bottles of selection. All right, all right. There's a few. Just just a few, you know, kind of head spin there. But I wouldn't the atmosphere didn't wasn't something that I remembered right off the bat, but the J Bar was all right.

Jamie Flanagan 24:42

That's a good sound. That's uh I just I just popped the cork on the Buffalo Trace. I got a bottle of Buffalo Trace that is from the third bar in Michigan that we were talking about. Yeah, Dave, grab a couple. This is uh a Sazerac barrel select from the Butter Run Saloon, which is the third bar in the Metro Detroit area that falls on the list. We did an episode not too long ago from the Butter Run, and as we were there, August and I were hitting it hard with Dave Harding, the owner. And I oh my gosh, and we're like, Dave, can we get one of these to go? And he was like, see what I can do when we're done. And he did. Dave made magic.

August Gitshlag 25:25

Yeah, my ball, my bottle is long gone. The which I thoroughly enjoyed that bottle. The old forest, did you get I because I bought the old Forester and I didn't do the Buffalo Trace. I am personally down on Buffalo Trace. Oh, yeah. When I do side by sides with them, I'm not finding a huge difference that I'm really enjoying the barrel picks of Buffalo Trace.

Jamie Flanagan 25:42

So we did, we did Buffalo Trace, period. We did see now, Buffalo Trace is my go-to.

August Gitshlag 25:47

It's not mine anymore. And we got the Eagle Rare, which is now Elijah Craig or Sazerac Rye. See that is now the go-to. See, there's nothing the Sazzy is up on the counter.

SPEAKER_04 25:56

I like for a similar price point with Buffalo Trace, Knob Creek uh nine years.

August Gitshlag 26:00

Yeah, but Knob Creek's heavy, it's hot. It's it's always hot. My brother is loyal to Knob Creek in their entire line. That's his gene.

Matt Fox 26:07

See, there's nothing wrong with your palette changing. I mean that if you switch from Buffalo Trace to Sazerac rye, when you're going around, you get sick, you do get sick of certain juices over a period of time.

August Gitshlag 26:18

You know, one of the beauty of the painted lady was their house bourbon, their well was four-dollar buffalo trace.

Jamie Flanagan 26:24

Yeah, and it was a barrel, it was a barrel pick on top of it.

August Gitshlag 26:27

Oh, they have a their pick was uh was not in the well.

Jamie Flanagan 26:29

No, no, it wasn't separately. But it had regular in the well. Oh, fair play. Yeah, and that's when I first cracked that in the mic, man. Pop that in the mic. Here's fresh pop, fresh pop, that old Forester. I forgot you had that. I poured buffalo trace. I have not cracked that.

August Gitshlag 26:42

That's palette with this. This since that day, that just shows how much booze you have at home you haven't drank yet. Right. I'm going over. Right? The oldest deeded house in Troy. Yeah, 1831, man. That's an old motherfucker.

Jamie Flanagan 26:54

1831.

August Gitshlag 26:55

You out of here for us?

Jamie Flanagan 26:57

All right. Thank you. Thank you. Good hanging, buddy.

August Gitshlag 26:59

Come back, please.

Jamie Flanagan 27:01

Tell me about your Irish band.

unknown 27:02

Uh, we'll be playing in March.

Jamie Flanagan 27:05

Okay. We'll be there. Seriously.

August Gitshlag 27:06

We'll be there's uh there's grab some my Irish radio stickers on the way out.

Jamie Flanagan 27:10

My business card's on the on the right around there, and some my Irish radio.

August Gitshlag 27:12

We'll edit this out, don't we? But take us up and post. No, we're not. This is my Irishradio.com.

Jamie Flanagan 27:16

On the shelf right next to you there. Grab buttons and stickers in my card. Talk to me. That is a hot one. I want some of his. Yeah, it was that was uh what's the what's the proof on that? That's uh that's uh that's a fireball. I was gonna say 127, 130. All right.

August Gitshlag 27:30

That was uh I put that in a little snifter. Oh, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. Sunday night football and just let it take me through the night.

Jamie Flanagan 27:36

Oh, that's that yeah, that's walk me through this. That's a little bit of a fireball. Did you have what you got in there?

August Gitshlag 27:40

I got the buffalo trace.

Jamie Flanagan 27:41

You got the buffalo trace. The motor city hypnotists has the uh Buffalo Trace. I have the Buffalo Trace.

Matt Fox 27:47

I got the Buffalo Trace.

Jamie Flanagan 27:48

I'm gonna finish my Buffalo Trace and then I'm gonna try the Old Force.

SPEAKER_04 27:51

Buffalo Trace, which I'm gonna have the old horse that after.

August Gitshlag 27:54

For more observation about this list, I went, you know, I I spent a couple days just hitting every single bar I could in midtown Manhattan last year. Okay. Basically, pretty much. Um, but well, no, when you can fly for free and stay for free. Hey, there's a balance there. Yeah, they're to flight a tenant. There's some perks. But anyway, there every single whiskey bar is in southern Manhattan. It's all in south of Manhattan. There is nothing or no, no, everything is in this in the south end. All right. There was one on the upper east side that has different that's is there one in the upper side?

SPEAKER_00 28:31

Yeah, there's nothing.

August Gitshlag 28:33

Spencer were you in New York? Were you in New York Boy for a little bit? I'm gonna be I'm gonna be in New York City. I'm gonna be in New York. You're born in New York for weeks and sounds. That's what I thought.

Jamie Flanagan 28:40

I lived there until I went to college. All right. We weren't going to the biggest.

August Gitshlag 28:45

Probably.

SPEAKER_04 28:46

I think I was there in high school, but then after graduating uh high school, then I went back and I kept going to the city.

Jamie Flanagan 28:52

Yeah, yeah, yeah. But you knew you you knew the culture. I mean, being there, you know the culture, and you hear things, and you hear things, you know things.

August Gitshlag 28:58

Los Angeles didn't have nearly as well. I know people who know things. Yeah, really? Yeah, not really. So there were more in Portland than I think than there were in in LA. Right, right. Yeah. And I didn't even bother looking at it. Because there's really nothing to do in Portland, Oregon. And then in Kentucky or Tennessee, they're cheating. You know, they just have access to everything. So I didn't even bother looking. But then you see random spots in like, you know, Mobile, Alabama, and you know, Penta Boca Baton. Like, really, there's a whiskey bar in Boca? Oh, of course there is.

SPEAKER_07 29:27

Yeah. Wow.

Jamie Flanagan 29:28

So so Dave, Dr. Dr. Dave, our motor city hypnotist. How are you feeling about the Buffalo Trace? You got there. Is it are you familiar with Buffalo Trace? Is it is it the same profile? Is it different?

SPEAKER_02 29:40

Reminds me. I want to go get something else ready.

Jamie Flanagan 29:42

Oh, yeah. All right. So we're doing a blind taste, right? So part two of the show is going to be a blind tasting of a couple, because you guys, Dave's, Dave's, Dave's hasn't been here for a little bit. You haven't been here a little bit. We've tasted some magnificent bottles, and we want to share them with you guys, but we want you to taste them and give us your opinions. Okay. Tell us what you think they are. So I think I don't know.

SPEAKER_04 30:06

So I should not taste this. You should not taste that one.

Jamie Flanagan 30:07

That's a yeah, that's gonna wreck your that's gonna that's right.

SPEAKER_04 30:10

When you said something, I don't want to do that one.

Jamie Flanagan 30:12

Don't don't wreck yourself before you help yourself or something like that.

SPEAKER_04 30:16

Check yourself.

Jamie Flanagan 30:16

I am gonna wreck myself before you check yourself. That's what it is. Uh with this old forester. Because yeah, I know what he's I know what's I know I have ideas what's coming, and uh, I like I like the sound. That's it. So yeah, this old forester, there's not much out of it from the butter run.

Matt Fox 30:34

You don't need much.

Jamie Flanagan 30:35

So if you go to wherever you are in these here, you not states of America. Don't do it, don't do it. Wherever you are in these here, you not states of America. The uh there, there, there is a bar. Find a bar near you that is interesting, and then do this for us. Let us know where it is, right? Send us a comment in the in the in the comment the video or the audio, and uh let us know what uh what you think is the the best bar near you. What is the best whiskey bar near you that uh whiskey advocates either omitted? I mean, there's so many bars, right? Right. So they don't know about the pain to lady. Pain the ladies is uh Hamp Tramic is a little one, it literally is a one square mile city contained within the city of Detroit, and there's these magical dens of iniquity.

SPEAKER_04 31:25

Like there used to be, I would consider a whiskey bar that was in Santa Cruz, California. Oh, yeah, went back there the next time, and unfortunately it was closed. Phenomenal is upstairs from a restaurant, a bar up there, phenomenal selection.

Jamie Flanagan 31:36

So I went. Do you have there's four? Holy shit. Okay, well, Dave. All right, I guess I know what your show is gonna sound like.

SPEAKER_02 31:44

It'll be fun, that's for sure.

Jamie Flanagan 31:46

Holy shaitaki mushrooms.

SPEAKER_02 31:48

Uh pores, yeah. All right, we're looking good, man.

Jamie Flanagan 31:51

August, I didn't know you were. I thought you had like two. So hey, hey, Dave, do you have some comp time there? Welcome back.

SPEAKER_03 31:58

Yes, it's a great night to be back. I wonder you lost so much weight. The point of this.

August Gitshlag 32:02

So I did this in honor Dave, having not seen him in several months, and he always was here for some of our best nights and some of the most fun we had. He popping late. I grabbed four bottles, okay, that we talked about on the show. We'll see how much he fucking listens that we enjoyed and liked that you weren't here for. Right. One of these we did not really taste on the show. We cracked and had. But you should know it. Yeah, yeah, yeah. This is a private barrel. That was a big surprise to us. Like some of the best Michigan juice we've ever had. Yes, yes. Made in Michigan. Made in Michigan, yes. Made in Michigan. Another one is a well-known, super expensive that we kind of went, okay, cool.

SPEAKER_07 32:43

Okay.

August Gitshlag 32:44

We all kind of like, okay, cool. Not for that much money, but okay, cool. And the third one should be very distinctive because it has a flavor as a flavor branded. Okay, okay. I know exactly going with all that.

Jamie Flanagan 32:56

And and you don't have to finish them. No, and if you want some water, we'll Infinity bottle it and we'll drink it all together. You're not we'll swatch water would be very nice.

August Gitshlag 33:05

You're not supposed to tell me what it is, you're just supposed to tell me which ones you like in order.

SPEAKER_03 33:08

I'm not saying we go in a specific order or just do our own thing.

SPEAKER_04 33:13

Do your own thing because are they very similar approved, by the way? Yes, okay. Yeah, yeah. That's that's my thing. If they're similar proof, then I'm fine. If they're not, then I want to.

Butter Run Barrel Picks: First Pours

Jamie Flanagan 33:22

All right, you got paper, you got a pen, you can make notes, they're numbered. August actually numbered the bottles too. I saw him. He put sticky notes on the on the on the bottles and put them back in the closet. I've been an overachiever. He put them back in dad's closet and did that. So, yeah. So, check out the the because this is the thing. When you're at these whiskey bars, this is what happens when you're at these whiskey bars. You talk to proprietors and they say, Oh, what are you into? What do you like? And then they start feeding you some things, and then you find things that you really like. So these guys are diving into I'm really curious as to how this is gonna turn out. I'm a little jealous. I know what two of them are.

SPEAKER_03 33:56

I'm liking the nose on this one.

Jamie Flanagan 33:58

I haven't even I have ideas what two of them are, but I don't uh I don't I really don't know what August pulled. I don't he was in there doing magic while I was in here like stressing and setting things up.

Matt Fox 34:08

That butter run old forester, that is a kick in the teeth, man. Oh my gosh, this old bowl. Yeah, wow.

Jamie Flanagan 34:14

I see old forester. I love the old forester line. You know, that the in the 1920, we're gonna be able to do it, which is yeah, the prohibition. It's it's like it's a high proof. It's the it's I like the old forest. It's a hundred-proof.

August Gitshlag 34:26

It's it's a bottle of before we had their rep in telling us all about it, telling us all the stories about how they had the fire so they couldn't master the blend. Yeah, so they said, Well, we gotta call it you know 1923 now because that's the year the fire happened. The blend is now this this blend.

Jamie Flanagan 34:39

And so the statesman's still one of my favorite go-to's of old Forester, just because Statesman, it might go away too, because it was a it was a movie deal with the the Kingsman movie series. Oh, yeah.

August Gitshlag 34:52

Give me this uh the the wild turkey wang branch. That's you know, the the uh Matthew McConaughey. That's really nice stuff. His his signature is off of it now.

SPEAKER_02 35:02

How many of these stars and athletes are making bourbon?

August Gitshlag 35:05

Oh my god. Every time he's gonna be able to do that. There's some great lists though of like which ones are worth the shit and which ones aren't. Yeah, and uh we can't get a lot of them here.

SPEAKER_02 35:13

Belfur came out with uh his uh bourbon. There's more than we Eddie Belfort.

Jamie Flanagan 35:17

Oh, Belfort, yeah. We've we've got the Belfort. Yeah, that's there's we got a couple Belfort bottles we haven't cracked.

August Gitshlag 35:22

We can't even get them here.

unknown 35:23

Right.

August Gitshlag 35:24

There's so many.

Jamie Flanagan 35:24

Yeah, the Bradshaw. I want to get Terry Bradshaw on the show in the worst way, but football season goes. I want to I do don't roll your ass.

Matt Fox 35:32

Before the senility takes over, or I would love to have Terry Bradshaw on.

Jamie Flanagan 35:37

No, I would I totally want to get Terry Bradshaw on. We could have fun with it.

August Gitshlag 35:40

I don't think I want to do that non-alcoholic extensive beer. But the thing is Shepard owns it.

Jamie Flanagan 35:45

It was so he's it's you got the NFL, and then when he's off season on the FL, he's doing he started doing that reality series.

Matt Fox 35:52

He shows up blindly, he shows up blindly to liquor stores and he'll sign bottles as people.

Jamie Flanagan 35:57

Yeah, that's hilarious. I know, and I'm like, well, if he's signing bottles at a random party store, he'll come on and do my random podcast.

August Gitshlag 36:03

My apples met him a few times.

Jamie Flanagan 36:04

Come on, Terry, give me 20 minutes.

August Gitshlag 36:06

Terry Bradshaw is so dumb he couldn't spell cat if you spotted him the scene the table. Okay, not gonna I guess we gotta edit that out forever to get him on a show, but you know.

Jamie Flanagan 36:17

I you know, yeah. All right, Terry. All right, so Spencer, have you had you guys trying number one? Are you guys trying?

SPEAKER_03 36:23

I've tried one and and I'm I'm making notes on two.

Jamie Flanagan 36:26

He's making notes on one or two. All right. Spence is is is waddle waddling his way through. So now with the I got two bottles that we haven't cracked that I've had for literally five plus years. Neil Geraldo's three-quart bourbon, but Pat Banatar's husband. Oh, yeah, yeah, yeah.

Matt Fox 36:42

Yeah, she just celebrated her birthday.

Jamie Flanagan 36:44

He just recorded he signed this when he was not in the rock and roll hall of fame. I have an audit. Now here's the thing: I got an autographed bottle.

August Gitshlag 36:51

Yeah, all right.

Jamie Flanagan 36:52

Well, try to sell it. Let's crack it. No, I'm saying let's crack it.

August Gitshlag 36:56

And the other one I got from wasn't uh wasn't the the stadium America Park had the three-chord that little area where we always hang out before the ball games. Wasn't that called the three-chord floor for a minute? Uh no, it was uh it was oh no, it was copper, it was copper craft craft the other Michigan one that was Holland.

Jamie Flanagan 37:14

Yeah, yeah, yeah.

August Gitshlag 37:15

But I keep having any three-chord that I've ever tried that I I could be pre-August at the Butter Run Saloon.

Matt Fox 37:23

Yeah, we did a three-chord bourbon in the upper in the magical upper room.

Jamie Flanagan 37:27

Oh yeah, of the butter run saloon, yeah.

August Gitshlag 37:29

I denied the existence of any episodes before I was here. You know what?

Jamie Flanagan 37:32

They were not as good. They were they weren't. We were we Matt and I were good, but they weren't as good. I believe you. But no, but yeah. So the with the three-chord, and then I got a uh another one that's autographed. It's gone now. Oh, oh, oh, there we go.

Matt Fox 37:55

Hello, body rejection from Spencer here. No, that was water. The water went down the wrong pipe. All right, you can't breathe water, buddy.

August Gitshlag 38:02

You're not Aquaman. We've all tried. Ironically, the water got to be by the bourbon.

Jamie Flanagan 38:08

Holy smokes, this old Forester is a freaking flamethrower. Isn't it though?

August Gitshlag 38:12

I really like it.

Jamie Flanagan 38:13

It's a kick to do it.

August Gitshlag 38:14

I like it better than I like it. The flavor of it better than I like the buffalo trace. Really? I'll agree with that.

Blind Tasting Setup And Rules

Matt Fox 38:19

I like the buffalo trace, but this is you this has got to you know. I wonder if are we doing 130 or whatever?

Jamie Flanagan 38:24

Are you doing it on rocks? I haven't rocked it.

August Gitshlag 38:27

I'm still just because I knew what I was getting into.

Jamie Flanagan 38:30

So if if I think if I rocked it and it just just the the dissipation from the ice, then I went out there and I grabbed the Michigan spirit that I really enjoy that I brought in.

August Gitshlag 38:38

That was an orphan bottle here for a year and a half before we cracked it. Yeah. And that's the one I put in here.

Jamie Flanagan 38:43

Oh, I like that. Dave had an audible, oof.

SPEAKER_02 38:46

You like that.

Jamie Flanagan 38:47

I like that.

SPEAKER_02 38:48

Four.

Jamie Flanagan 38:48

Four. He did an audible, an audible. He did an audible, woo. So that was I did an advent uh bottle share, and somebody said, Oh, you know, day whatever on day 23, it was like I was I audibly went woo when I tried it. And I was like, it wasn't because it was hot because I enjoyed it so much. And that was a day that I had skipped because I was busy right before Christmas, there. And so I had that bottle saved, and I tried it, but then I was expecting right, you know, you were expecting a woo moment.

August Gitshlag 39:20

Yeah, well, what was the moment? It was nice, but it wasn't thoroughly slammed here. Was it Stapleton? It wasn't all the traveler, yeah. The traveler was horse manure. We just had too many other good bottles around us, yeah, to enjoy that. Yeah, I get any priority to buy it. Sure.

Jamie Flanagan 39:33

No, that was uh I mean, if Chris comes on and talks to me, we'll talk about it more.

August Gitshlag 39:37

He he he was a veteran booze guy say you're always gonna buy one bottle because the name's on it. Yep, yep. We want you to buy a second bottle, right? And he did not get that threshold.

Jamie Flanagan 39:47

No, no, no, no. I might have bought a second one because I wanted to have it on a shelf.

August Gitshlag 39:52

Well, that's it. It's a shelf, it's a shelf liquor.

Jamie Flanagan 39:54

Yeah, yeah, yeah.

August Gitshlag 39:55

Like it's it's a conversation starter.

Jamie Flanagan 39:56

Yeah, yeah. It's a but I I wouldn't there is uh I think it's cheat.

August Gitshlag 40:00

Marin has a tequila that has a bottle that's just unbelievably gorgeous. Is it cannabis-based? No, it's like insane. It's like one of the things you can't get here. You know, yeah.

SPEAKER_04 40:08

So how can he sponsor something that's not cannabis-based?

Jamie Flanagan 40:11

I don't know.

SPEAKER_04 40:12

He's got a branch out of the case. He's diversifying it. He smoked it all up.

Jamie Flanagan 40:15

He's got a yeah, he's got to diversify.

Matt Fox 40:17

Nice setup. Yeah, yeah.

Jamie Flanagan 40:18

It's a smoke. It's a miscal, right? It's a miscal.

August Gitshlag 40:22

Dave's not here. Dave's not here.

Jamie Flanagan 40:26

All right. So you guys wandered your way through these four pours. All right. So poor. So is there out of the four? Was there was it uh what do we want? August, what do we want to do? We want to rank them. Do we want to talk about each one or we want to rank them? What's your faith? Favorite, hang on, hang on, hang on, hang on. Favorite faith. Rank them one through four. Rank them one through four for yourself. Rank them one through four for yourself. And all right, then come back with your number ones. He's going uh Spencer is like serious about his game. He's going, he's going back for a second sip to make sure he's what he's talking about. He's a he's a he's a serious scientific guy. He is. He's he he was he's before he's committing to a number.

August Gitshlag 41:12

Then like the carpet's all but over there, keeps like swinging and spitting. He's doing a little like he's like he's just came out of the out of the ring with Cassius Clay. Cut me, Mick. Cut me, cut me. I'm going back in. Uh Roberto Duran.

Matt Fox 41:23

I can't mean Mick. I can't see. I'm seeing three. Hit the one in the middle, kid.

Jamie Flanagan 41:30

That's pretty much the ride home at this point, but all right.

unknown 41:34

No.

August Gitshlag 41:34

Catherine comes home tonight, so I gotta be careful. That was close to when we had Jerry here.

SPEAKER_00 41:38

Oh, yeah. Yeah. Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah.

Matt Fox 41:43

Right down the barrel, buddy. Right down that barrel.

August Gitshlag 41:45

Yeah. I do have a line on uh Smokey Joe's and Fraser. Oh, seven barrel picks right now. Oh, nice. Yeah, so I want to get Joe on.

Jamie Flanagan 41:54

The right across from Yep. All right. Yep.

unknown 41:57

Yeah.

Jamie Flanagan 41:58

They have seven barrel picks right now. Proximity, I don't deal with it. Yeah, you wouldn't you wouldn't think about it. No, I've been in there, but I'm like, and ah, way too many. So you go into a party store. Spencer.

August Gitshlag 42:12

Dave, you're gonna ruin it by going in there.

Jamie Flanagan 42:13

Oh, you blew it, Dave.

August Gitshlag 42:15

So so guy when they're fighting people, though.

Jamie Flanagan 42:17

Yeah, I know. Spencer. So here's the thing about going into a party store and and and in the dynamic of the the layout of the party store.

unknown 42:27

There we go.

Jamie Flanagan 42:27

There's this party store near where I work, and I go in, and it's all like bongs and and and a lot of marijuana parapernalia, which hey, it's legal now. To the to the name they held to the name party store. So it is they are party, party, party. All the they are Eddie Murphy all the time, all the time. That's party one, two, party. That is it. Uh liquor in the front and poker in the rear. Yes, that is that is that's a theory. So so I've I've kind of one, it's like really, really close where I work, and I work for I teach well, I don't know everybody knows I teach for high school, yeah. And and so it's like uh it's like next door to the high school I teach in. It's like, oh Mr. Flanagan, you're out there buying some booze. I'm like, I'm buying more now because of you guys. But so I don't I don't go into that place a lot.

August Gitshlag 43:19

That private store pre-sells jungle juice mixed. They do, they do, they're they're fun. Big big vat with the little thing in it. They have all the mixes you want. Yeah, the spigot has like you know, six airline bottles of this, and then one of this, and some powdered lemonade juice, and then a little blue big Egypt.

Tasting Reactions And Proof Talk

Jamie Flanagan 43:34

I'm see all the things in it, shake it up, and you got your cocktail. It's it's interesting, but they got a lot of bongs and a lot of. They've gone whiskey nerd. Really? I haven't been in there, I've been in there probably eight months, eight months to a year. I didn't know some paraphernalia, but but no, lots of there was there used to be like a lot of pop paraphernalia on there.

August Gitshlag 43:57

I'm like, uh you're like you're like your grandpa, that shit's legal now.

Jamie Flanagan 44:00

Okay, yeah, you're about you're about uh you're three doors down from a high school, so doesn't mean it's not legal. That doesn't mean you're not an a-hole. So anyway. He's not three doors down, by the way.

Matt Fox 44:12

But anyway, all right. I I'm I did. We got our rankings here. Are you ranked? Did you rank?

Jamie Flanagan 44:17

Apparently, not gonna be a sponsor.

SPEAKER_07 44:19

We're both ranked. Okay.

Jamie Flanagan 44:21

We are probably who'll hear that, right?

SPEAKER_03 44:23

Let's go to the let's all right. So we poured four months.

Jamie Flanagan 44:27

The bottom worse than the last.

SPEAKER_03 44:28

Yeah.

Jamie Flanagan 44:29

What was your least? What was your least favorite?

SPEAKER_02 44:32

I I didn't love four.

Jamie Flanagan 44:33

Number four was not your least. Okay. It was your least favorite. Spencer.

SPEAKER_03 44:36

My least.

Jamie Flanagan 44:37

Your least favorite. Spencer, what was your least favorite of the four? Number three. Number three. All right, where did number three, David? Where did number three fall for you?

SPEAKER_03 44:46

Three is my second to last.

Jamie Flanagan 44:47

Second to last. Okay, so we're down at the bottom. So number four.

SPEAKER_04 44:51

So that's your second to last. My second to last is number four. Okay, so three and four at the website.

Jamie Flanagan 44:56

So three and four, bottom of the barrel, one word of both. Three and four. Let's get three and two and four. You could really just tell us because it's uh audio was spicy.

SPEAKER_04 45:07

There is video. Oh, really?

Jamie Flanagan 45:11

A habanero spice whiskey.

SPEAKER_03 45:13

There's not a lot of no's. No, it's really like on three and four? Like flat milk.

Jamie Flanagan 45:18

I really have no idea what I have no idea what August poured for you. I really can't remember what was in the what was in Oh my god. Number three was the Bibbent Tucker. Holy crap. Coffee roast. I love the Bibbent Tucker coffee.

SPEAKER_02 45:32

Remember that? That was three. It's a coffee roast. Okay, coffee makes sense. I don't hate coffee. That was your favorite. Okay, you hate coffee. I love coffee.

Jamie Flanagan 45:41

Is that your bottom bottom? Three was all right. So it's it's filtered in coffee beans.

August Gitshlag 45:45

I knew I that's why I didn't judge it when it had just not my thing. I like it. I paid I paid you would like it.

Jamie Flanagan 45:52

I paid 90 bucks for this mo faux. So suck it up and enjoy it, man.

SPEAKER_04 45:57

You smell that cost a lot. You smell the coffee. You smell like now that you say it, I get it. So it is uh bibbon. It smells coffee, but it has like a like a hotness to it, like almost like a pepper.

Jamie Flanagan 46:08

Yeah, yeah, yeah. Yep. So it's uh bibbon Tucker, golden, gold roast bourbon, small batch bourbon uh whiskey infused with coffee beans. Yep. I I like this. I'm not a coffee in small, in small doses. I like this. I would like Jen to try that one in small doses. I would like this in like a to uh like a bourbon whiskey Irish coffee. No, not Irish coffee, the uh the the bourbon, uh, the the martini thingy anyway. But uh espresso martini espresso, yeah, to a bourbon espresso martini with this.

SPEAKER_03 46:43

That that would be good.

Jamie Flanagan 46:45

So that that is that is why I got this because I I enjoyed it.

August Gitshlag 46:48

And here's the orphan bottle of Michigan Spirits that I've had in this room for about a year and a half. Yeah, I picked up in a tasting. Is that number four? That was number four that they didn't. Really? So I love this. We enjoyed the hell out of that.

SPEAKER_04 47:01

Yeah, love it. So kind of well, comparatively, kind of ironic. The cognac in there. Yeah, I think that had a little bit of a cherry flavor, a little bite, but it disappeared very quickly. Okay, that's not okay.

August Gitshlag 47:12

Not on sure. That's okay. Yeah, that's the uh the write-up was it's uh pass that bad boy over here. Uh American oak barrel, cognac barrel, and high vanilla toasted oak barrel. All right, and this is you can only get these in the tasting rooms from Grant Travis. And you know, I poo-poo Michigan brown liquor all the time. I enjoyed the hell out of this.

SPEAKER_03 47:28

I I wrote on this good nose flat. Oh, that's good. All right, it does smell right now. So, like this.

Jamie Flanagan 47:37

Spencer said, it didn't go, it did went away quickly. Yeah, all right. Okay, so you're all right, three and four. So, what was your number one and two? Uh, Spence, what was your one and two?

SPEAKER_04 47:45

Let's go for number two.

Jamie Flanagan 47:46

Number two. What is number two? Number two is number two. All right, so your number one is number one.

August Gitshlag 47:51

Your number one's a number one.

Reveals: Coffee-Infused And Michigan Blend

Jamie Flanagan 47:52

All right, so right in order, I'm so fucking proud of you. I know after he said that. What do you think it is?

SPEAKER_02 48:00

Number one?

Jamie Flanagan 48:01

Number one, what do you think it is?

Matt Fox 48:03

What is it? You could have to say what it is.

SPEAKER_03 48:05

Is it an old soul?

Matt Fox 48:09

Fallback. That was great. There it is.

SPEAKER_03 48:14

It is it is my number one old soul.

SPEAKER_00 48:18

Yeah, so I'm fantastic. This is the so ironic.

SPEAKER_04 48:25

Oh, four roses. Okay. What is a proof on those others? Oh boy.

Jamie Flanagan 48:30

Oh boy. That's that's probably just 80, 84.

August Gitshlag 48:33

This one's hunterproof.

Jamie Flanagan 48:34

Oh, yeah, keep going. Bottle.

SPEAKER_04 48:36

What's the other?

Matt Fox 48:36

This is uh 92 proof.

SPEAKER_04 48:37

Yep. What's the next? And then 100 proof. Okay, 124. So these are nowhere in the realm of the thing.

August Gitshlag 48:46

I didn't realize it was that much higher.

SPEAKER_04 48:47

So hence I put on there up front, higher proof, disappears quickly, but a lot more flavor. Disappeared quickly on the old sole. I just put on there if it disappears quicker than you think for the high proof. Yeah, it would have had a lot of flavors.

Jamie Flanagan 48:59

124, that's a that's a hot rod.

August Gitshlag 49:01

I didn't realize it was that hotter than everything else.

SPEAKER_02 49:03

Yeah, I did write full flavor, not flavor.

SPEAKER_04 49:06

So, yeah, yeah. It comes off quick for the high proof. Not that the flavor's not there, the disappears, but for the tasting the high proof, it goes there, it dissipates, but the flavor is there. Yeah, it just hangs around, right? Right here, it's heat. The heat doesn't linger, it just the heat the heat comes off.

Matt Fox 49:23

No, that the the warmth stays into the flavor on your palate, and that's what just kind of it's kind of like the burn kind of goes down and it sits right, right it's just itures right on your palette.

August Gitshlag 49:34

What I tell people about my love affair with a Mississippi bourbon, they tell me to go F myself. And I found this, Dave. This is not from the same spot, right? Not the same store. This is uh I was going to my brother's house for our annual family Christmas party. My sister calls and says, I need some shitty wine. What's it? Some kind of stuff.

Matt Fox 49:55

I'm like, oh prosecco. I need some prosecco.

August Gitshlag 49:57

It was something like that. I need a box. No moscato. She's a moscato. I'm like, fine, I'll get you a big setter home, right? And at the at the register is sitting this bottle of barrel pick old soul. I go, how much? Just one? Yeah. He goes, how much? I go, he goes, 80. I'm like, put it on.

Matt Fox 50:12

That's easy. That's easy.

August Gitshlag 50:14

And walked out with it. And I was kidding as a schoolgirl. And I got like, well, I'm like, I got a bottle of bourbon. I'm not even bringing in the house right now because I got to take this to the house. We we we've had it.

SPEAKER_04 50:24

We've got the uh four roses that we tasted last time. I believe so.

August Gitshlag 50:27

It is, yeah. That's right.

SPEAKER_04 50:28

You were here for that one. Okay.

August Gitshlag 50:30

There's there's three different versions of this, and uh, you read the descriptions, and I had to pick which one it was.

Jamie Flanagan 50:35

Yep, that's that's how we did that. Nailed it, nailed it. Yep. So that was fun, man. I'm glad I'm I'm so glad you picked. I'm glad you picked the old soul.

SPEAKER_03 50:45

Yeah, absolutely.

Jamie Flanagan 50:46

As the as the boss hog there.

SPEAKER_04 50:49

And I were like pretty close on the picks, yeah.

SPEAKER_02 50:54

Just about three and four.

SPEAKER_04 50:55

Yeah, things go. Which came to point that I don't like coffee, which hence the reason why that went to the end versus.

August Gitshlag 51:02

I did mention there was a flavored version in there, though. I wanted to make it kind of catch.

SPEAKER_03 51:05

You wanted to taste weird for that. Yeah, and I thought it was this one, but I couldn't place it.

SPEAKER_04 51:10

But if you don't know, I knew that one right now. No, I knew that one right off the bat. I tasted when this has got a flavor in it, and I just pushed that off. And I didn't like the flavor I had. But the flavor is the three and four both had flavor, infused with coffee beans.

Jamie Flanagan 51:25

So it's a small batch bourbon infused with coffee beans.

August Gitshlag 51:29

So especially on the notes.

SPEAKER_03 51:33

Number four. In fact, I wrote good nose on it.

Jamie Flanagan 51:35

Very small, very, very small doses. I I like this. I I bought this and I got this for small doses and for like specialty specialty cocktails. It's not like I'm gonna pour like two or three in the colours.

Matt Fox 51:53

During his high except from the except for the old soul.

Old Soul Wins And Four Roses Shines

August Gitshlag 51:55

Well, that's not, but it's not the same old soul. Not the same old, not the right same old soul. I think we're just writing a song right now, right? Not the same old soul.

SPEAKER_04 52:06

This one's a smoother, just like drinking bourbon right there. That was number two. Yeah, number two. See, four roses.

Matt Fox 52:13

We didn't think they are an easy drinker. I don't know what it looks like that they do, but four roses tends to be a really easy drinker.

SPEAKER_04 52:18

It looks a little different than the proof. That one has the taste of the proof, but it's not doesn't it's not like the uh um the hazmat, but it's like that one's high, but it's not the hazmat, but it this one's actually smooth.

August Gitshlag 52:29

What is Barry Moso talking shit about?

SPEAKER_04 52:31

Yeah, you're talking about shit about you.

August Gitshlag 52:34

There are more reasons than whiskey, to be fair, August.

Jamie Flanagan 52:37

For what means explain yourself, explain yourself, Moso. It's in in context. All right, so uh whiskey advocate, 150 whiskey bars around the country. Find the one that you like near you.

August Gitshlag 52:50

This look when next time you're traveling.

Jamie Flanagan 52:52

So no, here's a here's the thing: butter run soon. I'm being an Irish a-hole again, right? So, but someone I was I was on the Irish Music Cafe podcast earlier, and I was telling them about we're gonna talk about these. The 150 and the butter run was I would I would consider butter run if you were to you if you were to parallel something in the United States to an Irish pub, right? The butter run is it, right? It's it's real people, it's the the real food, it's it's uh it's a real selection. Okay, it's honest people doing things honestly. It's neighborhood pub, for sure. Neighborhood pub. And that's a thing, right? It's just a very cool neighborhood pub. And the other one I would pick in Detroit, it would be the painted lady, right? Of the whiskey.

August Gitshlag 53:39

Well, except the painted lady will look at you funny if they don't know you. They are still they have kind of a territory. Have you been in Northern Ireland? It's like surfing a sudden beach. Dude, don't people normally look at you like that? Dude, no, dude. Everybody know me. Seriously, everybody knows. I know they know everybody knows you in Northern Ireland.

SPEAKER_04 53:54

I know they know you, but how they look at you. Doesn't matter.

August Gitshlag 53:56

They all yeah, no, you go, you go hey, I'm not famous, Spencer, but I'm known.

Jamie Flanagan 54:01

No, you're infamous? You are you go into a pub up north, oh there, there, they're looking you up and down, up and down right away trying to figure out what side you're on.

SPEAKER_04 54:14

I didn't feel that when I walked in. You shouldn't.

August Gitshlag 54:16

I mean it's it's never the staff, it's the it's the people can feel it. Yeah, it's the yeah, Andrea is the best.

SPEAKER_04 54:22

That's like walking into the I didn't see staff or people. No, no issue. No, nothing, no one said anything, looked any. And then you go there, maybe I didn't give a shit.

Jamie Flanagan 54:30

And then and then, Spencer, you go there on Punchkey Day, and then there's different there's bacon wrapped, bourbon infused, but it was that day. Punchkey.

SPEAKER_00 54:42

Oh my god.

August Gitshlag 54:43

Holy crap. I'll have that on your map, you're on your on your calendar, on your map again this year. Punchkey day with the doctor.

SPEAKER_04 54:49

If you do not with the doctor checking your outfit, yeah, yeah, yeah. Oh my god. No, no, no.

Matt Fox 54:52

Everyone's already clogged when they walk in the door.

Jamie Flanagan 54:55

Forget about it. If you're worried about that, don't come down.

August Gitshlag 54:58

Oh no, I'm not because it's not gonna, it's not gonna be an hour, guys. No tent at Whiskey in the Jar this year. Really? Yeah, into the Sante. Yeah, wow, no tent at Whiskey Jar. Okay, there's rumors of a tent at Polish Village. Okay, okay.

Matt Fox 55:14

So it goes, fellas. This I cannot tell you how much fun this has been tonight.

Jamie Flanagan 55:20

Yeah, yeah, this was good. This was good. Jennifer said hi. She wants to try the uh Jen wants to try the the the bibb and tucker.

SPEAKER_03 55:28

Well, I will say, Jennifer, nobody's talking at its coffee flavor. Yeah, now I can enjoy it because you know what it is.

SPEAKER_04 55:36

When he's the coffee, I go, Jen needs to try this right up her eye.

Jamie Flanagan 55:39

That's a nice it's it's a pretty one for sure. Much like your lady sucking up because she's listening. So fair play. I don't have to suck up to my wife because she never fucking listens. Okay, there was locked in, Jamie.

Neighborhood Pubs, Culture, And Traditions

SPEAKER_04 55:55

There's time to cut Juff. She would have been there. She was helping her son study for school. I would have loved her to actually taste the blinds in this to see where she would have lined. She she would have liked the high proof. Yeah. She would have liked the coffee one. I know that much. It's like I think those would have been sort of more of her top two. Yeah. And I think she would have lined up, but the coffee one she would have uh put up higher. All right. At least, at least that's what I think until she tries it.

Jamie Flanagan 56:24

All right, we're gonna get out. Like, subscribe, leave a comment, all the podcasts.

August Gitshlag 56:28

Why you have a mouthful entire time with the outcrow?

Jamie Flanagan 56:31

That is August nutch leg.

August Gitshlag 56:33

Jamie Flagging with a mouth, Flanagan with a mouthful of nuts. And Matt Fox over there laughing at my mouthful of nuts joke.

Matt Fox 56:42

You're welcome. We got Dave the hypnotist over there. Spencer, thank you for being here with us tonight.

August Gitshlag 56:47

The mule, the whiskey mule.

SPEAKER_03 56:49

I'm Dave the Motor City Hypnotist. I'm up next if you guys want to stick around. Yeah, yeah. Jump to my Facebook page, Motor City Hypnotist.

Matt Fox 56:55

Jump over. Jump over. Guys, Matt Fox, Jamie, August, Spencer, Dave, you guys are my friends. Thank you. Good show, guys. Have fun tonight.

SPEAKER_00 57:04

Cheers. Cheers.