Drink History

This week, Alexa & Mia sit down with Anne Peck-Davis, the Co-Author of Cocktails Across America: A Postcard View of Cocktail Culture from the 1930s, 40s, and 50s to discuss escapism, cocktail culture in the post Prohibition era, and the similarities between now and then as we start to see our country slowly open back up after this very difficult year during the pandemic. 

Drink History is hosted by Alexa Wilkinson & Mia Fio Rito. Go to drinkhistorypodcast.com to learn more about our episodes and cocktail recipes... and don't forget to smash that subscribe button!

This week as we celebrate National Absinthe Day, Mia & Alexa take an in-depth look into the worlds love/hate relationship with this green dramatic protagonist. From small Swiss town murders & International revile, to legal loopholes and German home distilled concoctions, Absinthe has been on a roller coaster ride through human cocktail history as it went from the No. 1 favorite of the rich and famous, to the No. 1 enemy for decades beyond prohibition. 

Drink History is hosted by Alexa Wilkinson & Mia Fio Rito. Go to drinkhistorypodcast.com to learn more about our episodes and cocktail recipes... and don't forget to smash that subscribe button!

The Bee's Knees... pretty simple cocktail, but it has a fascinating history behind its inventor. For this Prohibition classic we honor the past and present by discussing the spy like tale of Frank Meier, and interviewing the Founder/Owner/Distiller/GM of Bimini Gin Kristina Hansen. We'll dive deep into Frank's story as a player in the French resistance against the Nazi's, and Kristina's journey from Brooklyn to Maine becoming a full time Gin distiller and overall badass. 

You can find Bimini Gin at: @biminigin @roundturndistilling

Drink History is hosted by Alexa Wilkinson & Mia Fio Rito. Go to drinkhistorypodcast.com to learn more about our episodes and cocktail recipes... and don't forget to smash that subscribe button!

Modern Mixology would not be where it is today without Black & African American bartenders. While the question still stands whether they were defining trends or refining them, one thing we do know is that we have one of the truly American cocktails, The Mint Julep, because of Jasper Crouch, Tom Bullock, Jim Cook, John Dabney, and many more. These men, some slaves, former slaves, and free; pioneered the art of catering, cuisine, and mixology in the face of impossible odds & pandering to the whims of the power structure at the time.

We honor these men & more than likely also Black women for their contribution to modern mixology and the Mint Julep we know and love today.

In this episode, Alexa & Mia cover the evolution of ice as a commodity, how it shifted cocktail culture, and the Black & African American Bartenders who set trends and changed a countries cocktail culture to what we know today. 

Black History IS American History

In this episode we quote heavily from The Daily Beast Article "The Lost African-American Bartenders who Created the Cocktail" by David Wondrich. 

Drink History is hosted by Alexa Wilkinson & Mia Fio Rito.

Go to drinkhistorypodcast.com to learn more about upcoming episodes and cocktail recipes... and don't forget to smash that subscribe button!

Prohibition… 13 years of a poorly defined & ill enforced constitutional amendment to ban the sale, distribution, and transportation of alcohol. A movement spanning over 100 years; starting from temperance, and ending up in the well oiled, well financed Washington political machine… its legacy is more than just taxation and strange statewide liquor laws.

Join us as Mia & Alexa sit down with a French 75 & Author of Dry Manhattan: Prohibition in New York City and Principle of Bard High School Early College, Michael A. Lerner, PhD to discuss Prohibition's invisible legacy in our everyday lives.

Mia will also lead us through the fun back story of the Prohibition era classic, the French 75, how it got its name and who made it popular.

Drink History is hosted by Alexa Wilkinson & Mia Fio Rito.

Go to drinkhistorypodcast.com to learn more about upcoming episodes and cocktail recipes... and don't forget to smash that subscribe button!

We couldn't do this without the help of:

Diana Pittet - adjunct professor of alcohol history at NYU and the co-founder of Night Owl Hospitality, a cocktail-catering and spirit-education company that is all about elevating your drink experience at home and on-line.

And listeners like you!

Sources:

Casablanca Clip - courtesy of Warner Bros. Pictures

PBS Documentary - https://www.pbs.org/kenburns/prohibition/unintended-consequences/

Jack S. Blocker, Jr, PhD

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1470475/

What was the first cocktail? Where did the name come from?  There has been much speculation about these questions over the centuries. In our first episode, we talk to Estelle Bossy (@theladybossy) about the history of the cocktail, the Sazerac and its amazing PR agent, and the through line between folk lore and modern day cocktails. 

Estelle Bossy is a full-time as a mixologist, sommelier and educator, creating cocktail programs, producing video content, and teaching a diverse range of audiences, both in-person and on-line. You can find her online classes at theladybossy.com

Drink History is hosted by Alexa Wilkinson & Mia Fio Rito. 

Go to drinkhistorypodcast.com to learn more about upcoming episodes and cocktail recipes... and don't forget to smash that subscribe button!

**Corrections: via Estelle Bossy

We couldn't do this without the help of:

David Wondrich - Author of Imbibe!, Punch, & Killer Cocktails

Diana Pittet - adjunct professor of alcohol history at NYU and the co-founder of Night Owl Hospitality, a cocktail-catering and spirit-education company that is all about elevating your drink experience at home and on-line.

And listeners like you!

Every week Alexa & friends will be making cocktails, talking to experts, & searching deep into our boozy past to better understand the history & world impact of cocktails, spirits, wine, beer, and everything in between.