The Modern Bar Cart Podcast

In this enlightening conversation with Greg Benson of Bar None and The Speakeasy , some of the topics we discuss include: How Greg transitioned from a career in the brewing world to a life behind the stick, slinging cocktails, niche agave spirits, and happiness. A little about the two podcasts that Greg helps bring to the airwaves, including the deep-dive, historical contemplations of Bar None and...

In this lively, in-depth discussion with tomato expert Craig LeHoulier, some of the topics we discuss include: The history of the tomato - from its origins in the Americas, to its domination of the European culinary scene, to its current commodity status at the supermarket. How Craig left the pharma industry to pursue his keen interest in gardening, which led to a home garden bursting with forgott...

In this conversation with Calsin Hoyle of Molecular Food and Cocktails, some of the topics we discuss include: Calsin's journey from Nairobi, Kenya, to Neuroscience labs in the DC area, to a budding cocktail and dessert company. What molecular mixology actually IS and which techniques and ingredients normally fall under this umbrella category. The magic of spherification and how gelling compounds...

In this mini episode, we give you a preview of some of the awesome stuff we have planned for you in the second half of 2020.

In this really informative chat with Jake Parrott, National Sales Representative for spirits importer Haus Alpenz, some of the topics we cover include: How Jake took a hobbyist interest in spirits and turned it into a profession - in essence, the sort of story that a lot of our listeners might find inspiring. How Haus Alpenz grew to become one of the foremost champions of spirits and fortified win...

In this eye opening conversation with Baijiu expert Derek Sandhaus, some of the topics we discuss include: What Baijiu is - which might seem like a simple definitions game, but it's way more interesting than that. How Derek came to spend years in China studying the culture and learning as much as possible about Baijiu and the people who make and enjoy it. What sort of microbial magic needs to happ...

In this conversation with designer and cocktail author Nick Barclay, some of the topics we discuss include:   How Nick made his way to Australia by way of the UK, and how the Land Down Under's flourishing cocktail culture inspired him to start designing for the liquid medium. What Nick means when he aims for "simplicity" of design, either in a print, in his book, Measurements: A Proportional Cockt...

Some of the things we discuss in this wide-ranging conversation with bartender, author, and podcaster Shawn Soole of Soole Hospitality Concepts include: How Shawn made his way to Victoria, British Columbia by way of Australia, and how he explains his city's disproportionate influence on the cocktail world, relative to its size. Why he and his team at Clive's Cocktail Lounge in Victoria decided to...

In this conversation with Distilled Spirits Council President and CEO Chris Swonger, some of the topics we discuss include: What DISCUS does as a lobbying organization and why storytelling is so important when it comes to capturing the attention of policymakers. How seemingly unrelated forces like steel imports, fighter jets, and trade wars have a direct impact on the sticker price of our favorite...

This is Earth No Patio (Episode 9), where Eric provided some voice-over work as inspiration for Ben Turner, who produced this strange and amazing piece of audio art in return.  

Some of the topics we discuss with Ben Turner, creator of Earth No Patio include: How Ben's experiences in the art and culinary world led him to this structured, yet highly associative experiment of pairing recipes with soundscapes. Why some of the best (or most efficient) recipes can seem almost boring or banal, but tend to be extremely thoughtful in their structure and sequence. The intuitive pr...

In this episode, Eric catches up with Chris Kiertz (@cocktail_chris) about his pet project, The Home Bar Awards - an inclusive monthly cocktail competition hosted on Instagram designed specifically for home bartenders. Some of the topics we discuss include: How Chris fell back in love with the spirits and cocktail industry and fused it with his love of marketing to build a number of extremely popu...

In this second installment of our three-part series on the art of the recipe, we emerge from the depths of ancient history and trace the recipe from its early modern origins to its current manifestation. Some of the texts and topics we cover include: The Physiology of Taste or Meditations on Transcendental Gastronomy by Jean-Enthelme Brillat Savarin (as translated and annotated by M.F.K. Fisher) M...

We take a trip into the deep past to locate the origins of the recipe. From the African Savannah, to Babylon, to Rome, we sift through clay tablets and scrolls with some of the world's oldest recipes to see what they can teach us. Along the way, we dabble in Epicurean physics and explore the parable of Don's Mix.

In this episode, we take questions from our listener mailbag and answer the most burning questions about spirits & cocktails. Some of the topics we cover include: How to flavor egg whites The best way to smoke cocktail garnishes Which popular bottles might vanish from the shelves as a result of the COVID-19 Coronavirus The most popular herbs for at-home cocktails How to support Modern Bar Cart dur...

In this juniper-perfumed discussion with gin expert, author, and spirits judge Aaron Knoll, some of the topics we cover include: The story of how Aaron fell in love with gin at 3am at a dive bar in Buffalo, NY. How he developed his pentagonal (and later, hexagonal) visual representation of gin flavor profiles. We then do a sample tasting using this visualization to demonstrate how to systematicall...

In this amaro-driven conversation with Nick Fisher of Cocktail Chemistry, some of the topics we discuss include: How Nick started his incredibly popular YouTube Channel and how he organizes his videos by subject to appeal to different audiences Why he decided to subject himself to a comparative tasting of nine different domestic and imported Fernets Where Fernet fits into the larger world of Amari...

In this lush, verdant conversation with herbalist Colleen O'Bryant of Wild Roots Apothecary, some of the topics we discuss include: Which herbs, flowers, and succulents are blooming right now and just begging to be harvested and enjoyed. The various ways to prepare your foraged or cultivated plants, whether that's in a DIY bitters, a sweet and tangy Oxymel, or even a flavorful hydrosol. How to use...

We discuss the effects that COVID-19 Coronavirus has had on the spirits and cocktail industry and then examine the history of spirits during times of plague in bygone eras. Some of the topics we discuss include: How to make a Penicillin cocktail The legend of Four Thieves Vinegar Aqua Mirabilis (Miracle Water) and distilling technology Plague Water, feat. opium tears, viper flesh, and ambergris Wh...

This time around, Eric gets to know two awesome bartenders-turned-consultants: Susan Eggett and Alex Maynard. They're the masterminds behind the new beverage program at Sobre Mesa, a new Afro-Latino cocktail lounge opening in Oakland, California. Inspired by Chef Nelson German's desire to celebrate his Dominican roots and African heritage with cuisine and beverages that sport a distinctly New Worl...

Eric interviews international food and drink maven Virginia Miller. She's the Western North America Academy Chair for the World's 50 Best Restaurants, as well as a contributor to some of the world's most lauded culinary and beverage publications. Some of the topics we discuss include: How Virginia leveraged her innate curiosity to transition from a home schooled education to a career and food and...

We talk with a panel of esteemed guests about the rise of "Ready-to-Drink" cocktails (RTDs). These are the canned counterparts to contemporary beers and wines, and they are on the rise around the world. Our guests include: Lead Steward for the American Distilling Institute (ADI) and prolific spirits judge and cocktail writer David T. Smith - author of The Gin Dictionary . Keli Rivers, who is the U...

This time around, we catch up with H. Joseph Ehrmann, proprietor of the legendary San Francisco bar, Elixir, and one of the driving forces behind Fresh Victor, an awesome, fresh-juice-based cocktail mixer line that's been making waves in the beverage community. Some of the topics we discuss include: How he combined his culinary art, general contracting, and business administration, and PR skills t...

We interview Master Distiller Lance winters of St. George Spirits in Alameda, CA. He's a pioneer in the industry and a champion of craft distilling. Some of the things we cover in this wide-ranging conversation include: How Lance's childhood fascination with flavors, spices, and seasonings eventually led him into the beer and whiskey world, where he met Jorg Rupf, the legendary founder of St. Geor...

Xander Shepherd and Zach Spohler are two of the three founders of Artet, a groundbreaking cannabis aperitif that's making waves in the cocktail space. In this interview, we discuss: How these two New York natives took the leap into the world of entrepreneurship to pursue a dream that merged their passions for art, hospitality, and cannabis. What an aperitif is, and how Artet stays true to the hist...