Greg and Sother are back in the pool at Tales of the Cocktail 2026! On Day Four they’re joined by Shawn Lickliter and Vay Su, the owners of Vandell in Los Angeles which is up for best new cocktail bar at this year’s Spirited Awards. They discuss what makes Los Angeles different from New York City, their approach to inventing drinks (and when you cease tweaking a classic and start inventing something new) and what the incredible success of their bar has meant to them and their team. Then everyone gets a poolside spritz delivery, courtesy of Luxardo.

PLUS Charlotte returns to talk about her career in the industry, going from bartender to brand rep to her current position at Tales, and what she’s looking forward to in the hospitality industry.

Follow Shawn at @shawninverta

Follow Vay at @bearandstone

Follow Vandell at @vandell.losangeles

Follow Luxardo at @luxardousa

LINKS

• Become a Regular: patreon.com/SpeakeasyRegulars
• For resources on dealing with cold hard water agents in your community visit nouswithoutyou.la/ and @thenycalliance
• The Speakeasy is now on YouTube! Tune in to “see” what we’re talking about at youtube.com/@Speakeasy.Podcast
• Learn more about Luxardo at luxardousa.com
• Check out Quiote Imports at quioteimports.com and use promo code “Speakeasy” to get free shipping at checkout.

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Greg and Sother are back in the pool at Tales of the Cocktail 2026! On Day Three they tough out tropical storm Bertha with Kate Gerwin, the owner of Albuqurque’s Happy Accidents and a Top Four Finalist for Best US Bar Mentor. Kate walks through her philosophy of bar mentorship, how her feelings on being a mentor have evolved over the years, and what it’s like to go from bartender to bar owner. Plus, she teases her new concept Bad Apple over some delicious apple brandy from Laird’s

PLUS, Charlotte Voisey joins Greg and Sother to talk about the good work Tales of the Cocktail Foundation does behind the scenes.

Follow Kate at @alchemistkate

Follow Happy Accidents at @happyaccidentsbar

Follow Laird’s at @lairdsapplejack

LINKS

• Become a Regular: patreon.com/SpeakeasyRegulars
• For resources on dealing with cold hard water agents in your community visit nouswithoutyou.la/ and @thenycalliance
• The Speakeasy is now on YouTube! Tune in to “see” what we’re talking about at youtube.com/@Speakeasy.Podcast
• Learn more about Laird’s at lairdandcompany.com
• Check out Quiote Imports at quioteimports.com and use promo code “Speakeasy” to get free shipping at checkout.

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Greg and Sother are back in the pool at Tales of the Cocktail 2026! On Day Two they sit down with Taln Rojanavanich from Bar Us in Bangkok. Talk is up for three awards at this year’s spirited awards including Best Cocktail Menu, Best International Bar Team and Best International Cocktail Bar, presented by Gruppo Montenegro. They discuss the bar scene in Thailand, her approach to designing one of the best bars in the world, and what it feels like representing Asia at Tales of the Cocktail. And as a bonus, expect a lot of talk about Thai Street Food.

PLUS, Charlotte Voisey joins Greg and Sother to talk about this year’s festival and how its theme, Spark, is inspiring her to inspire others.

Follow Taln at @taln

Follow Bar Us at @bar.us.bkk

LINKS

• Become a Regular: patreon.com/SpeakeasyRegulars
• For resources on dealing with cold hard water agents in your community visit nouswithoutyou.la/ and @thenycalliance
• The Speakeasy is now on YouTube! Tune in to “see” what we’re talking about at youtube.com/@Speakeasy.Podcast
• Learn more about Gruppo Montenegro at gruppomontenegro.com
• Check out Quiote Imports at quioteimports.com and use promo code “Speakeasy” to get free shipping at checkout.

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Greg and Sother are back in the pool at Tales of the Cocktail 2026! For the first day of Tales they’re joined by Libby Lingua from Highball in Phoenix, who’s a Spirited Award top four finalist for Best US Bartender, presented by Brown-Forman. Libby discusses the down-to-earth approach to bartending she’s cultivated at Highball (including a pony beer and hotdog combo) her time at Century Grand and its legacy of experiential bars, and how she deals with being recognized by the Tales of the Cocktail Foundation as one of the best bartenders in the country.

PLUS, Charlotte Voisey joins Greg and Sother to discuss her career working with the TotC foundation in New Orleans, and the Tuesday seminar that lights a spark in her.

Follow Libby at @oolalibby

Follow Highball at @highballphx

LINKS

Become a Regular: patreon.com/SpeakeasyRegulars

For resources on dealing with cold hard water agents in your community visit nouswithoutyou.la/ and @thenycalliance

Learn more about Old Forester and Brown-Forman at brown-forman.com

Check out Quiote Imports at quioteimports.com and use promo code “Speakeasy” to get free shipping at checkout

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

A lot’s changed since Tommy Tardie opened the Flatiron Room in 2012. New York is different, guests are different… and Tommy’s expanded the business from a whiskey bar to an award-winning restaurant and jazz club, as well as to a second New York location and a third one coming soon in Miami. Tommy talks about lessons from the last decade and a half, including what he’s learned from amassing a massive whiskey collection, what being a type-A creative means for you as a business owner, and how a career in advertising prepared him for life as a bar owner.

PLUS it’s Tales of the Cocktail time baby! Greg and Sother are going to be at the festival all next week poolcasting, so tune in for daily updates and more than a few drinks.

Follow Tommy at @tommytardie

Follow the bars at @theflatironroom_nomad, @theflatironroom_murrayhill and @theflatironroom_miami

LINKS

• Become a Regular: patreon.com/SpeakeasyRegulars
• For resources on dealing with cold hard water agents in your community visit nouswithoutyou.la/ and @thenycalliance
• The Speakeasy is now on YouTube! Tune in to “see” what we’re talking about at youtube.com/@Speakeasy.Podcast
• Check out Quiote Imports at quioteimports.com and use promo code “Speakeasy” to get free shipping at checkout.

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

How do you follow up one of the most acclaimed modern classic cocktail books of all time? By writing a modern book about classic cocktails, naturally. Toby Maloney and Emma Janzen sit down to talk about their new book “The Classic Cocktail Sessions” which Toby almost considers a prequel to their first collaboration “The Bartender’s Manifesto.” They talk about their creative process (including who’s a stricter editor), how the hospitality industry has changed since their first book, and why underrated drinks like the Hurricane and the White Russian deserve more respect than they get.

PLUS, Greg’s running a promotion! Post a pic of yourself with a fresh bottle from Workhorse Rye or Modern Ancient Spirits AND Violet Crown Spirits, tag him and the podcast, and he’ll send you a free bottle of Quiote Imports Agave Nectar.

Follow Emma at @emmajanzen

Follow Toby at @tobycocktail

Follow the book at @theclassiccocktailsessions

LINKS

• Become a Regular: patreon.com/SpeakeasyRegulars
• For resources on dealing with cold hard water agents in your community visit nouswithoutyou.la/ and @thenycalliance
• The Speakeasy is now on YouTube! Tune in to “see” what we’re talking about at youtube.com/@Speakeasy.Podcast
• Check out Quiote Imports at quioteimports.com and use promo code “Speakeasy” to get free shipping at checkout.

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

The Speakeasy is off this week BUT we have a special announcement. This show is an official media partner of Tales of the Cocktail 2026. Tune in for live updates from the festival and in the meantime enjoy this classic episode from Club Bardo in Savannah, Georgia.

LINKS

• Become a Regular: patreon.com/SpeakeasyRegulars
• For resources on dealing with cold hard water agents in your community visit nouswithoutyou.la/ and @thenycalliance
• The Speakeasy is now on YouTube! Tune in to “see” what we’re talking about at youtube.com/@Speakeasy.Podcast
• Check out Quiote Imports at quioteimports.com and use promo code “Speakeasy” to get free shipping at checkout.

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

What’s harder than building out and opening a new cocktail bar in Williamsburg Brooklyn? Building out and opening a new dance floor underneath the bar you just opened. That’s the task Patty Dennison & Ally Marrone set for themselves when they opened up Kinda Nice and Shenanigans earlier this year and in the next few months respectively. They sit down and talk about the buildout, what makes their partnership special and unique, and why they think the high/dive concept in bars has captured so many hearts and minds (and awards) over the last few years.

PLUS, does it seem like those touchscreen soda machines are everywhere these days? Greg does a shallow deep dive into the history and mechanics of the coca-cola freestyle machine, including how they might be introducing dairy next, and how the answer to “are these things mining my data?” is exactly what you’d expect.

Follow Kinda Nice at @kindanicebk

Follow Ally at @alpal_625

Follow Patty at @pineapple_patt

LINKS

• Become a Regular: patreon.com/SpeakeasyRegulars
• For resources on dealing with cold hard water agents in your community visit nouswithoutyou.la/ and @thenycalliance
• The Speakeasy is now on YouTube! Tune in to “see” what we’re talking about at youtube.com/@Speakeasy.Podcast
• Check out Quiote Imports at quioteimports.com and use promo code “Speakeasy” to get free shipping at checkout.

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

How do you innovate in a world built on luxury and tradition? Justin Meade sits down to talk about how Maison Telmont is innovating to make sustainable champagne. That includes shipping their bottles only by sail power, redesigning the glass and the shape of the bottle itself to be lighter, and partnering with organizations like SailGP and the Billion Oyster Project to reduce their carbon footprint while still making great bubbles. Incidentally, the whole thing takes on kind of a nautical theme, which is a bonus.

PLUS, Knicks in Five! Sports are heating up across the country but what does that mean for bars and liquor stores. Some people are betting big, but whether the fans show up remains to be seen.

Follow Maison Telmont at @champagnetelmont

LINKS

• Become a Regular: patreon.com/SpeakeasyRegulars
• For resources on dealing with cold hard water agents in your community visit nouswithoutyou.la/ and @thenycalliance
• The Speakeasy is now on YouTube! Tune in to “see” what we’re talking about at youtube.com/@Speakeasy.Podcast
• Check out Quiote Imports at quioteimports.com and use promo code “Speakeasy” to get free shipping at checkout.

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

The first issue of Imbibe Magazine hit store shelves twenty years ago in 2006. It was a fascinating time to be a drinks magazine because drinks – and magazines – have changed A LOT since then. Paul Clarke, Imbibe’s Editor in Chief sits down with Greg and Sother to talk about the last twenty years in the drinks publication’s history: from its Y2K roots to the heady days of the cocktail revolution in the 2010s to the bad situations we’ve all had to make the best of in 2020 and beyond. Paul gets into what has and hasn’t changed, what modern drinkers want in a cocktail program, and how it’s always important to make sure you’re serving your readers… and your listeners first.

PLUS, Greg went to Canada and guess what’s in full swing up there? It begins with “summer” and ends with “sherry.”

Follow Imbibe at @imbibe

Follow Paul at @cocktailchron

LINKS

• Become a Regular: patreon.com/SpeakeasyRegulars
• For resources on dealing with cold hard water agents in your community visit nouswithoutyou.la/ and @thenycalliance
• The Speakeasy is now on YouTube! Tune in to “see” what we’re talking about at youtube.com/@Speakeasy.Podcast
• Check out Quiote Imports at quioteimports.com and use promo code “Speakeasy” to get free shipping at checkout.

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.