What We're Drinking with Dan Dunn

Dan is joined in-studio by WWD's Official Brooklyn Correspondent Scott Alexander for a lively, in-depth discussion about a service industry and tipping culture gone mad. The fellas take on “tipflation”— the proliferation of bars, restaurants and other establishments implementing digital payment checkout systems that prompt customers to select the gratuity rate before any service has even been rend...

This one’s for anyone who’s ever woken up with a hangover and thought, "What I could really use right now is… another drink!" That’s right, we’re talking about that most morbid of libations, the Corpse Reviver #2, one of the few cases where the sequel is better than the original — it’s like the "Godfather Part 2" or "Wrath of Kahn" of cocktails. In just over 180 secon...

As Dan sees it, there are precisely 10 things you must do in a bar before your LAST last call, from making a lifelong friend to having sex in the bathroom. Whether you’re a fellow stiff-necked sot bound for Satan-town or a holy roller who only drinks on the Lord’s day (because when you think about it, every day is the Lord’s day, isn’t it?), Dan is here to help, delivering the list in all its ingl...

Friend of the show Jon Taffer returns to talk about his latest venture, Taffer's Browned Butter Bourbon. Other topics of discussion include, but are not limited to, Taffer's Tavern, the Las Vegas Knights, ageism, and the enduring appeal of Jon's long-running TV show "Bar Rescue" and the craziest things he's encountered on set. Also, another installment of "Drinks of the Week,"...

Dan is joined by Johnny Van Zant, lead vocalist of the legendary band Lynyrd Skynyrd and proprietor of a new American whiskey brand called Hell House. They talk rock n'roll and booze. Johnny reveals which Skynyrd songs he loves to perform most, and Dan teaches him the Philadelphia Eagles fight song. Also, an update on Dan's next book, and another installment of "Drinks of the Week" featu...

In the course of 180-some-odd seconds, Dan lays out the history and proper preparation technique of the cocktail canon's most slovenly standout — a middling, uncomplicated cream drink from the mid-20th century that would likely have faded into obscurity had it not been plucked from a room crowded with milkshake-like beverages of the era and ushered into the spotlight by Jeff Bridges in the 1998 mo...

"Somebody Feed Phil" star Phil Rosenthal and Emmy-winning comedian/writer Tom Caltabiano join Dan for an epic exploration of tequila and mezcal. Agave-based spirits are the hottest category in America, and on this episode the fellas sample some heavy hitters — on the tequila side, Tequila Ocho Plata, Nosotros Tequila Madera and El Tesoro de Don Felipe. Mezcal featured includes Hedonistas...

In the time it took James Bond to escape before Goldfinger's laser beam could burn a hole through his short and curlies, Dan spills the beans about author Ian Fleming's second most favorite creation, the Vesper, a beguiling combination of gin, vodka, Lillet and bitters. Once Fleming invented the drink, he named it after the very first Bond girl, thankfully one with a name that hasn’t become SUPER...

Join us for a joyous celebration of some of America's finest whiskies including Barrell Bourbon, Widow Jane Rye, FEW Bourbon, Michter's Rye and Clermont Steep American Single Malt. Recorded at one of LA's coolest watering holes, Melrose Umbrella Co. Dan's guests include WWD's Chief West Hollywood Correspondent, Katia Dragotis, Emmy-winning writer and comedian Tom Caltabiano, film director Marcos E...

The legend returns! Dan Aykroyd is back on the pod, talking Crystal Head Vodka, his favorite cocktails, aliens, Saturday Night Live, Steve Martin, mustaches, fans' tattoos and much, much more. Also, in another installment of our wildly popular segment "Outside the Zone," Dan goes ballistic over a PR pitch about a water bottle. Our Sponsors: * Check out Diet Smoke and use my code WWDPOD20...

As Dan regularly tells anyone who'll listen, his #1 favorite tequila is Tequila Fortaleza, a brand with 150 years of experience behind it. And so we're thrilled to welcome Fortaleza's Billy Erickson for an in-depth chat about everything agave spirits-related. Dan and Billy are joined by WWD's Official Los Angeles Correspondent, Katia Dragotas. Recorded on location at State Social House on the lege...

Dan and radio legend "Dead Air Dave" Sozinho wax nostalgic about an epic adventure they embarked upon many years ago. Their triumphant march across the European Continent on the mother of all booze junkets included run-ins with a well-known American actor in Turin, a pair of ball-hugging Italian jeans that nearly rendered Dan infertile and their own personal D-Day on Normandy’s Omaha Bea...

Dan chats up Cody Cannon, vocalist/guitarist.songwriter for a fantastic band called Whiskey Myers, who in addition to making great music have partnered with the award-winning distillers at Bespoken to make their own straight bourbon, Uncle Chicken's Sippin' Whiskey. And with America's biggest drinks festival, Tales of the Cocktail, taking place this week in New Orleans, Dan waxes nostalgic about h...

Just hours after having emergency eye surgery, Dan goes on an epic rant about Eater Los Angeles. He also laments the passing of one of America's all-time great breweries, Anchor. Plus, hear his review of the latest bourbon expression from Wild Turkey. Our Sponsors: * Check out Diet Smoke and use my code WWDPOD20 for a great deal: https://www.dietsmoke.com Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.c...

In the time it takes dice a pineapple, Dan reveals all about a tiki classic called the Jungle Bird. While not as famous as the Mai Tai or Singapore sling, it's every bit as tasty and — Dan contends — a more authentically "tropical" libation that the aforementioned. It’s made with rum, pineapple and lime, the holy trinity of tropical tiki drinks. The thing that sets the Jungle Bird apart,...

Once upon a time in London, a bartending legend wondered what would happen if he were to merge a purported depressant like alcohol with an energizing jolt of caffeine... the result was the Espresso Martini, which was created in the 1980s and is currently riding a wave of renewed popularity. In the time it takes to brew a pot of coffee, Dan pours out everything he's learned about this lively libati...

In the time it took James Bond to escape before Goldfinger's laser beam could burn a hole through his short and curlies, Dan spills the beans about author Ian Fleming's second most favorite creation, the Vesper, a beguiling combination of gin, vodka, Lillet and bitters. Once Fleming invented the drink, he named it after the very first Bond girl, thankfully one with a name that hasn’t become SUPER...

Dan busts out some of the coolest pieces he's ever written about alcohol and nightlife, including an excoriation of a long-since-gone whiskey brand that was apparently created to appeal to horrible people and horrible people only. Also, he rants about gentrification and the demise of the once-great Venice Beach thoroughfare, Abbot Kinney. And finally, he offers up a list of the worst booze-brand n...

Held annually in Paso Robles, CA, the Firestone Walker Invitational Beer Fest is a world-class brew-ha-ha featuring some of the best beer makers in the world. This year it also featured Dan and WWD's Chief Beer Festival Correspondent, Rick McCarthy, who intrepidly ventured up to the Central Coast to sample as many craft brews as their IPA-and Stout-soaked livers would allow. While there, they chat...

Longtime friend of the show Joe Beatrice, founder of Barrell Craft Spirits, drops by to talk whiskey and the upcoming Dad's Day. Hear all about some exciting new liquid from one of our favorite whiskey producers, PLUS a lively discussion about the best and worst fathers in film and TV history, from James Gandolfini as Tony Soprano to Steve Martin in Father of the Bride... and everyone in between....

In Part 2 of our annual ode to warm weather wine, Dan is once again joined by Claire Coppi of SOMM TV to present five more delicious bottles of wine including Malene 2022 Rose, Kendall-Jackson 2021 Vintner’s Reserve Rose, Eleven Eleven 2022 Beckstoffer Sauvignon Blanc, JUSTIN 2022 Sauvignon Blanc and Rodney Strong 2017 Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon. Recorded on location at the Michelin-starred Culver...

In Part 1 of our annual ode to warm weather wine, Dan is joined by Claire Coppi of SOMM TV. Get out your pens and paper and take some notes, because Claire and Dan deliver the goods on five wonderful wines including Chamisal Vineyards 2021 SLO Chardonnay, Kendall-Jackson 2021 Low Calorie Chardonnay and 2021 Vintner’s Reserve Chardonnay, Banshee Ten of Cups Brut Non Vintage and Rodney Strong 2020 C...

Golf legend Annika Sörenstam drops by to chat about her latest venture, a line of honey-tinged, ready-to-drink cocktails called Fizzy Beez. In addition to talking drinks, Dan extracts a couple of golf tips from the Hall of Famer. Also, celebrated restaurateur Jimmy Yeager is on the show to talk the proliferation of junk fees being added to restaurant tabs, and whether or not America's service indu...

All hail the triumphant return of Dan's good pal Zane Lamprey, who hosted the wildly popular (yet somehow, still cancelled) TV shows "Three Sheets," "Drinking Made Easy," "Chug" and "Four Sheets," where he traveled the globe, learning about different cultures by sampling libations with the locals. Speaking of traveling, the interview was recorded on location...

This episode was recorded live at The Stand Comedy Club in New York City on May 4th, 2023. Dan is joined on stage by comedians Ryan Long, Corinne Fisher, Justin Silver, Colum Tyrell and Joe Derosa. It's sponsored by Cuervo and, yes, the tequila was a'flowin that night. Our Sponsors: * Check out Diet Smoke and use my code WWDPOD20 for a great deal: https://www.dietsmoke.com Advertising Inquiries: h...