History Straight Up

Happy 250th Birthday, America! Our time-traveling trio heads back to 1776 to celebrate America's 250th anniversary by exploring the signing of the Declaration of Independence. Along the way, they uncover the story behind the Committee of Five, debate the document's true signing date, and toast America's birthday with two patriotic cocktails, the Liberty Bell and the Betsy Ross Spritz....

Our time travelers continue their trek through the decades with a trip to the swinging '60s. John, Carol, and Pete explore everything from the assassination of President Kennedy and the Moon landing to Woodstock, Beatlemania, and Barbie, all while enjoying cocktails that captured the spirit of the era. Pour yourself a glass and join in as they uncover the wild stories and surprising facts that...

Our time travelers kick off their journey through the decades of American history with a stop in the 1950s. From the Cold War and the dawn of television to TV dinners and station wagons, they explore the trends and tensions that defined the era, while sipping two iconic cocktails of the decade: the Mai Tai and the Martini. Pour yourself a glass and join in as they uncover the wild stories and surp...

Raise A Glass To Episode 20! John, Carol, and Pete toast their 20th episode with an out-of-this-world journey through America’s long-running fascination with extraterrestrials. Along the way, they sample two alien-inspired cocktails and ask the question: if aliens visited Earth, what would they drink? Pour yourself a glass and join in as they uncover the wild stories and surprising facts that you...

Barrooms, Barracks, and Battlefields John, Carol, and Pete journey through the First and Second World Wars to explore the drinks that helped soldiers cope with life at war. From rum rations and military traditions, they uncover the stories behind wartime drinking while raising a glass to the men and women who served. Pour yourself a glass and join in as they uncover the wild stories and surprising...

Economic collapse, breadlines, and cocktails. Our time-traveling trio head to the Great Depression, a time of hardship, resilience, and creative drinking. Along the way, they explore the era’s cocktails, uncover the lingering effects of Prohibition, and ask whether a well-made drink can offer comfort in difficult times. Pour yourself a glass and join in as they uncover the wild stories and surpris...

Glittering Wealth & Growing Tensions John, Carol, and Pete don their finest as they step into America’s Gilded Age, raising a glass to an era when fortunes soared, inequality grew, and resentment simmered just beneath the surface. Pour yourself a glass and join in as they uncover the wild stories and surprising facts that you only get when history and happy hour mix. Visit the History Straight...

Big Ideas, Bigger Drinking Habits. Our time travelers take a field trip through history, exploring iconic American landmarks that rose between 1850 and 1920... an era that also happened to be the nation's golden age of drinking. Pour yourself a glass and join in as they uncover the wild stories and surprising facts that you only get when history and happy hour mix. Visit the History Straight U...

Our time traveling trio head to Bridge Lane Winery in Mattituck, NY to uncork the fascinating history of winemaking with Executive Winemaker Juan Micieli-Martinez. Get ready to discover everything you never knew about wine in this week’s special episode. To learn more about Bridge Lane Winery, and purchase their selection of wine, visit bridgelanewine.com . Pour yourself a glass and join in as the...

In this special episode, our time-traveling trio look back at their past adventures while tackling listener questions. Pour yourself a glass and join in as they uncover the wild stories and surprising facts that you only get when history and happy hour mix. Visit the History Straight Up website to get the recipes from the show!

Our time travelers head to the golden age of innovation to explore the gritty realities of factory life during the Industrial Revolution. Then things take a spirited turn as they sample moonshine while diving into the rise of the Temperance Movement and the fight for labor rights. Pour yourself a glass and join in as they uncover the wild stories and surprising facts that you only get when history...

Covered Wagons, Burlesque, & Whiskey. In this episode, our time travelers head west to explore the harsh realities of life on the American frontier, that is if they don’t die of dysentery first. Along the way, they uncover the surprising comedic origins of burlesque and sip on whiskey cocktails inspired by the era. Pour yourself a glass and join in as they uncover the wild stories and surprisi...

History Straight Up is proud to take part in our first Podcasthon, the world’s largest charity podcast event. In this special episode, we shine a spotlight on the incredible mission of Paws of War, an organization dedicated to helping veterans, first responders, and rescue animals in need. We also explore the inspiring history of heroic war dogs who have served bravely alongside soldiers and K-9 u...

The Show Hits The Road. Our hosts mark the tenth episode of season two with a road trip to the Riverhead Ciderhouse in Riverhead, NY. Inside the Prohibition Room, they chat with manager Nick Picataggio and head cidermaker Juan Micieli-Martinez about cider making, local history, and sample some specialty ciders. Along the way, the trio dig into the real history of Johnny Appleseed. Was he a barefoo...

War Debts and Angry Farmers. It turns out revolutions aren’t cheap. Our trio dive into the hefty bill left by the Revolutionary War, the whiskey taxes that followed, and the rebellion they sparked, while sampling whiskey cocktails inspired by the era. Pour yourself a glass and join in as they uncover the wild stories and surprising facts that you only get when history and happy hour mix. Visit the...

Spies, Secrets and Laundry. Our time travelers head back to the Revolutionary era to uncover the secrets of Washington’s Culper Spy Ring, all while sipping cocktails inspired by the age of espionage. Did they really use invisible ink? And what did laundry have to do with spying? Listen to find out. Pour yourself a glass and join in as they uncover the wild stories and surprising facts that you onl...

Presidential Pours This Presidents’ Day, our time travelers raise a glass to the commanders in chief by sampling the favorite cocktails of past presidents. Along the way, they uncover surprising facts about America’s early leaders, and debate the proper way to serve an Old Fashioned. Pour yourself a glass and join in as they uncover the wild stories and surprising facts that you only get when hist...

Love and History Are In The Air. Our hosts celebrate their first Valentine's Day special, by traveling back to the Victorian era to uncover the surprising origins of the holiday. Their journey takes an unexpected turn as they sample popular drinks of the time and reveal some "strange" facts about the era. Pour yourself a glass and join in as they uncover the wild stories and surprising...

Pirates, Forts, and an Open Gate. Our hosts discuss the Battle of Fort Salongo and the rebels who slipped across the Long Island Sound into Connecticut, while sipping a historic punch that might just be their best yet. Were these rebels really pirates? And did our trio finally find a cocktail they actually enjoy? Pour yourself a glass and join in as they uncover the wild stories and surprising fac...

Cannons, chaos, and contested ground. In this episode, our time-traveling trio explore the most fought-over square footage in the nation while sipping on a classic cocktail, The Stone Fence. Find out why everyone wanted this small fort and the big role it played in American history. Pour yourself a glass and join in as they uncover the wild stories and surprising facts that you only get when histo...

The British are Coming! Our time travelers recount Paul Revere’s Midnight Ride and dive into the real story of the night that sparked a revolution, while raising a glass of George Washington’s favorite drink. Pour yourself a glass and join in as they uncover the wild stories and surprising facts that you only get when history and happy hour mix. Visit the History Straight Up website to get the rec...

Drunk patriots, rum drinks, and a revolution brewing. Our time-traveling trio sample popular colonial-era rum drinks while exploring the drunken chain of events that pushed the Loyal Nine to start the Boston Tea Party. Pour yourself a glass and join in as they uncover the wild stories and surprising facts that you only get when history and happy hour mix. Visit the History Straight Up website to g...

This season our time travelers stumble through 250 years of American history, and the drinks that got us through it! Season Two kicks off with our time travelers heading back to the days of the Pilgrims, where beer played a much bigger role than the history books ever mentioned. Get ready for a wild lesson and boozy stories you only wish they taught back in school. Pour yourself a glass and join i...

Our hosts raise a glass to the New Year and the start of Season Two with three celebratory drinks. Along the way, they play a round of Fact or Fiction, explore the history of champagne, and toast the launch of a new season of stumbling through 250 years of history and drinking. Pour yourself a glass and join in as they uncover the wild stories and surprising facts that you only get when history an...

It’s the final episode of the year, and our time travelers are facing the cocktail they’ve avoided at all costs, the Mary Pickford. Join them as they dive into the drink’s mysterious origins and decide once and for all whether its bad reputation is deserved. Pour yourself a glass and join in as they uncover the wild stories and surprising facts that you only get when history and happy hour mix. Vi...