Three Questions, Three Drinks with Chris Mikolay

CAREER ADVICE. Over 3 “big boy/big girl” drinks that are as sophisticated as they are boozy, Mike Silvestro and Megan Wolf, CEO and COO of global private aviation company FlexJet respectively, share the practical and unconventional career development lessons that have propelled them into the rarefied air of the C-suite. Whether you've just taken your first brave steps into the "real world", are fr...

RIDICULOUS AND RANDOM RAPID-FIRE QUESTIONS. With two of the best cocktails ever poured on the pod fueling a frenetic conversation, Episode 44 asks a series of increasingly idiotic questions, including which two animals, if merged together, would make the ultimate animal (it’s obviously a dolphin that could fly like a hawk, duh). The OG 3Q3D squad is in rare form for this one, so dial down your IQ,...

LOVE! GENDER! SEX! In this very special Valentine’s Day episode, 3Q3D regulars Amanda, Chris and Matt turn down the lights, pour a few drinks, and let nature take its course. Chris first questions the mystery of love over a liquid aphrodisiac, Amanda then ponders the plight of the modern man while sharing her Tijuana Taxi, and Matt pairs his climactic final question with a drink inspired by Cupid’...

HAPPINESS! Noted speaker, author and “Happiness Expert” Paul Krismer pours a favorite Canadian cocktail and sheds light on how much of our happiness is determined by our DNA, the simple things we can do to improve our level of happiness, and whether being happy is even the right pursuit to begin with. It turns out happiness can be experienced in many ways, including, for example, having a great co...

SPORTS, MEDIA & THE MAN IN THE ARENA. On the eve of departing to cover the Winter Olympics in Beijing, Wall Street Journal sportswriter and New York Times bestselling author Jason Gay swings by 3Q3D to answer questions both thoughtful and ridiculous. With his job at the nexus of sports, media and business, Jason thoughtfully opines on the evolving nature of our national sports obsession, the fine...

LIVING A MOST UNUSUAL LIFE. When confronted with two possible paths, how often do we really choose the one less trodden? While most of us follow the crowd when it comes to careers, where we live and even where we vacation, Nate Adams has consistently taken the road less traveled. From Madagascar to Medellin and seemingly everywhere in between, Nate has explored and lived in some of the most remote...

HEALTH & WELLNESS! In a return to the classic 3 Questions, 3 Drinks format, the OG 3Q3D squad rates their physical, mental and spiritual health while vowing to make some radical life changes*. Chris blends up a delicious vodka-infused fruit smoothie and wonders why nobody wants to hear about CrossFit, Amanda determines real self-care means making a magnificent maple whiskey sour and taking a brisk...

MARRIAGE. Matthew Fray’s writings on marriage and divorce, including his most famous blog post, “She Divorced Me Because I Left Dishes by the Sink”, have been read by tens of millions worldwide. In this episode, Matthew shares 3 great bourbons and a bracingly honest perspective on marriage, divorce and what he wished he had done differently to save his own relationship. Men, Matthew believes, are...

FAME! Emmy award-winning Cleveland media personality Stephanie Haney brings 3 blue checkmarks and a lot of fun to this conversation on the evolving nature of fame. Over several drinks served up at Cleveland’s best cocktail bar, the Velvet Tango Room; Chris, Amanda and Stephanie debate whether society is entitled to the inner lives of celebrities, ponder what it means that kids now want to be YouTu...

THE HOLIDAY EPISODE! In the true spirit of Christmas, Amanda, Chris and Matt begin Episode 36 by arguing over the better Christmas movie – Elf vs. Christmas Vacation, and Home Alone vs. A Christmas Story – until their attention shifts to the troubling bullying behaviors of Rudolph’s fellow reindeer. While answering more listener questions (this time all holiday related), the group holds its first...

MAILBAG! Chris, Amanda and Matt struggle with the crippling burden of worldwide fame and high expectations as 3Q3D climbs the Top Podcasting charts. To soothe themselves, they mix up a few drinks recommended by listeners and answer questions about each other and the show. As they skim the surface on several fantastic listener-suggested questions, the group agrees many are deserving of a deeper dis...

STRANGE BUT TRUE FACTS! As a kid, I was fascinated with the Guinness Book of World Records and all sorts of strange and interesting facts. So I thought it would be a good idea to invite 3Q3D fan favorites Colt McCutcheon and Doug Harvey back into the studio to record an episode on all things weird but true. Alas, Colt opens the show with a Greek history lesson about Achilles lesser known little br...

THE FUTURE! If the 3 Questions, 3 Drinks podcast is ever the subject of a documentary chronicling its meteoric rise and eventual implosion, they’ll point to Episode 33 as the beginning of the end. Debating whether we should be optimistic or pessimistic about the fate of humanity over the next 100 years, Chris and Amanda take decidedly opposite views. Halfway through this episode you’ll either be r...

Episode 22 explored Faith, and it was one of 3Q3D’s most popular episodes to-date. Back for an encore performance, Fr. Patrick Schultz (Parochial Vicar at Sacred Heart of Jesus Catholic Church) and Dr. Matthew Carey Jordan, Ph. D., join Chris Mikolay for another insightful conversation, this time focusing on the causes of America’s declining belief in God, what could reverse that trend, and why el...

PARENTING! Fresh off the stage from her sold out show and running on fumes, “Truth Bomb Mom” Kristina Kuzmic recharges with 3 phenomenal drinks and an energizing 3Q3D conversation with Chris and Matt. Raising 14 kids between them, the group examines the unintentionally awful things we often say to our children, debates whether there are universal rules for parenting, and ultimately agrees that Mat...

ENTERTAINMENT! Cleveland comedy legend Mike Polk, Jr. swings by the studio brandishing his favorite Irish whiskey and joins Amanda, Chris, and Matt for a fun and frenetic conversation. Like a swift kick to the crotch, the opening Algonquin cocktail serves up a side of schadenfreude and an historic comedic connection, until a masterfully made Manhattan makes the group mull the merits of our enterta...

PET PEEVES! Find out just how petty your OG 3Q3D crew is as Chris, Amanda and Matt arrive locked and loaded with a variety of new drinks and individual lists of Top 10 Pet Peeves. From the AGONY of resetting a Netflix password with a tiny remote to the EXASPERATINGLY AWFUL people who don’t understand basic texting etiquette, the conversation turns particularly feisty when Amanda squares off with C...

THINK DIFFERENT. You have never met anyone like Stuart Jenkins. A former elite marathoner, Stuart is a footwear industry legend responsible for commercializing numerous massively successful technologies for brands like Nike, Reebok, Ugg, and Hoka. However, Stuart’s career has been as unconventional as the way he thinks. Stuart grew up on an 8,000 acre cattle ranch in Broken Bow, and he is equal pa...

HEROES. Who are your heroes? Have you ever been let down by a hero? Or have you ever known an ordinary person who did something truly heroic? Chris, Matt and Amanda discuss all things “heroes”, including what constitutes a hero (not so easy, it turns out) and just how close Amanda was to dancing with the devil at a Bill Clinton campaign stop. Drinks in this episode: >> The “Fall Cocktail” – 3 oz a...

CREATIVITY! It has been said that creativity is just intelligence having fun. If that’s the case, then this is a particularly smart episode as 3Q3D regulars Chris and Amanda are joined by former professional ballet dancer turned entrepreneur Jordan Pacitti, founder of the global skincare brand Jordan Samuel, to discuss all things creativity while inventing brand new cocktails (with varying degrees...

Everyone in life deserves a second chance. Revisiting prior questions they wish they could have answered differently, posing questions they wanted to ask but never did, and mixing their favorite drinks from the first two dozen episodes, Chris, Amanda and Matt are joined by a 3Q3D superfan for a conversation that (in true 3Q3D fashion) veers from the superficial to the profound and everywhere in be...

On November 7th, 2020, 7 year-old Vincent William Baran – Vinny – was riding his bike with his family on a beautiful Fall afternoon when he was tragically struck and killed by a car turning out of a parking lot. In a conversation both raw and inspiring, Ben Baran, Vinny’s father, sits down to talk candidly about that day, how the family has been coping with an unimaginable loss, and the individual...

EDUCATION. Strap on that new backpack mom just bought you and get on the bus with the OG 3Q3D podcasting crew for a special back-to-school episode. Broadcasting from an outdoor festival under a blazing sun while being attacked by killer bees, Amanda, Chris and Matt keep their composure to ruminate upon the subjects that should be taught in schools but aren’t, the true value of a liberal arts educa...

FAITH. In an exceptionally personal episode, Chris explores his struggle to believe in a higher power with two people who have thought and studied deeply on matters of faith. Joined by Matt Jordan (and his fancy Philosophy Ph. D.) and Father Patrick Schultz (Parochial Vicar at Sacred Heart of Jesus Catholic Church), Episode 22 of 3Q3D tackles important questions, including, “what is the best argum...

ENTREPRENEURSHIP!  Matt Kaulig and Tim Clepper are rockstar businessmen and philanthropists with an enviable track record – both literally and figuratively.  Starting their partnership as friends first, Matt and Tim have built the single member family office, Kaulig Companies, into a juggernaut: the business now encompasses Kaulig Racing (with 3 cars in NASCAR’s Xfinity series and 2 teams set to r...